You are here to
learn the facts about how it is an Elected Official can curse a concerned
citizen and not show any remorse! More importantly, you are here because
you are as concerned as we are that leaders in this county remain silent
and are not demanding a public apology from this Elected Official. If you
are here to be a snoop, then I hope you learn something while you are here.
Below is....
My Response to Donna Hathaway Beck's
Autocracy
(Posted July 25, 2007 updated August 26, 2007)
HOME PAGE To learn about
other political issues.
Send FEEDBACK to the
Eddoc
55 days after Beck's act of
misconduct, Beck reads public apology,
August 23, around 7:45pm during School Board
meeting!
INTRODUCTION
When an elected official makes a mistake we expect him or her to be
professional and apologize because we all are human and yes, from time to
time we mess up. However, when an elected official behaves the way Donna
Hathaway Beck (an elected school board member) has, refuses to issue a public
apology, and refuses to write a formal apology letter to the person she called
a bitch it is time that we take a hard look at ourselves and ask: "Is this
the kind of elected official we want to represent us and make decisions on
behalf of our children?"
Note: This issue is not based on race - therefore
it is not a racial issue. This issue is not about persons that excuses or
reprimands inexcusable sexual explicit behavior that is unbecoming of a leader
regardless to age or sexual orientation.
This issue is about an out-of-control Elected Official that misused
county issued technology to call a citizen that spoke out on a valid concern,
a hate-filled evil b-tch! This issue is about the leaders in this county
that so far have looked the other way and thus has allowed an Elected Official
to behave in this manner without recourse or discipline.
This issue is about you; because if you stand by and do nothing, what
happened to Ms. Pruitt could happen to you next!
READ ON
Table of
Contents
Below is a time line and a
chronological chain of events that led me to take this action.
Next is my letter (Zalee
Harris to Donna Hathaway Beck) - Terminating my endorsement of her political
career.
Voice your opinion to the Elected Official and her colleagues
(click
here)
Washington Post news
report dated July 19th that detailed the encounter between People for Changes'
leader and elected school board member Donna Hathaway Beck.
Media saturation
calling for Beck to publicly apologize!
People For Change Press Release, dated August 27, 2007
(Next Steps)
Stop to clock!!!! Donna Hathaway Beck Apologized to the
public!!!!
From:
Friday, 29 June, 2007 AD at 2:52:0 AM
GMT+05:00
When Beck violated three school system policies when she used taxpayer
funded computer equipment and technology to send the derogatory mean-spirited
email to Sandra Pruitt, a parent, citizen,
and voter!
To:
Thursday, 23 August, 2007 AD at 7:45:0
PM GMT+05:00
When Beck invoked a personal point of privilege to open the School
Board meeting by reading a public apology and admitted the actof misconduct
that she committed was
"unfortunate."
It took her
55 days, 5 hours, and 7 minutes
Or...
4,798,380 seconds
to Publicly
Apology!
What are the
facts?
Read the facts below and you decide!
Time Line
June 21st - People for
Change went to the final school board meeting for 2007 to provide a report
card of the new school board.
Despite the role the outgoing student board member played as reported
by the 36-page investigation of Nathaniel Thomas' alleged sexual involvement
with under age male students, during the last school board meeting before
the Summer Break, the Board presented the student board member with a certificate
of appreciation. The presentation and accolades included a short video clip
highlighting his excellent service for the year he was a student board member.
People for Change was shocked that the Board would do something as
politically correct as this and questioned what messages their actions sent
other students and the public at large. Eight members of People for Change
under signed the writing of the letter to the editor that the paper editor
titled: "No Reason to Reward Board Member Leslie Hall"
It should be noted that once we read the 36-page report and learned
of the alleged sexual role the former student board member played while visiting
Nathaniel Thomas after hours, we called for the board to include the removal
of the student board member when they voted to remove Nathaniel Thomas. In
our letter to the editor, People for Change addressed the board because despite
the investigative report that they ordered and despite the fact that they
voted to remove Nathaniel Thomas from the board, which the State Board upheld,
then why would they present the student member with awards when he participated
in the Sexual DARE games as reported?
This is why eight (8) people representing People for Change co-signed
the letter to the editor! Why did Board Member Donna Hathaway Beck target
Sandra Pruitt? Why didn't Hathaway Beck include me or the others that signed
the letter as it was printed by the Post and Gazette?
Please contact the School Board to obtain a copy of the 36-page
investigative report and READ it for yourself. You ought not take
sides until you read the report.
People for Change Mission Statement: To revolutionize change in Prince
George's County!
June 28th The letter
to the editor (see below) was published in the Washington Post Extra and
Gazette. Ms. Pruitt sent an e-blast of the news article without
commentary.
No Reason to Reward Board Member Leslie
Hall
Letters To the Editor
Thursday, June 28, 2007; Page T02
Washington Post
Members of People for Change are responding to the recent acknowledgment
and certificate presented to Leslie Hall, the student school board member,
at the June 21 board meeting.
We see this as a grave mistake by the school board and were very surprised
that board members did this after learning of the scandalous behavior of
Leslie Hall, revealed in the 36-page investigative report on the Nathaniel
B. Thomas issue. It was learned that Leslie Hall was equally involved in
inappropriate behavior, and the school board took no action. Why?
We expect our school board to protect our children in the system and
to support board members who uphold integrity and character. Recognizing
Leslie Hall for leadership and presenting him with a certificate minimizes
the seriousness of his behavior and sends the wrong message to other student
leaders who are on the right track.
How could school board members publicly acknowledge Leslie Hall after
they learned of these inappropriate activities, some relating to suggestive
behaviors that are not becoming of a leader?
As parents, community leaders, education advocates and citizens in Prince
George's County, we felt Leslie Hall's behavior was disgusting and
appalling.
It's apparent we have elected a school board with misguided
judgment.
We previously alerted the school board that there are serious flaws
in how we monitor the ethical code of conduct for students who serve on our
boards and committees. In that light, we called for the immediate removal
of Leslie Hall, but the school board did nothing.
In the corporate world or the military, he would have been reprimanded
and/or terminated for this inappropriate behavior. He is no leader for our
children in Prince George's County, and the school board needs to stop promoting
this nonsense!
Sandra Pruitt, Mitchellville
Terence Lewis, Upper Marlboro
Bill Jones, Bowie
Jerry McLaurin, Fort Washington
Zalee Harris, Temple Hills
Crystal Williams, Accokeek
Harold Waterman, Glendale
Kevin Martin, Upper Marlboro
People for Change in Prince George's County
end
June 29th (Last day the
board was in session)
At 2:52pm Donna used
her Prince George's School Board email account to send an email that read:
"I would appreciate some thoughts/advice on how to deal with this hate-filled
evil bitch. Thanks."
It was clear that she wrote it to her colleagues but she
subliminally sent the email to Sandra Pruitt
directly.
At 2:59pm
Donna sent a second email that was less intrusive but
no less nefarious. It is clear that she realized the first email was sent
inadvertently; however, instead of stopping the madness and apologize, Donna
sent the second one using the word 'evil' as a standalone verb and not as
an adjective to describe the noun bitch.
At 3:01pm Heather Iliff
chimed in like little sister to Donna, and lambasted Sandra Pruitt. Heather's
email appears to protect the feelings of the student board member who spent
his last day as a student board member having to read about how a group of
adults feel about him.
At 4:56pm the former
student member (Leslie Hall) wrote Sandra Pruitt an email from his personal
email account expressing his hurt feelings that Sandra Pruitt would write
about him...as he put it without knowing him...In his email Leslie
Hall denies involvement with Nathaniel Thomas as described by the 36-page
investigation report ordered by the school board. In other words, he wants
us to believe he did not participate in playing the DARE game with Nathaniel
Thomas and the under age male students which involved sucking toes and taking
off clothes.
On June 30th, Sandra
Pruitt filed a written complaint and emailed and hand delivered a copy to
the Board Chair and Vice Chair. The complaint letter documented and outlined
the outrageous behavior displayed by these three board members. Ms. Pruitt's
complaint letter requested the following: (1) The board to investigate the
complaint. (2) Donna to publicly apologize. (3) Donna to resign. The letter
gave the Board and Donna until July 15th to comply with the three requests
or she (Sandra) would go to the media. Copies of the email paper-trial were
attached to the complaint letter.
On July
2nd, the Board Vice Chair sent an email to Sandra Pruitt
acknowledging receipt of the complaint letter and attachments. The Vice Chair
promised that the matter would be addressed and they would get back to
her.
On July 11th around
10:30am, the Board Chair left a voice mail message on Ms. Pruitt's home telephone
line stating that the board was taking action today and that she would be
'satisfied' with the outcome.
Around 11:20am, the
Post Staff Writer Hernandez contacted Ms. Pruitt seeking a statement from
her about the fact that the Board was meeting at 12:00 noon and he informed
Sandra that he was on his way to the Sasscer building to a hearing that he
had been called to by the Board. Sandra would not give him a comment because
in her complaint she promised to wait until July 15th before she talked with
the media and she informed him that she was not aware that the Board was
having a meeting, had not been invited, and therefore had no comment.
Around 2:30pm,
the Post Staff Writer Hernandez called Ms. Pruitt back
informing her that the Board did have a closed session meeting to discuss
appointments, terminations and a possible ethics investigation. Hernandez
informed Sandra that he was given a letter that the board wrote her dated
July 10 and asked her to comment on it (Note: as of 2:30pm Ms. Pruitt had
not received the July10th letter from the board). Sandra refused to comment
on anything he said or questions that he asked her citing her commitment
to the June 30th letter she wrote the board and on the grounds that the Board
had not officially communicated with her their course of action. She stood
firm. Since Ms. Pruitt would not give the media any information, they went
ahead and broke the news in an article dated July 12th.
Around 4:00pm, the secretary
for the Board transmitted the Board's July 10th letter to Ms. Pruitt and
left town to attend a week-long conference in Utah for boards with low performing
schools.
On July 12th Ms. Pruitt
submitted her response to the Board's July 10th letter. She explained her
dissatisfaction with the inadequacy of the letter, the fact that they waited
until the close of business to send it to her after providing a copy to the
media 12 hours earlier, and the fact that Donna was not required to apologize,
which set the stage for the demands that follow. The email was sent to the
Chair and the Vice Chair. To this day, Ms. Pruitt has not received a reply
nor response from the board in reference to the July 12th letter.
On July 16th Ms. Pruitt
and I worked together on drafting a Press Release, which was submitted around
1:30pm to the local media. The Post and the Gazette printed their news reports
in the Washington Post, Extra and the Gazette 'ClassroomNotes' section.
Around 3:00pm, Ms. Pruitt
sent a copy of the Press Release to the president of the NAACP and other
county leaders on her email list. The president of the NAACP contacted us
demanding that we not go to the media but it was too late because the Board
(or someone on the board) contacted the media 5 days before the July 15th
deadline Ms. Pruitt provided the Board in her initial complaint. Therefore,
the Press Release was what People for Change promised it would do if the
Board did not comply with our request by the July 15th deadline. The NAACP
president wanted us to wait until the Board returned from Utah to broker
a peace deal between Hathaway Beck and Ms. Pruitt. Ms. Pruitt provided the
June 30th complaint letter and the Board's July 10th response to the president
of the NAACP. At that point, the president of the NAACP realized that we
had already done the right thing; to no avail. Two days passed and by that
time the Board Chair or Vice Chair would not respond to any of the NAACP's
calls or emails, by July 19th, Ms. Dillard was ready to join us to demand
one last time that Beck apologize and if she did not, then we join forces
to call for her resignation.
After the news broke that clearly detailed Hathaway Beck's infraction,
we received emails and calls from those that know us, follow us, and/or that
wants to help us.
On July 19th, we received
a call from Mayor Eugene Grant asking to take the lead on securing a resolution.
We accepted.
On July 20th, an Emergency
Coalition officially formed to deal with this and future political mishaps.
The coalition consists of: Mayor Grant, Petey Green, June Dillard, Zalee
Harris, Jerry McLaurin, and Sandra Pruitt.
Via a Conference Call,
members of this coalition drafted a letter written
by Mayor Eugene Grant and undersigned by the aforementioned dated July 20th
to Donna Hathaway Beck demanding the following:
a. A written apology letter be sent from Donna Beck to Ms. Pruitt.
b. An apology letter written to the public and placed
in the public domain for all to read.
c. Voluntarily sign-up for a sensitivity class.
The coalition gave Donna Hathaway Beck until
Monday, July 23 @ 5:00pm
to comply with the requests.
On Monday, July 23rd at 9:09am,
Upon realizing the seriousness of the coalition's letter
and the fact that the letter clearly stated that the under signers had no
intentions of compromising, Donna Hathaway Beck sent an email to Ms. Pruitt
labeled 'Apology.' as if to say, that's all you are getting…
Ms. Pruitt received the email from Donna Beck 's personal email account
that read: "Dear Mrs. Pruitt, After reviewing and reflecting on the recent
e-mail I sent you, I recognize that the language I used was inappropriate
and out of character for me. While we may disagree over some statements
concerning the former Student Member of the Board of Education, I apologize
for expressing my displeasure in such an unprofessional manner. In the future,
should I disagree with a citizen, I will be more conscious of how I communicate
my opinion. Sincerely, Donna Hathaway Beck"
Via a second Conference Call,
members of the coalition acknowledged Beck's response
to our letter dated July 20th, however we expressed utter disappointment
that the letter was not placed on Board of Education official stationary
baring her signature. Therefore, in a second letter to Donna Beck, the coalition
said: " In the spirit of reconciliation and healing the method of delivery,
tone, and the total lack of character and respectfulness of an elected-official,
appears that you do not take this matter seriously.
Giving Hathaway-Beck the benefit of the doubt
that she had written a public apology and may not have understood our demand
for the public letter to be placed in a public domain, we suggested that
she follow the instructions below and complete them on or before
Tuesday, July 24th at
5:00pm:
1. First and foremost, the letter must demonstrate you understand the
harm you have caused our County.
2. The letter must make reference to the demeaning and degrading language
that was used and the character assassination attempt on Sandra Pruitt.
3. The letter must be on Board of Education official letterhead.
4. The letter must be signed by you.
5. The letter must be posted on the PGCPS website homepage on the top
center.
6. The link button to the letter must be titled "Donna Hathaway Beck's
Apology Letter to the Public".
7. The letter must stay on the website until September 30, 2007.
And to be sure the coalition had her attention and to make certain that
she did not take for granted the seriousness and intent of our correspondence,
the representative of the coalition said in closing: "please inform me by
e-mail and phone when the letter has been posted on the PGCPS website. I
strongly urge you to do what is expedient and right for the people of our
beloved Prince George's County, Maryland. This matter can be resolved when
good prevails."
On Monday, July 24th at
5:30pm the coalition and the leader confirmed that
Hathaway-Beck not only did not comply with our requests, but did not email,
call, or send up a smoke signal explaining herself. Hathaway-Beck snubbed
her nose at our demands - actions the coalition refuses to accept!
Donna Hathaway Beck has shown us that she does not care what we think
nor is she remorse. We have scheduled a Press Conference to be held soon.
For more details contact me at
educationdoctors@aol.com
.
In the meantime, I am personally appalled
at her disrespect and elitism.
Below is a letter I submitted to Donna
Hathaway Beck, an At-Large Elected School Board member on
July 25th via email at
5:30pm
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------HOME
July 25, 2007
Donna Hathaway Beck
At-Large Member, Prince George's County Board of Education
14201 School Lane
Upper Marlboro, Maryland 20772
Subject: Termination of
Endorsement
Dear Donna Hathaway Beck:
It is unfortunate that I must write to you regarding this matter. As
you know, I am a member of People for Change, Prince George's County. You
therefore are aware that I have been a standby voice regarding your catastrophic
behavior when you allowed your passionate support for the former school board
member's explicit sexual behavior to cloud your judgment when you responded
to an E-Mail blast sent by Ms. Sandra Pruitt on June 28th.
I would like to think that if you could go back to that point in your
recent history, you would most certainly double-check the email address before
you hit the send button that day. However, your actions proves that you do
not care to repair the damage you did to the public relations shared between
the membership you represent and the citizens of Prince George's County.
It is total snobbery on your part to have taken one month to send a 'bland'
email labeled 'apology' that insinuates the only thing you will do different
next time is to be careful to use a different set of adjectives when disagreeing
with Ms. Pruitt or another constituent in the future. Needless to say, I
am appalled at your elitism.
You and I have a history that came about because of controversy and
despite the issues; we have maintained a level of respect for each other.
I have put up with knowing that you are the reason Prince George's County
lost its Black Male Achievement Program. I overlooked the fact that you support
a health curriculum that would include discussions of homosexuality and
demonstrations of the use of contraceptives in the classroom. I even overlooked
the fact you led the charge to eliminate single-sex programs using Title
9, which in my opinion, marginalized the much needed male achievement and
critical thinking skills development program in an attempt to make females
equal with males - a connection I link to the reason men are overly sensitive
and fragile today. In my opinion, it makes educational involvement more an
agenda than an advocacy.
Nonetheless, although I have disagreed with the positions you have taken
and the charges you have led under the guise of bettering education in Prince
George's County, I still endorsed and supported your candidacy for the At-Large
school board membership you currently enjoy. I not only voted for you, but
I am certain my public endorsement garnished a percentage of votes for you
that helped place you in the top spot both in the 06 Primary and General
Elections.
I agree we all have a First Amendment right to stand for or against
a particular issue. However, I must document the fact that you leave me no
choice but to draw the line at your recent behavior, which is atrocious to
say the least. I don't care about the circumstance or issue you used to justify
your actions. For an elected official that I supported, to stoop to the level
of using his/her county issued email account to call someone that supported
you a 'hate-filled evil bitch' is terrible in and of itself, but to refuse
to issue a public apology, to write a personal apology letter (signed), and/or
to fail to follow simple protocol for being professional - something I expect
of an elected official is where I draw the line.
I am requesting and expect you to comply no later than Friday, July
28, 2007, with my request to remove my name from your web site as a list
of prominent county leaders that endorsed your 06 Political Campaign. Effective
immediately I am rescinding my endorsement and you no longer have my permission
to use my name as a person that endorses your candidacy for any future office
and/or accolade.
I regret that it has come to this. Please know that I am not going to
forget your behavior and I plan to make sure that persons whose votes I can
influence will remember and make it a point not to support any future political
aspirations you may have left in Prince George's County. In fact, anyone
(especially an elected official) that supports you beyond this point will
be called out by me and likeminded individuals to ensure that they are aware
your unprofessional conduct. I think what you did was foolish, arrogant,
and condescending. In giving you the benefit of the doubt, I expected you
to stand your ground on 'the issue' but I equally expected you to be proficient
in customer service skills, writing etiquette, and basic communication in
matters concerning crisis management. To learn that you have neither of the
aforementioned capabilities and/or have become too big-headed to understand
the seriousness of your course of action causes me great concern. You do
not represent me and the people that I communicate with in my advocacy to
advance academic and economic opportunities for the people of Prince George's
County.
You have disrespected the entire county, when you refused to comply
with the joint written request from the NAACP, People for Change, the Black
Chamber of Commerce, the Maryland Black Mayors, and grassroot leaders
representing Prince George's County.
In conclusion, I plan to post a copy of this letter on my web site and
invite my constituency to read it as my public statement aimed at denouncing
your behavior and subsequent actions that in my opinion, exposes the bigger
problem we have in this county. I expect you to update your web site as directed
by the deadline provided. Please comply.
Legitimately,
Zalee Harris
Concerned citizen, taxpayer, registered voter, independent education
advocate, and member of People For Change.
CC:
Honorable Jack B. Johnson, County Executive, Prince George's County,
Maryland
Honorable Owen Johnson, Chair, Prince George's County Board of
Education
Honorable Verjeana Jacobs, Vice Chair, Prince George's County Board
of Education
Dr. John Deasy, Superintendent, Prince George's County Board of
Education
and
Eugene W. Grant, Mayor Seat Pleasant, President of Maryland Black Mayors,
Inc.
June White Dillard, President, NAACP
Petey Green, President, Prince George's Black Chamber of Commerce
Sandy Pruitt, President, People for Change
Jerry McLaurin, Community Leader
Please join me in sending a message
to Donna Hathaway Beck (an elected official)
that has misused school system issued email technology and equipment to
disrespect voters, use foul language and slurs to label constituents, and
ignore the most powerful grassroots leaders in this county. Please send an
email to her at
Donna.HathawayBeck@pgcps.org
and copy the following persons @: County Executive, Jack Johnson School
Superintendent, John Deasy, School Board Chair, Owen Johnson, and School
Board Vice Chair Verjeana Jacobs
click
here .
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------HOME
School Board E-Mail Spat Simmers
On
Activist Presses for School Board Member's Removal Over E-Mail
By Nelson Hernandez and Rosalind S. Helderman
Washington Post Staff Writers
Thursday, July 19, 2007; T01
An outspoken critic of the Prince George's County Board of Education
this week revealed publicly the contents of a misdirected e-mail that board
member Donna Hathway Beck (At Large) sent last month, describing the board
critic with an offensive five-letter word.
Sandra Pruitt, president of a group called People for Change, was the
target of Hathaway Beck's remark but declined to comment last week after
the board took up the matter in a closed session. Pruitt issued a statement
Monday that included the string of e-mail messages containing the offensive
remark. Pruitt again called for Hathaway Beck's removal from the school board
and a public apology and said she was dissatisfied that the board had provided
neither.
Hathaway Beck did not respond to a telephone call or e-mail requesting
a comment by press time.
Hathaway Beck's frustration with Pruitt apparently stemmed from a letter
Pruitt had written to newspapers, attacking the board for honoring the outgoing
student school board member at the June 21 meeting that ended his term. The
student member, who sat next to Hathaway Beck at board meetings, had a close
relationship with Nathaniel B. Thomas, the school board member who resigned
after being indicted by a grand jury for an alleged sexual relationship with
a 15-year-old boy.
According to testimony in an investigative report ordered by the board,
the student board member had accepted alcohol from Thomas and played sexually
suggestive games with him. In her letter to newspapers, Pruitt called the
student's conduct "disgusting and appalling."
On June 29, Hathaway Beck wrote an e-mail apparently intended for a
colleague.
"I would appreciate some thoughts/advice on how to deal with this
hate-filled evil bitch," the e-mail read, according to the set of e-mails
Pruitt circulated Monday afternoon.
Somehow, the note wound up in Pruitt's inbox.
Pruitt said she was initially shocked to receive the e-mail from Hathaway
Beck, written from Hathaway Beck's school board account.
"I thought it was a mistake," Pruitt said. "It's almost as if she meant
for me to get it."
According to Pruitt, Hathaway Beck then sent a strongly worded, but
less colorful, e-mail that was meant for Pruitt seven minutes after the first
one:
"Sandy. I cannot fathom how you would in good conscience write something
so evil and destructive. . . . I cannot tell you the horror I felt at your
assault of this young man."
Two minutes after that, board member Heather Iliff (District 2) piled
on with a third e-mail: "Sandy, I am really appalled that you would continue
to attack a student in this manner."
Pruitt fired back with a letter to board Chairman R. Owen Johnson Jr.
(District 5), in which she called Hathaway Beck's and Iliff's e-mails
"disturbing" and demanded an apology, as well as Hathaway Beck's removal
on the grounds of misconduct in office.
The board met in closed session July 11 to discuss the matter but decided
against opening an ethics investigation, board members said. Instead, the
board opted to write its own letter to Pruitt.
"Mrs. Beck's comments do not represent the board as a whole," the board's
letter said. "The entire board certainly agrees that the language used by
our colleague was inappropriate."
Pruitt said she is not satisfied.
"My taxpayer dollars are paying the school board salary, and that's
not the kind of behavior I and other constituents are expecting," she said.
"I'm very disappointed there was no public apology. They want me to go away
and just pretend it never happened."
--------------------------------
August
Media saturation of People for Change calling for Donna Hathaway Beck
to publicly apologize. August 16th - letter to the editor published by the
Gazette.net "Prince George's County deserves better from its elected officials,"
and on August 22nd published by the Washington Post Extra "Beck owes group
a public apology."
Next Steps
August 27, 2007
People for Change Press Release
"SCHOOL BOARD MEMBER OPENS BOARD MEETING
WITH PUBLIC APOLOGY!"
PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY, MARYLAND AUGUST 27, 2007: Fifty-five (55) days
after elected school board member Donna Hathaway Beck used her taxpayer funded
and school system issued email account (@pgcps.org) to send a citizen and
parent a derogatory email that included calling the parent a "hate-filled
evil bitch", a public apology was made. This was done at the 1st school board
meeting of the 2007-2008 school year. The school board chair yielded the
floor to at large school board member Donna Hathaway Beck as she invoked
her personal point of privilege and read a prepared public apology just before
the public participation portion of the school board meeting.
People for Change considers the apology a major accomplishment because
although pressured, Hathaway Beck complied with the request made via a July
24, 2007 letter asking that she issue a public apology on August 23rd during
the opening session of the 2007-2008 school year.
"Also occurring at this meeting was the swearing in of the student school
board member Haywood Perry, III. The public display when he put his hand
on the Holy Bible and took the Oath of Office to uphold the U.S. and Maryland
State Constitution in dignity and respect, reminded us all, that he is held
to the same standard as adult elected officials. This also confirmed that
People for Change stayed on the right course to hold elected officials
accountable for their actions. We acknowledge Donna Hathaway Beck's apology
and we accept it. The actions we took and the subsequent response sets the
tone for respectful dialog between parents and the school board.
Going forward, People for Change would like to reiterate key issues
that were raised during the June 21st school board meeting where we issued
a report card on the superintendent and school board and other key issues
that were raised at the August 23rd school board meeting. These issues
include:
1. Encouraging Parental Involvement
" We again ask that "Back to School Night" be held within the first
10 days of the school year so that parents can be more readily engaged and
also to quickly address and correct any issues with student performance.
" We again ask that the school system create a plan for improving response
to parents who want to volunteer. We have spoken to parents who would like
to volunteer in the school and have expressed frustration that they have
not been contacted in response to their inquiries. These parents represent
a valuable resource to the Prince George's County schools.
2. Improving the Role of the Parent Liaison - We again ask the
school system to carefully monitor the parent liaisons that have been placed
in our schools. They should look at the gaps in the selection criteria, how
the person actually interacts with parents and community, who they actually
report to, who is directing the program, was there adequate training, and
how is their activity being tracked?
3. Enhancing the School System Web Site - We are again asking
the school system to revisit the designed of the web site. It is still not
user friendly and difficult to locate information on Regional Directors,
school policies, or dates for upcoming school board meetings, and the search
engine returns outdated information. Also, when you click on parent
information-it's not the type of information parents are looking for. One
way to correct the problem is to create a committee of stakeholders who may
use the site and get their feedback.
4. School Board and Superintendent Responsiveness - We are again
asking for better responsiveness from our school board and superintendent.
Parents have stated they do not respond timely or not at all to constituency
concerns. We would like the school board to develop a plan to track and respond
to concerns in a timely and professional manner.
5. Leadership on the School Board - It was noted that in the
future that if issues of this nature ever arise again, that the school board
be more vigilant and diligent in addressing the issue so that it does not
linger on.
6. Education Issues - Regarding education, we plan to participate
and monitor the Regional HSA hearings and the implementation of the K-8 reforms,
and will be watchful over academic achievement and the reauthorization of
No Child Left Behind.
7. Economic Development and Sustainability - People for Change
will get more involved in development and county legislation.
8. School Board and Constituency Communications - At the recent
August school board meeting, two members of People for Change addressed
communications. It was noted that communication between school board members
and constituents requires, "mutual respect and decorum" said Kevin Martin
and with change there may disagreement. Chrystal Williams noted that while
we may have differences, how can we be better communicators? She also read
the school system's 5 core beliefs and stated we need to stay focused. And,
it should also be noted that the school board is considering a new Parent
Code of Conduct that sets clear expectations for appropriate "Parent behavior",
and violation of those expectations could result in a fine or imprisonment
if convicted, and denial of access to the school building and/or grounds.
While we understand the reasoning for this Code of Conduct, we ask that it
is also be applied mutually to school board members as well.
To this end, People for Change intend to write a letter to the County's
State Delegation requesting they investigate the issue of misconduct of the
school board member further.
One of the lessons learned during this ordeal is that as an autonomous
governing body, the school board membership is not self-policing. Therefore,
since each person is elected individually by the people to serve the citizens,
neither can hold the other accountable. And, after research of school system
policies by People for Change, we have identified at least three policies
that Hathaway Beck violated. (1) School Board Policy #0701 under User
Responsibilities, Email is to be used in a professional manner, void of foul,
abusive or threatening language, and/or language that is of prurient nature
or content, (2) Information Technology Services Acceptable Usage Policy under
Prohibition - Using abusive or otherwise objectionable language in either
public or private messages and, (3) School Board Policy #0115 under Technology
Acceptable Uses, Use appropriate language. This applies to public messages,
private messages, and materials posted on Web pages.
These policies noted above are enforced by each of the elected school
board members and must be adhered by all school system students, administrators,
and/or staff. So, while a school system employee can be automatically fired,
suspended, or reprimanded, and a student can be expelled for violating any
portion of these policies, nowhere in these three policies do the same rules
apply to an appointed or elected school board official. People for Change
plan to correct and change this immediately, because having the gaping loophole
exist is how Hathaway Beck could arrogantly ignore the people's demand for
her to publicly apologize for her actions. She simply did not take her actions
seriously and there was nothing available to us or her colleagues that could
force her; she had to be pressured.
Our request to the State Delegation will be to create an 'automatic
trigger' that will invoke an ethics investigation whenever a school system
official violates the aforementioned school system policies.
In closing, on behalf of People for Change, we want to thank those that
worked with us to bring this issue to closure, Mayor Eugene Grant, President
of the Maryland Black Mayors, Petey Green, President of the Black Chamber
of Commerce, George Mitchell, candidate for the 4th Congressional District,
Burton Powell, member of the SCLC, the Washington Post, the Prince George's
Gazette, County citizens, community leaders, friends and family members,
and especially members of People for Change--you were there when we needed
you, thank you. -End-
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