'A-' for FCPS

Originally published in the Frederick News-Post

By Marta Hummel Mossburg
Published on Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Maryland government tries to hide lots of information from residents. It does not want people to know about government employee salaries and benefits, loans made to well-connected businesses and many grants to politically in-vogue organizations.

Marvin Mandel at age 90

Originally published in the Daily Times

By The Daily Times Editorial Board
Published on Thursday, May 06, 2010
We missed a milestone of sorts last month -- the 90th birthday of one of the last of the greats to occupy Governor's Mansion in Annapolis.

Former Gov. Mandel turns 90, politicians gather for roast

Originally published in the Baltimore Sun

By Julie Bykowicz | The Baltimore Sun
Published on Wednesday, May 05, 2010
Generations of Maryland politicians celebrated Tuesday former Gov. Marvin Mandel's recent 90th birthday at a dinner in College Park that featured countless age jokes and heartfelt tributes, as well as a handful of awkward moments and surprise reunions.

The Accidental Governor: Marvin Mandel dictates his memoir

Originally published in MarylandReporter.com

By Len Lazarick
Published on Friday, April 30, 2010
"I'll Never Forget It" is what former Maryland Gov. Marvin Mandel calls his memoir published today - a forgettable title that could have been applied to a thousand autobiographies. It might better have been called "The Accidental Governor," since Mandel's subtitle is "Memoirs of a Political Accident from East Baltimore."

Kids suffer for politics

Originally published in the Frederick News-Post

By Marta Hummel Mossburg
Published on Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Someone told me a story once about a boy standing amid thousands of starfish on dry sand. He was hurling those within reach back into deep water when a man walked by and asked the boy why he was wasting his time -- the vast majority would die. The boy replied that his effort mattered to the ones he saved.

Republicans drop out

Originally published in the Gazette

By The Gazette
Published on Thursday, March 25, 2010
In opposing a bill to reduce the number of high school dropouts in Maryland, some Republicans in the General Assembly have chosen the wrong issue on which to demonstrate their fiscal principles.

Maryland needs BOAST

Originally published in the Frederick News-Post

By Marta Hummel Mossburg
Published on Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Educating children usually ranks behind paying off the teachers union in Maryland for political support.

Why Maryland Doesn't Need Universal Preschool

By Dan Lips
Published on Monday, March 01, 2010
Governor Martin O'Malley's "Maryland's Preschool for All Business Plan," created in December 2009, intends to "outline the direction for implementing the [universal preschool] program during the second decade of the 2000s." The initiative, like many liberal initiatives of its kind, is based on the assumption of a "multiplier effect" -- that universal preschool will better prepare young students for grades K-12 and provide such spillover benefits as reduced grade retention, special education enrollments, teen pregnancy, and criminal arrests, while increasing high school graduation and employment rates.

State teachers union will bust budgets if legislation passes

Originally published in the Washington Examiner

By Marta Hummel Mossburg
Published on Tuesday, January 12, 2010
You have to give the Maryland teachers union credit for its chutzpah. It is like a teenager who tells her parents she needs their credit card to buy school supplies and then drives to Neiman Marcus.The only problem: The credit card the union wants to abuse is the one paid for by every state taxpayer.

A tougher line on dropouts

Originally published in the Baltimore Sun

By Baltimore Sun Editorial Board
Published on Wednesday, November 04, 2009
A report last week that Montgomery County officials now favor raising from 16 to 18 the minimum legal age at which students can drop out of school signals a growing awareness that Maryland's future depends on a well-educated work force capable of competing in a global economy. Along with Baltimore City and Prince George's County, Montgomery County's support means there will now be a substantial bloc of lawmakers in the General Assembly ready to back toughening the requirements for school attendance to ensure that Maryland doesn't fall behind.