Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Friendship Aspire Staffing topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Parents of Friendship Aspire Academy tell school board kindergarten lacked permanent teacher, urge inspections and staffing fixes
Summary
Two parents told the Prince George's County Board of Education that Friendship Aspire STEM Academy opened the school year with an unstaffed kindergarten classroom, overcrowding and inexperienced teachers and asked the Office of Public Charter Schools, the Charter Foundation Board and PGCPS to inspect and intervene.
Two parents of students at Friendship Aspire STEM Academy told the Prince George's County Board of Education on Sept. 18 that the school opened the year with a permanent teacher vacancy in one kindergarten classroom and with larger-than-promised class sizes, leaving families concerned about instruction.
Rachel Oni, identified as a Friendship Aspire parent, told the board her child’s kindergarten class has not had a permanent teacher since the school year began Aug. 26 and that families had “not had consistent communication” from the school. “When I ask him what he's learning, the answers are, 'I'm watching Bluey,' 'I learned about a Venus flytrap,' ” Oni said. “This is just unsettling.”
Another parent, Janae Lee, outlined broader concerns about staffing, leadership and facilities at the charter school. Lee said the average classroom size at Friendship exceeds a promised limit of 22 students, that nearly 40 families had withdrawn while new students continued to arrive, and that second grade was operating with three classrooms instead of the four expected. Lee said kindergarten had one teacherless classroom and that most teaching positions were filled by new hires rather than returning staff.
Lee asked the board, the Office of Public Charter Schools and the Charter Foundation Board to take five immediate steps: conduct a random inspection of the school; assess leadership and administrative accountability; provide adequate teaching staff including special educators and counselors; ensure training and mentorship for newly hired teachers; and develop a concrete growth plan addressing staffing and budget needs. “Our children, your children deserve better,” Lee said.
Board Chair Brandon Jackson accepted the comments during the public-comment portion of the meeting; the board did not engage in dialogue with speakers during that period, consistent with the meeting’s announced procedure.
The speakers said they had raised the issues previously by email, phone and in-person visits to the school’s principal; they requested that PGCPS and charter oversight authorities act promptly so students are not “four weeks behind” their peers, a concern raised by Oni.
The parents’ remarks were the only public comments recorded on the meeting agenda. The board did not take a formal vote or make a public action in response during the meeting.
Ending: The parents’ appeals add to ongoing oversight questions for PGCPS and its Office of Public Charter Schools; the board’s formal next steps were not announced on the record at the Sept. 18 meeting.
