Delegate Trent Kittleman - District 9A |
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Week 10
March 28 - April 1, 2022
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Contents:
- Extra! Extra! Read all about it!
- What's Happening in our Schools?
- Update on Retiree Tax Relief
- "CRT by any other name"
- BOOST: A Glimmer of Hope
- Howard County: Lawsuit indicts County Actions
Legislative Scholarship Application
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Extra! Extra!
Read all about it!
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Judge calls 2021 Plan* "an outlier and a product of extreme partisan gerrymandering."
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94-page Opinion orders Legislature to redo the map - by March 30!
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- "With regard to the violations of the Articles of the Maryland Declaration of Rights, the 2021 Plan fails constitutional muster under each Article."
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With respect to Article 7 of the MD Declarations of Rights, "The 2021 Plan was drawn with 'partisanship as a predominant intent'... by the party in power, to suppress the voice of Republican voters. The right for all votes of political participation in Congressional elections...was violated."
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- With respect to "Article 24, the Maryland Equal Protection Clause... was violated. . . . It is clear ...that Republican voters and candidates are substantially adversely impacted by the 2021 Plan."
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With respect to the 'Free Speech provision in Article 40 of the Maryland Declaration of Rights,essentially "all of the testimony ,,, supports the notions that the voice of Republican voters was diluted and their right to vote and be heard ... was diminished, for no compelling reason."
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- Finally, with respect to evaluating the Plan "through the lens of the Constitution and Declaration of Rights, . . the limitation of the undue extension of power by any branch of government must be exercised to ensure that the will of the people is heard."
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The Congressional Redistricting map drawn by the legislators and referred to before as the "LRAC" map, is referred to as the "2021 Plan" in the Opinion.
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What's Happening in our Schools? |
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It is fascinating -- if terrifying -- to watch a proposal slowly and silently morph from being "unacceptable" to the vast majority of people to being "critically necessary" to that same majority.
Over time, the public school system has found it more and more difficult to educate all of our children. Rather than look for alternative teaching methods and systems that have proven track records success, the insular education bureaucracy has turned to blaming poverty, racism, and mental health for the inability of certain children "to learn."
Certainly, all of those things make learning more difficult for a child, and teaching more difficult for the teacher. But in placing blame upon these cultural affects, the cure becomes for the school system to focus on solving the problems of poverty, racism and mental health.
While that is a laudable goal, is that what we want schools to be focusing on? Is that what we believe schools must do before they can teach children?
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In case you were wondering what prompted the question, "What's happening in our schools," it's HB 657. This bill requires that a standardized "Behavioral Health Questionnaire" be given to and filled out by the parent of each student on a yearly basis, to be used for "early identification of mental health and substance use needs."
The form below is currently used by Baltimore City Schools and shows the type of information that the new Standardized form will require; the difference here is that Baltimore City's form includes the word "Optional." The Bill has no provision for parent consent.
How did we get to the point where government believes it has an absolute right to the private medical information of our children. . . all in the name of doing good? That is exactly how our freedoms are eroded, one at a time . . . all in the name of doing good.
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Update on retiree tax relief |
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Governor Hogan, Speaker Jones, and Senate President Ferguson are still conferring on how to spend the $350 million set aside to return to taxpayers. Providing retirees with some form of relief from the high taxes that have chased many of our long-time Marylanders to other, more tax-friendly states, is a key component of any tax relief plan.
On the other hand, while we taxpayers appreciate any amount of our tax money the state might allow us to keep, in context, $350 million compared to Maryland's $6 Billion surplus doesn't seem all that generous. . . .
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A GOOD Way to evaluate whether the essence of CRT is being taught in your child's school is to ask the following questions. Do the teachings:
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- Stereotype or scapegoat entire groups of people?
- Racialize instruction or the learning environment?
- Employ racially segregated affinity groups or caucuses
- Target “Whiteness” or attempt to disrupt it?
- Divide groups into “oppressors” and “oppressed”?
- Redefine common terms or coin new ideological language?
- Target objectivity, truth, and neutrality?
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Indoctrinate students with a partisan agenda and encourage activism?
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SHOULD:
- Expose and end racial injustice
- Encourage multiculturalism
- Teach tolerance
- Foster understanding and communication
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Should NOT:
- Target “Whiteness”
- Use the terms “White Privilege” or White fragility”
- Stereotype or scapegoat groups because of race
- Polarize people into “oppressors or “oppressed”
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Ask yourself these questions
Does the teaching of Anti-Racism
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- Focus on eliminating White privilege” or White supremacy culture”?
- Does it use the term “White Fragility” or imply all Whites are systemically racists?
- Does it imply Whites suffer from “internalized racial superiority,” or that people of color suffer from “internalized oppression”?
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TEACHING "EQUITY" PROGRAMS |
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SHOULD:
- Promote programs and resources to all children
- Maintain instructional rigor
- Eliminate gaps and disparities in learning and resources
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Should NOT:
- Eliminate programs or resources
- Water-down curriculum or instruction
- Use correlation to prove causation
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Ask yourself these questions
Does the teaching of Equity Programs:
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- Is “equity” eliminating programs in school?
- Is “equity” lowering instructional rigor or watering-down curriculum?
- Is “equity” using correlation to prove causation, and using systemic racism” a a blanket cause when there are other underlying variables that need attention?
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CULTURALLY RESPONSIVE TEACHING |
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SHOULD:
- Foster communication
- Deepen student-teacher relationships
- Build learning partnerships
- Help students of all cultures engage in learning
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Should NOT:
- Target Whiteness
- Indoctrinate students on issues
- Promote political activism
- Organize protests or lobby for partisan causes
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Ask yourself these questions
Does Culturally Responsive teaching in your child's school:
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- Target Whiteness?
- Indoctrinate students on issues?
- Push a political agenda or promote political activism?
- Require students to organize protests or lobby for partisan causes?
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TEACHING ACCURATE HISTORY |
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SHOULD:
- Be objectively accurate
- Be fair and balanced, revealing both positive and negative accounts
- Incorporate the histories of diverse cultures
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Should NOT:
- Alter factually accurate historical records
- Revise history through a "subjective" lens
- Disproportionately represent historical accounts
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Ask yourself these questions
Does Culturally Responsive teaching in your child's school:
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- Target Whiteness?
- Indoctrinate students on issues?
- Push a political agenda or promote political activism?
- Require students to organize protests or lobby for partisan causes?
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Vote on BOOST provides a "glimmer of hope" |
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It's not much, but there's a small crack in the wall of Democrat opposition to the BOOST Program.
During discussion of the Budget Bill, Minority Leader, Jason Buckel, made a Motion to remove the BOOST-killing language that allows only current students or siblings of current students to access BOOST.
UInlike years past, floor debate was vigorous in defense of the program. But the encouraging action was that seven Democrats put up green votes, siding with Republicans to delete the objectionable language.
Their votes didn't affect the outcome. But it was a rare chink in the armor. And it may foreshadow a new day for school choice in Maryland.
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Tutoring Program in Baltimore Schools addresses "Unfinished Learning" |
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An opinion piece in Maryland Matters last week described the positive impact of a "high-quality in-school tutoring program" being rolled out, currently, in the Baltimore City Public Schools (BCPS).
The program is one of seven evidenced-based practices that are part of Maryland Leads, an innovative, non-competitive grant opportunity designed by the Maryland Department of Education to take advantage of this unique moment in education, defined by unprecedented funding, soaring staff vacancies and widening gaps in student achievement.
This innovative opportunity is designed to incentivize and support its 24 school districts in focusing federal relief funds on evidence-based practices.
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In one school, 23 of 28 of third-graders are struggling to read because they missed so much instructional time in second grade.
"All participating students are demonstrating rapid progress.
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One student moved from reading zero words per minute on the initial assessment to 70 words a minute after a month of tutoring five days per week for a half an hour per day."
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Lawsuit finds Open Meetings Act and Nepotism Laws Breached by the County |
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"Numerous violations of the Howard County’s rules against nepotism, the state’s Public Information Act and Open Meetings Act have been admitted by the County’s Office of Law, in answers filed last Friday in Bob Flanagan’s lawsuit against Howard County.
"Repeated decisions by Calvin Ball’s sister, Jamila Ratliff to withhold public information requested about Mr. Ball’s close political ally, lobbyist and developer attorney, Tom Coale triggered Flanagan’s lawsuit in September.
"Mr. Ball gave his sister-in-law authority to refuse Public Information Act requests at her discretion, while she was also being paid as a consultant to his re-election campaign. The County Employee Manual prohibits hiring family members who will be working directly for another family member." Read More
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Kittleman Legislative Scholarship |
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High school seniors, current undergraduate students at a 4-year college, a community college, or a private career school are eligible to apply for a Legislative Scholarship.
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Please MAIL your applications to Delegate Trent Kittleman, Rm. 202, 6 Bladen Street, Annapolis, MD 21401. For questions regarding the application process, call my Annapolis office and speak with Chelsea Leigh Murphy, my Chief of Staff, at 410-841-3556.
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Authorized, Friends of Trent Kittleman, William Oliver, Treasurer |
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