From the Montgomery Gazette of October 30, 2013, a letter to the editor from President Joan Fidler:

The budget of the Montgomery County Public Schools for FY 2015 is in the early stages of formulation. This budget of over $2 billion is close to 50 percent of the tax-supported budget of Montgomery County. So who are the players who will influence this budget at this critical stage?

 
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From the Montgomery Gazette of August 7, 2013, a letter to the editor by MCTL Board member Robert Monsheimer:

We need to initiate a salary cap to assure that the areas with lower performance have a fair share at seasoned staff. We need seasoned staff in the more challenging schools and should provide financial incentive for those seasoned staff that choose to be in those schools.

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From the Gazette of July 10, 2013, a letter to the editor by MCTL Board member Gordon Brenne:

We’ve also shown there is no correlation between what teachers are paid and student performance improvements. And, because our teachers are paid 20 percent more than teachers in Howard and Fairfax counties, we can afford fewer of them, increasing our reliance on paraeducators to teach in underperforming schools.

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From the Gazette of May 29, 2013:

The Montgomery County Council passed its next budget Thursday with barely a whisper of discontent, which seems remarkable considering the uncertainty of the economy. Anxiety breeds anxiety, especially when money’s involved.

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Are the taxpayers getting their money’s worth from the Montgomery County Public Schools?

 From the Washington Post of May 4, 2013:  

Recently released figures show failure rates of 62 percent for high school students taking the county’s geometry final and 57 percent for those taking the Algebra 2 exam. Among students taking the same courses on the honors level, 30 percent to 36 percent failed the end-of-semester tests in January, according to data from the school system.

The numbers have alarmed parents in the high-performing school system, where nearly 16,000 high school students in seven math courses did not pass their finals — a majority of the roughly 30,000 students taking those tests.  

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From the Washington Post of April 16, 2013:

School spending in Montgomery County will grow by at least $100 million over the next four years, an increase driven by state laws that tighten requirements for annual local funding and shift part of teacher pension costs to counties, officials said Tuesday.

Montgomery spends roughly half of its $4 billion operating budget on K-12 education. But a County Council staff analysis found that state mandates created by the General Assembly in 2012 could turn education funding into what one council member called “a runaway train.”

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Questions sent to Janette Gilman, President, Montgomery County Council of Parent Teacher Associations (MCCPTA), in advance of the meeting of February 28, 2013

1.  How does the MCCPTA define “full funding” for MCPS?  What would you consider the “floor” for the MCPS budget?

2.  What is MCCPTA’s role in determining the MCPS budget?  Is there a tripartite budget committee (MCPS – Unions- MCCPTA) that negotiates and approves the budget prior to its release? Have there been any instances where the MCCPTA did not agree with the MCPS and Union proposals or are you in lock step with them?

3. There are no targets in either the MCPS budget or the MCPS strategic plan for reducing the achievement gap?  Does the MCCPTA support an “equity” budget where funding allocations would favor those schools that have disproportionately high African-American, Hispanic and FARMS concentrations with relatively low performance outcomes? How confident is the MCCPTA that the placement of teachers is strategically determined? What is the MCCPTA position on allocating our most highly-paid, senior and most experienced teachers to red zone schools where the achievement gap is most pronounced?

4.  What is the MCCPTA position on sharing administrative services with the Montgomery County Government – services such as procurement, IT, human resources, etc.?  Are you confident that the costs related to these duplicative  administrative entities are justified and are not stealing resources from the classroom?

5.  Montgomery County has acquired a reputation for the quality of its public schools.  What does the MCCPTA consider the top 3 performance indicators for the success of its students?  How do these indicators compare with Howard and Fairfax counties? 

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From the Washington Examiner of June 25, 2012:

“…the law effectively requires Montgomery County to give the county school system $30 million more in fiscal 2014 than in fiscal 2013, which begins July 1, and to keep funding for Montgomery College at the same level.

“As a result, funds available for other parts of the county — like police, fire, libraries, and the Transportation and the Park and Planning departments — are expected to drop by roughly $71 million…”

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From the Montgomery Gazette of June 22, 2012:

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