Results from Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce’s recently released poll shows a strong lack of confidence in the MCPS School Board. Of the five hundred Montgomery County voters that partook in a sample or cell phone interview, up to 70% blame top leadership for the state of crisis they believe MCPS is in.
This lack of confidence is seen in how 75% of those surveyed blame the school system for low ACT test scores (the average is 14 out of 36) and the system’s financial issues, as seen in the many budget cuts MCPS has had to do. This same percentage also felt that the board’s performance and the overall quality of MCPS lies in-between fair and poor. More than half of poll takers want the replacement of five of the current seven board members and not have them re-elected at the end of their terms this year, further establishing that many MCPS residents feel very poorly about its leaders.
MCPS Board President Robert Porterfield was rather skeptical about the poll results, saying that whoever the poll takers were were not aware of the lack of funding. He feels that it is unfair to fault the leaders when it is really the lack of sufficient tools that make good progress difficult to achieve. State Superintendent Dr. Ed Richard, on the other hand, expressed the inadvisability of giving more money to a system that can’t handle the money well, based on MCPS’s past experiences economically.
“I think that MCPS needs to do a better job with funding, but a lot of students don’t seem to know much about the problems with the school board. Most of us don’t pay attention to that and I think that’s disappointing,” said a freshman from Quince Orchard High School.
In response to the results of the MCPS poll, Montgomery Chamber Board Chairman Judge Charles Price said: “Strong leadership is needed to transform our schools… the Montgomery Chamber, joined by young professionals and families of Montgomery and the Mayor along… are calling upon the community to identify and support candidates who recognize the purpose of education to prepare students to continue their development through certification programs…,” “It is imperative that this be done to ensure Montgomery’s economic future, safety and quality of life.”
Article by MoCo Student staff writer Matthew Minton of Quince Orchard High School