By Adam Pagnucco.
Superintendent Monifa McKnight has few defenders to help her resist an attempt by the school board to oust her, but the Montgomery County NAACP is one of them. Printed below is the text of a letter sent by the NAACP to the board in which the group accuses them of “attempting to scapegoat” the superintendent.
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January 25, 2024
Ms. Karla Silvestre, President
Ms. Lynn Harris, Vice-President
Montgomery County Board of Education
Carver Educational Services Center
850 Hungerford Drive
Rockville, Maryland 20850
Dear President Silvestre and Vice President Harris:
On behalf of the Montgomery County Branch of the NAACP, I write to express our support for Superintendent Monifa B. McKnight, Ed.D.
According to press accounts, it appears that the Officers of the Board requested Dr. McKnight’s resignation. If the press accounts are accurate, we find it deeply troubling that such a request would be made without a full and fair opportunity for Dr. McKnight to address any concerns which may have led to this action.
Additionally, if a resignation request was made without providing Dr. McKnight; either a full and fair opportunity to address concerns or a delineation of any deficiencies in her performance, it would appear that such a request is based on factors which are external to Dr. McKnight’s performance and comprise a politically expedient solution to address press reports about systemic failures in the MCPS’s process for handling employee complaints—a process which predates her tenure and for which the Board shares responsibility. In essence, it appears that the Board is attempting to scapegoat Dr. McKnight. We note that expediency is rarely a means to justice and often compromises principle.
Therefore, we urge you to abandon efforts to oust Dr. McKnight and instead focus on empowering her efforts to address the systemic failures of the MCPS process for handling employee complaints. We believe that implementation of a fair and efficient complaint process will benefit the staff and students of Montgomery County Public Schools and bring about greater public trust and individual accountability.
Sincerely,
Linda M. Plummer
President
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