Jennifer Martin, President of the Montgomery County Education Association (MCEA), has responded to the summary of the investigation of MCPS principal Joel Beidleman by the Jackson Mewis law firm released by the Montgomery County Board of Education on Thursday. The full response can be seen below:

“MCEA is confident in the overall accuracy of the report by Jackson Lewis summarizing the problems uncovered through their investigation. The investigators echoed our concerns that MCPS brazenly ignored our members urgent pleas. There were systemic failures at every level within MCPS. We are outraged to lear how extensive the cover-ups, negligence, and abuses of power were.

MCPS touts its concern for the wellbeing of staff, but the summary provided to the Board of Education confirms that senior management at MCPS failed in their duty to protect students and staff from an alleged predator. Instead, the summary also concludes that senior MCPS management knew there was an ongoing investigation and did not bother to inquire as to what the investigation was about- they were too preoccupied with finalizing the principal’s latest promotion.

MCPS created a culture where victims were silenced by fear of reprisal. A vicious cycle went unchecked, allowing this rampant abuse to continue.

While this summary report seems to absolve the current Board of Education and Superintendent Dr.

McKnight of any wrongdoing, we find it alarming that Jackson Lewis could discover no indication that the Board of Education had knowledge of any investigations into the alleged serial harasser whose promotion they applauded.

We, also, find it curious that Jackson Lewis uncovered 30,000+ documents during their investigation, but somehow could not find emails sent by MCEA members and staff to the Board of Education, MCPS, and Superintendent McKnight outlining the harassment claims.

We support our members, students, and community who have been harmed by the egregious mismanagement of this situation by MCPS. The next phase of the investigation must lead to genuine justice and full accountability for all who failed to do their duty.

In Solidarity,

Jennifer Martin, MCEA President”

The Leadership Training Institute (LTI) at John F. Kennedy High School empowers students through a rigorous interdisciplinary education emphasizing experiential learning, community service projects, and leadership theory and application. LTI alumni and friends are invited on Oct. 6 to share  LTI memories and celebrate the 30-year anniversary of the program. The event will be held from 6–8:30 p.m. at Montgomery Country Club.

John F. Kennedy High School’s signature program empowers students through rigorous interdisciplinary experiential learning, community service projects, and leadership theory and application. The Leadership Training Institute is open by application to all Downcounty Consortium students.

• LTI is founded on the pillars of participation, academics, community service, and ethics.
• Leadership is a process, and the ability to lead effectively can be found in every person.
• Curricula will be challenging, innovative, and inspiring.
• Partnerships with school, community, business, and parents will support academic excellence.
• Personal development will be nurtured and supported.

Remembering Mr. Frempong: Mr. Kofi Frempong was the coordinator of our LTI program from 2014-2023. He shaped the lives of countless students throughout these years. His creativity and positive energy made him one of the most beloved teachers our school has ever had. It is said that one is never truly gone as long as they are remembered by someone living; Mr. Frempong’s legacy will live on in the lives of the students he mentored and taught, the family members and friends who loved him all his life, and even those whom he met in passing who experienced a kind word or gesture from him. Mr. Frempong was the rare kind of person whose love stretches far outward not only through his own actions, but also through the hearts and minds of those to whom he was connected, creating a neverending stream of kindness, making the world a better place.

Featured photo courtesy of MCPS

Per the Maryland Attorney General’s Office: The Office of the Attorney General (OAG) announced today that Maryland Attorney General Anthony G. Brown has selected Jonathan M. Smith to serve as Chief of the newly created Civil Rights Division. Smith is a well-respected legal figure in civil rights, with a strong trajectory of work at the frontlines of justice, equity, and equality on both local and national stages.

For the past seven years, Smith served as Executive Director of the Washington Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights and Urban Affairs, a non-profit law firm, addressing racial and economic injustice related to prisoners’ rights, housing, employment, education, disability, police misconduct, and immigrants and refugees.

In early 2023, Smith became a Senior Special Counsel at the organization, focusing on cases and projects related to law enforcement and incarceration reform to reduce the impact of the criminal legal system on communities of color and people living in poverty and to improve public safety. Since 2017, Smith has served as a criminal legal system expert
involving law enforcement throughout the country.

Smith was the Chief of the Special Litigation Section of the Civil Rights Division of the United States Department of Justice from 2010 to 2015. Prior to his government service, Smith was the Executive Director of the Legal Aid Society of the District of Columbia, the Public Justice Center in Baltimore, Maryland, and the D.C. Prisoners’ Legal Services Project. In each of these positions, in addition to providing program leadership, he has handled individual, class action, and impact litigation and engaged in legislative advocacy and in institutional reform efforts.

“Jon Smith has the experience, the passion, and the commitment to lead the extraordinarily critical work to be performed by our new Civil Rights Division,” said Attorney General Brown. “His record of service reflects the highest level of skill and decades of dedication to the protection of civil rights. Jon will be responsible for ensuring that, regardless of who you are, who you love, or where you live, the Attorney General’s Office enforces the law and protects civil rights for all Marylanders.”

“The new Civil Rights Division here at the Maryland OAG will play a critical role in ensuring equal opportunity for all Marylanders,” said newly named Chief of Division, Jonathan Smith. “I am proud to join the office to help Attorney General Brown fight discrimination and work for greater equity and justice, and I look forward to working with all critical partners – within the State government and in our communities – in this effort.”

The Civil Rights Division of the Maryland Office of Attorney General is the first of its kind in Maryland history. It was established after the Maryland General Assembly enacted legislation in April 2023 empowering the Attorney General, for the first time ever, to enforce federal and state civil rights laws, including laws outlawing discrimination in housing, lending, employment, commercial transactions, and public accommodation. The Civil Rights Division will be
dedicated to investigating, filing, and litigating claims under this new authority.

Smith received a B.A. in Philosophy from the University of Maine at Orono. He graduated from Antioch School of Law. He will assume his duties as Chief of the Civil Rights Division in January 2024.

Per Montgomery County Public Schools: “As new cases of COVID-19 increase locally, we have seen outbreaks occurring in multiple schools across the county. Temporary outbreak precautions for individual classrooms where COVID-19 is spreading rapidly helps prevent spread to vulnerable individuals and to the rest of school.” Check out the FAQ below, per MCPS:

What guidance does MCPS follow to determine health and safety procedures for COVID-19? MCPS follows CDC COVID-19 recommendations for K-12 schools, per joint guidance from the Maryland State Department of Education and Maryland Department of Health (MDH) and MDH’s school guide for Communicable Diseases. Community health strategies are planned in coordination with the Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services.

What changes have been made to MCPS COVID-19 health procedures this school year? The Back-to-School message on the Information Portal describes changes to COVID-19 school procedures for this school year. The most significant change is that students and staff members no longer have to use the online reporting tool and can inform their school or program about an absence due to COVID-19. We continue to rely on the same core health strategies to prevent infectious disease and apply COVID-19-specific measures temporarily to limit spread in high-risk situations or a suspected outbreak after a case investigation.

If the online self-reporting tool for COVID-19 has been retired, how will MCPS know how COVID-19 is affecting the school community? Schools collect attendance data, including the reason for absences. MCPS will rely on school reports for outbreak monitoring and examine trends in illness-related absences at the system and school level. Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services continues to track county-level COVID-19 case rates and hospital metrics and conduct wastewater surveillance.

Masks

Has MCPS changed its policy about face coverings? The policy has been the same since March 2022, when the MCPS Board of Education voted that masks would be “optional unless required in accordance with quarantine and isolation guidelines”. In August 2022, the CDC introduced temporary masking as an alternative to quarantine for people exposed to COVID-19. Since the repeal of the universal mask mandate in March 2022, MCPS has not required masking community-wide or for any situation other than isolation (for individuals with a new COVID-19 infection) or temporarily within a high-risk cohort to reduce transmission if there has been an outbreak in that cohort.

What is the MCPS policy for face coverings?

• MCPS procedures are described on the COVID-19 Information Portal

• Masks are optional, with rare exceptions. The exceptions are:

  • Individuals who have been recently diagnosed with COVID-19 who are returning to work and school after day 5 through day 10. Day “0” is the first day of symptoms, or the date of the positive test, if there are no symptoms. Staff or students can end the masking period early after two negative COVID-19 tests.

  • In outbreak situations, for staff or students have been exposed exposed to multiple cases in their classroom to limit further spread. Masking is one of multiple temporary prevention measures that may limit the spread in a classroom where staff or students have this increased risk for exposure and transmission. “Outbreaks” are defined by the Maryland Department of Health and are considered if three or more positive COVID-19 cases occur in a group over a specific period of time. A case investigation is conducted to determine if the cases are “epidemiologically linked”. Not all situations with three or more cases are considered outbreaks. Outbreak measures are only introduced if the cases suggest ongoing classroom transmission and pose an exposure risk to other individuals sharing the same confined indoor space. Only all-day classrooms or activities where staff and students spend long hours together are considered for elevated precautions.

  • The Department of Health and Human Services determines masking rules for health rooms and school-based health clinics. In health rooms or school-based health clinics, students with active respiratory symptoms may be requested to mask by health care staff, while being cared for in the health room.

• In outbreak situations, surgical or KN95 masks will be available for staff and student use.

What if my student is too young to wear a mask or cannot do so because of a health condition or developmental disability?

• Students will not be required to wear a mask if unable to safely or consistently do so due to young age, a health condition, or a developmental disability.

• Masking is not recommended as a prevention measure in pre-K or other early childhood programs.

Can my student be excluded from school for not wearing a mask?

• Students will not be excluded from school solely for not wearing a mask as a preventive health measure.

• Exclusion criteria for communicable diseasesestablished by the Maryland Department of Health still apply for individuals with a specific symptom (e.g., fever) or an active infection (e.g., chickenpox).

Where can I learn more about using face coverings to prevent respiratory infections?

Healthy Children.org: Mask Mythbusters: Common Questions about Kids & Face Masks / Rompe mitos sobre la mascarilla: preguntas frecuentes sobre el uso del tapabocas en niños

Where do I find information on COVID-19 procedures in Montgomery County Public Schools?

• MCPS COVID-19 Information Portal

• Fall 2023 Reopening Guide

• 8/24/2023 Things to Know: Back to School community message

The FAQ page can be accessed in the link. The newly approved COVID-19 updated vaccine will be available in our area in the next few weeks. For information about COVID-19, influenza and RSV vaccine availability, refer to Vaccines.Gov.

Last March, Bill No. 1-22 Healthy Meals for Children, which requires restaurants in Montgomery County that offer a children’s meal to provide a healthy option (meal and drink) for their youngest customers, was passed. The first phase (healthy beverage option) went into effect in March, and the second phase (healthy meal option) goes into effect this Friday, September 15. This is the first bill of this nature to be fully implemented in the country. It should be noted that while a healthy option must be presented, customers are not limited in selecting any menu item of their choice. According to the bill, the healthy meals must be under 600 calories and include the following:

On Thursday, county leaders held a press conference at the Silver Diner (12276 Rockville Pike) in Rockville. Per the restaurant, “Silver Diner made it clear today that it supports Montgomery County, Maryland’s new legislation,  “Healthy Meals for Children” Bill. (Bill 1-22) that goes into effect on Friday, Sept. 15. The legislation requires food and restaurant facilities offering children’s meals to include healthy food and beverage options, something Silver Diner has been doing for more than 10 years.

In 2012, Silver Diner took a gamble. The restaurant group removed Fries and soda from its kids’ menu and implemented additional healthy offerings such as salmon, additional vegetables and other options. This after noticing that kids were ordering more sides of strawberries than any other offering. Sales soared and, after the menu changes were instituted, nearly half of the children’s entrees ordered were from the healthier kids’ meal options (46% compared to 3% before the changes.) The proportion of kids’ meal orders that included at least one healthy side also increased dramatically—from 26% before the changes to 70% after the changes were made. Notably, overall Silver Diner revenue continued to grow after the menu changes, exceeding that of leading family dining chains during the same time period.

Silver Diner’s Executive Chef Ype Von Hengst was instrumental in making the menu changes. He held in-diner focus groups with multiple groups of children who volunteered to be “Chef for a Day” and work alongside Ype taste testing proposed new dishes and providing feedback. “The feedback from our smallest customers was critical,” said Von Hengst. In some cases, parents stated upfront what their children would and would not eat. This included salmon and some vegetables. Yet, the kids gave Von Hengst’s salmon entrée a big thumbs up, astounding parents. The same held true for vegetables and other healthy menu options—the children voted them onto the menu.

In 2015, researchers from ChildObesity 180 and Tufts University Friedman School used Silver Diner as a national case study on how to influence children’s healthy eating. Results were  reported in the journal Obesity.

Researchers examined outcomes before and after Silver Diner made changes to its children’s menu in order to make healthier items easier to choose. This study was the first of its kind to look at both ordering patterns of children’s food plus a restaurant’s sales data after making menu changes.

“Our study showed that healthier children’s menu options were ordered a lot more often when those options were more prevalent and prominent on kids’ menus, highlighting the promise of efforts to shift the status quo and make healthier options the new norm,” said Stephanie Anzman-Frasca, Ph.D., research associate at ChildObesity180 and lead author of the paper. “Given how frequently kids go to restaurants, and evidence that this can be linked with consuming excess calories, offering and promoting healthier menu options could play a role in reversing the childhood obesity epidemic.”

As the study pointed out, Silver Diner made three main changes:

1.      Offered more healthy kids’ meals: More kids’ meals met nutrition standards set by the National Restaurant Association’s Kids LiveWell program (59%, compared to 22% before the changes).

2.      Automatically included healthy sides: Healthy side dishes—strawberries, mixed vegetables, or side salads—were automatically included with all kids’ meals by default.

3.      Took less healthy options off the kids’ menu: Fries and sugary fountain drinks including soda and lemonade were removed from the menu. They were still available as substitutions at no extra charge but had to be requested.

For the study, aggregate data from more than 350,000 children’s meals ordered were analyzed, along with a random subsample of individual checks (18,712) from both before (September 2011-March 2012) and after (September 2012-March 2013) the menu changes went into effect.

“We learned that what children eat can be easily influenced by what they’re offered,” added Von Hengst. “When they have great healthy meal choices, it’s easy for them to eat healthy.”

Von Hengst continued, “While we believe offering healthy choices is important, especially for children, we also believe that choice is important. That’s why we offer a variety of options to allow our guests to customize their preferences. Giving people choice is why we’ve been so successful with our healthier kids menu.”

Sponsors of the Montgomery County bill included Councilmember Craig Rice as the lead sponsor with co-sponsors Council President Albornoz and Councilmembers Jawando, Navarro and Hucker. Support was also provided by the Montgomery County NAACP, the American Heart Association and Center for Science in the Public Interest.

Although Prince Georges County has passed a similar bill, Montgomery County is the first in the nation to implement the legislation. The two counties will be the first in the country to have this legislation. Restaurants and diners will still be able to choose their meals, children will just have a healthy option.

For more information on Silver Diner, visit www.silverdiner.com.”

Field Hockey Varsity

Walter Johnson High School (Home)	2
Poolesville High School (Away)	0

Wheaton High School (Home)	0
Quince Orchard High School (Away)	7

Churchill High School (Home)	6
Old Mill Senior High School (Away)	1

Football JV

Whitman High School (Home)	6
Walter Johnson High School (Away)	14

Football Varsity

Damascus High School (Home)	27
Rockville High School (Away)	6

Paint Branch High School (Home)	49
Springbrook High School (Away)	0

Northwest High School (Home)	52
Richard Montgomery High School (Away)	29

Quince Orchard High School (Home)	29
Stone Bridge High School (Away)	22

Wootton High School (Home)	0
Churchill High School (Away)	30

Poolesville High School (Home)	13
Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School (Away)	41

Kennedy High School (Home)	0
Blair High School (Away)	50

Northwood High School (Home)	12
Wheaton High School (Away)	26

Clarksburg High School (Home)	0
Seneca Valley High School (Away)	48

Magruder High School (Home)	0
Sherwood High School (Away)	44

Watkins Mill High School (Home)	0
Gaithersburg High School (Away)	36

Blake High School (Home)	34
Einstein High School (Away)	19

Whitman High School (Home)	7
Walter Johnson High School (Away)	41

Soccer Boys JV

River Hill High School (Home)	1
Wootton High School (Away)	2

Sherwood High School (Home)	1
Rockville High School (Away)	0

Einstein High School (Home)	2
Kennedy High School (Away)	1

Gaithersburg High School (Home)	2
Wheaton High School (Away)	2

Soccer Boys Varsity

River Hill High School (Home)	5
Wootton High School (Away)	1

Gaithersburg High School (Home)	1
Wheaton High School (Away)	2

Seneca Valley High School (Home)	0
Richard Montgomery High School (Away)	4

Einstein High School (Home)	1
Kennedy High School (Away)	2

Sherwood High School (Home)	3
Rockville High School (Away)	3

Soccer Girls JV

Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School (Home)	9
Damascus High School (Away)	0

Richard Montgomery High School (Home)	8
Seneca Valley High School (Away)	0

Soccer Girls Varsity

Richard Montgomery High School (Home)	8
Seneca Valley High School (Away)	0

Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School (Home)	10
Damascus High School (Away)	0

Rockville High School (Home)	0
Sherwood High School (Away)	3

Volleyball Girls JV

Churchill High School (Home)	2
Arundel High School (Away)	0

Volleyball Girls Varsity

Churchill High School (Home)	0
Arundel High School (Away)	3

Einstein High School (Home)	0
Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School (Away)	3

Gaithersburg Mayor Jud Ashman tweeted a new video of the young man who was seen being attacked in a viral video from earlier this month– this video showed the Quince Orchard High School student running out with the football team ahead of its Thursday night game, holding a banner with the message ‘forgive’ written on it. The video and a photo tweeted by Quince Orchard High School principal Beth Thomas can be seen below.

The father of the student who was attacked in the original video spoke out in an interview with FOX5’s Shomari Stone. The victim’s father told FOX 5 that he believes his son was targeted. He says his son is on the autism spectrum. “I’m obviously distraught, especially after seeing the video, or videos that have been, I guess leaked or put on social media. It hurts to see your child hit numerous times by a bully.” he said.

According to FOX5, MCPS says they’re aware of the original video, and they are currently investigating. MCPS stated the following, “These matters are always taken very seriously as safety is paramount in every school. The MCPS Student Code of Conduct identifies fighting as prohibited and following an investigation, discipline may be applied. Student privacy law does not allow the district to identify any specific disciplinary action.” Quince Orchard principal Beth Thomas also responded to what occurred in the video, saying, “We responded swiftly yesterday to this unacceptable behavior and incident. This is not tolerated and a violation of our Code of Conduct. It undermines our values and everything we are committed to creating at QO.  EVERY child deserves to feel safe, welcomed, and valued.”

https://www.instagram.com/reel/CxMUTjKOFW2/?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

Life is full of lessons and teachable moments.
We always have opportunities to forgive and heal.
We are QO strong! 🐾❤️
⁦@QOAthletics⁩ ⁦@MCPSAthletics⁩ ⁦@QOHS_AP⁩ ⁦@QOAP_KJ⁩ ⁦@yarborop2⁩ ⁦@QOHSAP_EB⁩ ⁦@QO_FOOTBALL⁩ ⁦@QOBoosters⁩ pic.twitter.com/gsokJEkUQ4

— Beth Thomas (@QOHSPrin_Thomas) September 14, 2023

UPDATE: All lanes are open at this time.
Montgomery County Police issued the following traffic advisory at 7:11am on Friday, September 15:

“TRAFFIC ADVISORY: A traffic collision has Woodfield Road at Deanna Drive closed in both directions. Drivers are advised to seek an alternate route. Expect significant delays. #mcpd #mcpnews #traffic

TRAFFIC ADVISORY: A traffic collision has Woodfield Road at Deanna Drive closed in both directions. Drivers are advised to seek an alternate route. Expect significant delays. #mcpd #mcpnews #traffic pic.twitter.com/9NZYvLHKF0

— Montgomery County Department of Police (@mcpnews) September 15, 2023

On Thursday evening, the Montgomery County Board of Education provided an update to county leaders on the independent investigation of MCPS principal Joel Beidleman following alleged conduct reported by the Washington Post. Below you will see the letter from the Board of Education to county leaders and a summary of the report provided to the Board of Education by the Jackson Lewis law firm:

Letter from board of education to county leaders: “Dear: Mr. Kramer, Ms. Palakovich Carr, Mr. Elrich, Mr. Glass, Mr. Jawando, Dr. Handy, Ms. Martin, and Ms. Morrison,

The purpose of this communication is to further update you on the Board of Education’s progress in addressing the conduct reported by the Washington Post regarding the promotion of Dr. Joel Beidleman to principal of Paint Branch High School.

As you know, the Board engaged the firm of Jackson Lewis to conduct an investigation into the circumstances surrounding Dr. Beidleman’s promotion. Specifically, the Board asked investigators to look into: 1) whether senior MCPS personnel received or were aware of complaints prior to the promotion; 2) whether any such complaints were appropriately investigated; 3) what, if any, actions MCPS took in response to those complaints; and 4) whether those complaints affected the promotion process.

Jackson Lewis conducted a thorough, careful and comprehensive investigation, including 59 interviews of 30 current and former MCPS personnel and the collection of over 30.000 documents from MCPS email accounts, as well as text message discussion threads from 10 MCPS cellular phones. Jackson Lewis presented the findings of their investigation to the Board on September 8th.

In short, investigators found significant and troubling failures by senior management in MCPS.

While the Maryland Public Information Act prevents the Board from releasing the confidential personnel information contained in the report, we have tasked the investigators with summarizing their findings in a manner that can be shared. The Board is releasing that summary (attached) today. We have also forwarded the full report to the Montgomery County Inspector General and the Maryland Inspector General for Education for their review.

The Board is committed to addressing the failures outlined in the report and conducting a full and clear-eyed review of the promotion process within MCPS. The Board has tasked the superintendent with developing a comprehensive corrective action plan to ensure accountability and will use that as the basis for systemic improvements.

We appreciate your continued dialogue and partnership as we work together to build a stronger, better school system for our students, families and employees.

Sincerely,

Karla Silvestre, President

Montgomery County Board of Education”

Summary of the independent investigation by the Jackson Lewis law firm: “Dear Ms. Silvestre: As you know, the Board of Education of Montgomery County (the “Board’) engaged Jackson Lewis P.C., (“Jackson Lewis”) to conduct a full and complete independent investigation regarding the processes surrounding the June 2023 promotion of Dr. Joel Beidleman to Principal of Paint Branch High School (*Paint Branch HS”). Specifically, the Board requested that Jackson Lewis examine (1) whether, prior to the promotion, Montgomery County Public Schools (“MCPS) management received complaints or were otherwise aware of complaints containing allegations of misconduct against Dr. Beidleman, (2) whether any such complaints were appropriately investigated pursuant to MCPS policies and guidelines, (3) what, if any, actions MCPS took in response to any such complaints, and (4) whether these complaints impacted the promotional process.

On September 8, 2023, Jackson Lewis submitted a comprehensive final written report (the Report) and a verbal report to the Board which contained its findings, analysis of the facts and relevant exhibits to the Report. Pursuant to the Board’s request, Jackson Lewis did not provide any recommendations for subsequent actions based on the factual findings or opine on remedial measures to address any procedural issues.

As requested, this letter provides a general summary of the findings concerning the promotion process and related findings that the Board can release, consistent with the requirements of the Maryland Public Information Act (“MPIA”). The MPIA, specifically, Md. Code Ann., Gen.

Prov. § 4-311(a), requires a custodian to “deny inspection of a personnel record of an individual, including an application, a performance rating, or scholastic achievement information.” Records relating to the discipline of an employee or any other matter involving the status of an MCPS employee are subject to the MPIA. Here, the Report contains personnel information about MCPS employees, including those who may be subject to discipline based on the findings in the Report.

The requirements of the MPIA restrict the Board’s ability to release confidential personnel information contained in the Report.

To achieve the tasked investigation objectives, Jackson Lewis attorneys Donald E. English, Jr., Esq., Kathleen A. McGinley, Esq., and Tonecia R. Brothers-Sutton, Esq., (the “Investigators”) identified individuals associated with MCPS, at any level – current or formerly employed – who knew or should have known about any relevant complaints, the response to each and/or who were involved in the promotion process. The Investigators identified and interviewed 30 current and former employees. The Board was also interviewed on August 25, 2023 and September 1, 2023.

Some of the witnesses were interviewed more than once as additional and/or conflicting information was learned during the investigation. In total, the Investigators completed over 59 interviews of key MCPS personnel from August 11 to September 8, 2023. All of these interviews related solely to Dr. Beidleman’s promotion. The Report does not analyze the merits of any relevant complaints and/or allegations.

The Investigators also identified and reviewed documents related to any complaints relevant to the investigation, MCPS’ processes regarding complaint investigations, any investigation performed by MCPS and the promotional process in June 2023. These documents were collected from the witnesses directly, MCPS departments, and from MCPS’ electronic systems and hardware. The Investigators, along with their Jackson Lewis Electronic Stored Information team, collaborated with the MCPS Information Technology team to identify storage areas where relevant electronic documents and communications were stored on MCPS’ network.

Employing Discovery applications and third-party software, electronic files were extracted from the accounts of multiple custodians. Over 30,000 documents were collected from the MCPS email accounts, and text message discussion threads were collected from 10 MCPS cellular phones.

These files included documents from both Microsoft and Google accounts, and text message threads from custodians’ cellular phones. The Microsoft and Google account files were extracted from MCPS’ network and transferred to a third party Electronically Stored Information (ESI vendor. The files were processed to extract file contents and metadata, and the documents were hosted on an ESI platform that the Investigators accessed to perform their review.

The Investigators kept the Board apprised of the status of the investigation and were given complete independence to schedule and conduct interviews as needed and to collect documents that the Investigators identified. The Investigators prepared the Report and the findings without input, influence, or interference from MCPS or the Board.

The findings that are releasable pursuant to the MPIA are as follows:

• Dr. Beidleman was promoted while he was being investigated by MCPS because key decision-makers did not exercise enough diligence to ascertain important details about the investigation.

Specifically, multiple members of the administration, who were part of the promotion process, knew that Dr. Beidleman was under an active investigation at the time of his promotion. Those individuals did not inquire about the specific nature of the allegations against Dr. Beidleman, including their disposition.

• After Dr. Beidleman’s promotion, key MCPS leaders failed to take any remedial action and failed to promptly notify the Board once they knew specific details about the allegations against Dr. Beidleman and the disposition of the investigation. Key members of MCPS leadership learned details about the pending MCPS investigation and the disposition of that investigation by July 19, 2023, but did not share that information with the Board until on or about August 4, 2023.

• There is no evidence that the Board was aware of the pending MCPS investigation, the disposition of that investigation, and/or any other allegations relating to Dr.
Beidleman prior to its June 27, 2023 promotional decision.

• MCPS’ promotion process does not have a mechanism to automatically identify whether a candidate for a promotion or a transfer is under investigation.

• All formal complaints? relevant to the investigation were investigated and addressed by MCPS, but there is evidence that MCPS has long-standing practices and processes in place that resulted in anonvmous and informal complaints not being formally investigated. Specifically, MCPS did not formally investigate (by interviewing witnesses, interviewing the accused, or rendering a written determination pursuant to its policies) any of the multiple relevant anonymous complaints that it received. Many of those anonmous complaints contained sufficient details to enable MCPS to initiate a formal investigation, pursuant to its policies and procedures for investigating complaints against staff. MCPS similarly failed to formally investigate informal complaints that were brought to it by witnesses that were interviewed in connection with a relevant formal complaint.
MCPS typically does not formally investigate these types of informal complaints unless the alleged victim files a formal complaint under its policies.

After searching the MCPS servers and interviewing several witnesses, Jackson Lewis found that neither the Superintendent nor the Board received an alleged May 3, 2022 anonymous email and a May 9, 2022 email from an MCEA representative containing anonymous allegations.

Generally, to begin a formal investigation of discrimination, harassment or bullying, the complainant must complete a Form 230-39, contact the Department of Compliance and Investigations (“DCI”) directly by email or contact their principal or supervisor, if appropriate, who will refer the issue to DCI for review.

These factual findings, along with the factual findings contained in the Report, are not recommendations for corrective actions. However, these factual findings can be used by MCPS to develop a comprehensive corrective action plan.

Sincerely,

Donald E. English, Jr.”