Power and Consent

The hearing held last night by the Howard County delegation was so mind-boggling that I'm still trying to wrap my head around it. I did go, but left at around 9:15 because I had a sick kid at home. They had only just started to hear the education portion of the evening. I think it ran until midnight.

About that. I thought it was just a Columbia thing, but apparently not: asking people with kids to turn out for meetings and then putting off their issues until late in the evening. This needs to stop. Parents have childcare issues to juggle. Don't put everyone else first. Last night I am guessing that plenty of folks gave up and went home and did not get to have their say.

A large part of the reason that the meeting ran until midnight was that the school system trotted out two groups to testify in defense of the status quo and against the legislation. Two rather large groups who, as individuals, each had to be allotted his or her own three minutes.

Group one: students. Group two: principals. According to these folks, the Howard County School System is all sweetness and light (and don't forget world class) and the proposed legislation is going to hurl us headlong into partisan bickering and selfishness.

There's just one problem, and it's a big one. As a teacher, I've been through many a workshop on abuse. And the biggest thing I learned which helps to define abuse is what constitutes consent. If one party has substantial power over the other, has a position of authority, or a leadership role, then the other party cannot fully and freely give consent.

And, if because of this inequality in the relationship, the weaker party is influenced or compelled to perform certain behaviors, then that is, by definition, abuse.

That's what happened last night.

Students and principals should have been protected from testifying on these controversial issues on behalf of hcpss because there is no way that they could truly have been there of their own free will, because of the nature of their relationship with the school system.

While I feel sorry for the principals, I am truly outraged on behalf of the students. Putting them in this situation is educational malpractice. In my opinion, whoever orchestrated this doesn't understand the responsibilities that we bear towards our students. And isn't that what last night was really all about?

Many thanks to everyone who turned out, or followed along at home. Look for more comprehensive coverage from Amanda Yeager of the Howard County Times and Amy Aubert of ABC2 News.

Comments

Teacher Gifts

Today is the last day of school before the Winter Break. It’s a good time to remember the far-reaching nature of our public school system. You may not have children. You may have sent your children to independent schools. It matters not. You will be impacted one way or another. Yesterday I read a long thread on Facebook about several waves of illness in the schools right now. There’s influenza A and norovirus, I believe. And of course there’s COVID. Apparently in some individual schools the rate of illness is high enough for school admin to notify parents. When I was little the acceptable holiday gift for a teacher was one of those lovely floral handkerchief squares. (I don’t know what it was for male teachers. They were rare in my elementary years.) These days the range of teacher gifts is wider and I have fond memories of Target gift cards which I have written about before. I think it’s safe to say that giving one’s teacher Influenza, norovirus, or COVID is not the ideal holiday...

Getting Fresh

One of my favorite days in the Spring comes when this year’s list of Farmer’s Markets is released. That happened this week. New this year are markets in Old Ellicott City and the “Merriweather Market” which, according to the address, will be located here . I mistakenly thought at first glance that it was in the new-construction part of the Merriweather District. I find the name confusing considering its actual location. I’m going to guess that this market is an initiative of the Howard Hughes Corporation because the name seems chosen more for branding purposes than anything else. Alas, the market in Maple Lawn is gone. The thread on the markets on the County Executive’s FB page will provide you with quite the education in who actually runs the Farmers Markets vs what people often think is going on. Short answer: they are not chosen nor run by the county. Each market is an independent entity, sometimes started by community volunteers, other times supported by local businesses...

They Can Wait

This is not a typical Saturday post. That’s because, in my community, it’s not a typical Saturday. Oakland Mills High School, after years of deferred repair, needs massive renovation. It’s pretty simple: when you don’t fix a problem it gets bigger. The school system itself said the the OMHS school building was "no longer conducive to learning" back in 2018. 2018 . But Thursday the Boad of Education voted to push it out of the lineup of important projects which will be given the go-ahead to proceed soonest. In my opinion it’s a terrible decision and sets a dangerous precedent. To explain, here’s the advocacy letter I sent in support of Oakland Mills High School. I was rather proud of it. I am writing to ask you to proceed with needed renovation at Oakland Mills High School in the most timely and comprehensive manner humanly possible. I have read the letter sent to you by the Oakland Mills Community Association and I am in complete agreement. You are extremel...

Village Green/Town²

Search This Blog