I can save the Board some time. No need to search for non-resident students. I can assure you that no one is sending his or her child to PG County schools when there is an alternative - any alternative. I am already bracing myself for the day I have to send my own children there, and I have at least another three years to worry about it.

When past members (or current members) of the County Council promise pay raises and benefits to the teachers and all the county and public secter employes that they know cant be delivered in the future.... just to get the votes to be re-elected ...is not the fault of the current County Council (unless they made a promise to do so) and the 10 Prince George’s County Board of Education members....People of P.G., when politicians make a promise to expand the union's, government and public secter just to get votes should think about this...., Bill Maher Says all the people that vote... "Your Too Stupid to Understand the Issues"... shame on you for not finding the truth before you vote, Stop voting for the person just because they have a D (Democrat) next to their name on the voting ballot. Seek the truth.. All those that will lose your job, Its the politicians you should look at and make the "Change you can believe in." ... The Chickens have come home to roost.

If you have to spend $3 million on a program to help first graders who struggle in reading, it's indicative of a larger problem. Maybe their parents should shut off the television, take away the video games, and read a book with their kids. If every family did that every night, over time I'll bet the schools wouldn't need to spend as much in a lot of areas. While there's no way in hell I'm sending my kids to P.G. County schools, it isn't completely their fault. Parents can't expect the schools to magically turn their kids into geniuses if they aren't doing their part.

I agree that some parents need to be more involved in after-school learning for their children. I also agree with the person who suggested that instead of cutting teachers and their pay, maybe the Board should look at the salaries and responsibilities of the administrative staff (not the school administrators). What are the salaries of the Board Members.

I agree 100%. I had to send both of my daughters to Catholic Schools because the public school system is so inept. Now would be a perfect time to get rid of under performing teachers and staff.

Just a question...'How is the state lottery money allocated?' Of the 23 counties, how is it, IF it is, divided amongst the schools? Wasn't that a selling point on gaming initiatives in the state?

In a county that receives more money than any other in the state of Maryland, this situation should not exist. It's time to look into where the money is going. Let's start with our elected officials, who entered office largely on the backs of our parents and teachers who were promised that education is a priority. If teaching our children is not a priority, then there is a serious problem. I believe our school board may need to admit that we as a county can no longer provide a quality education to our children if it means cutting teachers and student programs. Reading Recovery is a program that teaches struggling first graders to be readers and writers. Many of these children come from excellent homes with parents who read to them daily and have extensive libraries. Reading difficulty is not an economic issue. And three million dollars in a budget that exceeds a billion dollars is a drop in the bucket if it means a child will spend the rest of his or her life as a reader. These children are our future leaders. Shame on anyone who feels they can put a price tag on literacy!

For all those people that people believe that we don't have non- resident students in our schools. Go sit at the bus stops and subway stations that are near schools that sit on the border line of DC. You will be amazed how many children come out of DC to attend our public schools. Our schools allows it, because registars and schools are not allowed to challenge fake lease and rental papers that these parents bring into the schools system.

Making generalizations about the quality of Prince George's County schools is not fair or accurate. I know several parents with kids at all levels of school - elementary, middle and high - with positive experiences in Bowie areas schools, where there are some good teachers, administrators, parents and students. I agree that a lot depends on the parents. Perhaps the Bowie Education Committee should set up an annual award to recognize parents for their contributions to their children's education at school, for example, by starting a book club, organizing other parents to read to their children, or bringing in guest experts to science class.

Cutting Reading Recovery and Pre-K Programs would do the students of PG County a disservice. I am appalled that teachers are blamed for issues that many students come to school with on a daily bases. Teachers are not miracle workers. Teachers, administrators, parents, county officials, etc. need to all come together to come up with viable solutions that don't involve eliminating more teachers, further increasing class sizes, or cutting programs our students so desperately need. The county as a whole needs to stop jumping on "research based educational bandwagons" that they don't invest in long enough to see positive results or growth. Stop choosing programs that are not properly supported. Let's go back to a time where teachers were actually able to teach (that's what they are trained to do) and not just prepare students to pass a test. So often the county has purchased prescribed programs (America's Choice) which were a waste of money to magically help schools not making AYP. Mr. Superintendent, you make $250,000 dollars a year, why not give up your salary or better yet, accept the pay of a first year teacher. That would help the budget. Let’s do some house cleaning at the School Board itself. So many inept people work in those positions that lack customer service, professionalism and a clue. Why not seek the help of private organizations since we are in such a financial bind. Stop cutting education and further leaving the students of PG County Schools behind.

Lady, I also agree with you. We do have DC students coming over.

Felipe,
I strongly agree. We have to take pride in our county and do our parts. I am a proud parent of a student at Whitehall Elementary School, Bowie. Cara, look up the MSA scores- 98% reading and 100% in math. There are great schools in PG County. All schools in our county are not failing. Stop believing everything that you see in the media and read /look at data across the county. Stop the ignorance!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Cara,go back to DC!

As someone who worked almost 30 years in the PGCPS I say, read the history before you blame the schools. PGCPS was the leader in many of the programs that are operating in other counties. We were the technology "edge" at one time, but we have absorbed a large economically disadvantaged population that moved to PG county seeking lower cost housing and better schools. People like Cara want the best for their children and I understand that. Hurling insults, however, is not productive. Schools are but a microcosm of the larger society and Prince George's County does have its problems. Despite MANY difficulties, our schools work hard each and every day to educate our children. They do a great job with not enough support. Private schools tend to "filter out" problems they don't want or can't handle. Public schools serve the needs of all children. Before expressing opinions, please try to understand the problems. Many children enter school without skills needed to achieve. Pre-K is an effort to level the playing field and help those children. Reading Recovery is another effort to ensure that all children learn to read. Where better to allocate funds than on the "front end" BEFORE the cycle of failure begins? Three million is a very small price to pay for great gains. As a society, we have let an entire segment of the population drown in economic despair for a very long time so we should ask ourselves, do we want this cycle to continue?

Thanks for all the comments -- we'll post a story at 3 p.m. with what some school board members said at Tuesday night's board meeting. For now though, check out our Parents Talk question: http://patch.com/A-dTQJ

What a terrible (and distorted) thing to say ... "school full of kids who rob, assault, and kill." Really? Come on, everybody, let's be civil and constructive even in our criticism. What we say and do needs to be about building up a better community. If we limit ourselves to simply tearing down our people and institutions, how will they ever improve?

I believe PGCPS admitted that schools needed assistance with problems in schools twenty years when they placed security officers on staff in middle and high schools. Once again, this is a reflection of problems that begin in the community and are brought to the schools. Obviously, some schools have more problems than others, so it is both unfair and discouraging when people condemn the entire school system. My grandchildren attend a Prince George's County school where they are getting a great education and are involved in activities. Their parents support the school and the staff works tirelessly to maintain high standards. I agree with Felipe Lulli that taking a positive approach to solving problems can help. Standing outside and throwing rocks helps no one.

It's the parent(s) fault and it's the teachers fault. Parenting is only getting worse and teachers are not that much better. Not all, but far too many parents look to the teachers to raise their children. The teachers are no better, they are beholden to a union that does not have their best intersts at heart. That union has screwed the teachers and as aresult our education system - again, with the help of do nothing parents. How bad is PG County Schools - look no further than the ex- Vice Chair Marilynn Bland. You can show me test score results all day long, bottom line is very, very few PG County graduates are going to Princeton, Yale, MIT, or Duke. PG grads take these great test scores you speak of and enroll at the local community college or a state school. If you want your child to have any chance of obtaining an elite college education than private school or moving out of PG are your only options. How do you fix this: Change the politics (vote R over D), change the parenting, and bust the union. Sadly, in PG County none of this will ever be done.

Too bad this dialogue has been so negative. There are good things happening in the Bowie schools, but you wouldn’t know it from the tone of the comments. Lots of damning generalizations, few constructive ideas, no encouragement for the school administrators, teachers, students and parents who strive daily to make a difference. They deserve our appreciation for their efforts and I urge all of you who are so inclined to support them with your prayers.

I've volunteered at Bowie High School for 18 years & love these students. I welcome you to take a tour of the school with me so you can see things for yourself. You can pick the day and time. I promise not to give any advanced warnings to anyone.

You'll see what I see, clear hallways, engaged kids, thoughtful teachers and a wonderful principal.
Bowie High continues to climb higher each year on Newsweek's top 6% of all public schools in the country. Bowie sends it's students to Maryland universities, Harvard, Brown, Dartmouth, University of Pennsylvania as well as the military academies. Some don't graduate as in years before us. But students AND parents have to make it work.

Are there kids outside the boundaries? Yes, but hundreds have been returned to their home schools so far. Staff DOES work with the city, landlords, property records, etc. to check leases and shared housing.

It's sad to say "a school full of kids who rob, assault, and kill?" Yes, there are children in contact with police... It's nothing new, police have been in schools since 1975! I've even broken up some scuffles myself - but I've done more outside of school! However, it does not overshadow the many successes I see every day.

There is no funding for technical & alternative learning schools or tutoring - which teachers do on their own time! The city of Bowie helps match mentors with students in need. They can't get enough mentors!

How will you step up to help?

Wow. If you don't have a child in the system yet, call up a counselor and take a stroll through a school. You will see engaged students, informative bulletin boards and working educators. If you are a former student of the system, support the system that your parents chose and the system that gave you the foundation to be a contributing adult in the same area that you grew up in- you remained for a reason. The system worked because your parents supported the teachers and the programs in the schools. They attended PTA meetings and spoke positively about the learning that you were experiencing. College after HS- The counselors at the elem school are helping by having individual conversations with the children in public schools each year. The kids are asked "what do you want to be?"The responses are written down- there is an ongoing dialogue with students about how to achieve their dreams- some homes continue the conversations, others don't -but the students are listening. What we need the community to do at this moment is reach out to the Senators and Delegates at the state level to help us maintain our smaller class sizes and Reading Recovery Intervention. There are pockets of below grade level readers in every part of the county - help us close the gap http://readingrecovery.org/development/centers/prince_georges.asp
RR doesn't cost the parent of a struggling reader a penny- but it changes the dynamic of a family when everyone becomes a reader.

my opinion is for them not to cancel summer school or evening school. i have a 16 year old daughter that needs to go to summer school for her credit recovery and be able to graduate next year. she has never made the right choices but now she is trying to get back on her feet and graduate next year, and i would be very pleased if my child graduates next year because she tells me that she does not want to graduate any other year. Many counties complaint about the rate going down of graduations and they want to cancel extended school programs. please consider this very well about extended school programs, there are many students that NEED these extended school programs to be able to graduate. so please let us support these students and let them have a future

The Buses Matter campaign would like to invite to join us outside of Suitland High School, on Friday, March 11th starting at 6am as we rally against the proposed PG County transportation cuts for 2012. Friday, March 11, 2011, at 6am students from Suitland High School, Visual and Performing Arts Center will participate in a “Meet Me At The Bus Stop” Rally at the bus stop in front of the school. A group of students are going to take public transportation to school that morning and document their ride in a cell phone video log of their experience in an effort to share with other students, administration, the County Executive’s office, the School Board, the County Council and anyone else that is involved with making the decision to cut their buses. These students want to show first-hand what it will take to get to school without their school buses because they sincerely believe that by cutting the buses for specialty programs like theirs and after school activities it will inevitably shut down their beloved programs! Prince George’s County students want to make sure their voices are heard loud and clear about how they feel about the proposed 2012 PGCPS budget cuts effecting transportation for specialty programs and after school activities. They know, if approved, it will mean the end of their program and so many opportunities. Visit our Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/profile.php?id=100002136251031 or contact Christina Graves at gravescw@yahoo.com