Greenbelt and other District 2 parents have begun the new school year sharing the systemwide challenges but, additionally, without a Board of Education representative. They don’t know when they can expect one. The vacancy and application process do not appear to have been advertised, which raises questions about whether the timing could bestow an incumbent advantage on the person picked by County Executive Aisha Braveboy, just ahead of the election. The process has also raised issues of transparency in the county, particularly from a county executive’s office that has not responded to questions from the media nor complied with the Greenbelt News Review’s public information act request, which the office was legally required to answer within 30 days.
District 2 Vacancy and Appointment
As we reported in the July 22 issue, former representative Jonathan Briggs, who was also vice chair of the board, resigned suddenly and without explanation. His resignation was effective June 30 according to a letter from Board of Education Chair Branndon Jackson to the county executive, which was obtained by the Greenbelt News Review via a Maryland Public Information Act (MPIA) request to the school board. Constituents and principals were not informed of his departure until July 20, when the Greenbelt News Review sent queries to Prince George’s County Public Schools (PGCPS) about why constituents had not been notified (see the July 22 issue). The only PGCPS announcement came in a chair’s report during the July 9 board meeting, which was two days after the county executive’s office closed the application period for a replacement. In our reporting in the July 30 issue, we noted that the window for applications for a 2025 school board vacancy was twice the length of the window for applications following Briggs’ resignation and that the call for applications in 2025 was advertised, including through social media.
Unanswered Request
The News Review filed an MPIA request with the county executive’s office on July 24, which should legally compel a response.
The county executive’s office failed to acknowledge the News Review’s MPIA request or provide the required 10-day initial response. After 30 days, the legally allowed timeframe for a response, the News Review had still received nothing.
The request is for correspondence concerning Briggs’ resignation from the District 2 Board of Education seat and the process to fill the resulting vacancy; internal memoranda, briefing documents or communications discussing the timing of the resignation or the appointment process to fill the vacancy; applications, communications or records related to candidates seeking appointment to fill the remainder of the term, including the total number of applications received; and the ways in which the resignation and application window were publicized by the county, including dates of announcements and ways in which they were shared.
On August 9, we followed up by email to confirm receipt of our public information request and status and received no reply. On August 10, we called Associate Director and Custodian of Public Records Leslie Jenkins-Jackson who was able to confirm we had the correct and current email address to submit MPIAs and who gave us the contact information for Terrance Chaney, a paralegal for the MPIA and transparency unit, who she said would be able to advise us of the status. We have been unable to reach Chaney, whose number went straight to voicemail each time we called. He has not returned voicemails left on August 24 and August 27.
On August 28, we emailed the MPIA address for the county executive’s office a third time and copied both Chaney and a C. Jones, two people we’ve been told might have information about our request. There has been no response.
The News Review has reached out to the Maryland Office of the Attorney General Public Access Unit and requested assistance from the state Ombudsperson.
Requests for Information from County Executive
Why was the application period for the District 2 board of education seat closed before PGCPS made a vacancy announcement? How were the vacancy and application processes publicized by the county? How many applications were received? What is the timeline for the appointment and will there be opportunity for community input? These are the questions the News Review has asked the county executive’s office repeatedly since July 20 and to which we’ve received no answer.
On July 20, when the News Review first asked the above questions of the county executive’s office, Director of Communications Thomas Johnson responded to add Brian Fischer to the chain. That would be Johnson’s only acknowledgement of our communications. He did not reply to our subsequent emails on July 28, August 3 or August 10. Johnson also has not answered our calls and has a voicemail that is not set up.
Fischer, the person added to the communications by Johnson, was appointed by Braveboy as the county’s first chief communications officer earlier this year. In July Prince George’s Suite Magazine and Media reported that was “a new executive-level leadership position designed to strengthen transparency, accountability and engage with residents across county government” and that “the newly established role signals a significant step in the Braveboy administration’s effort to modernize how government communicates with residents, businesses, community organizations and stakeholders. As chief communications officer, Fischer will serve on the county executive’s senior leadership team and oversee public information, media relations, executive communications, digital engagement, critical incident coverage and strategic messaging across county government.”
On July 28, Fischer responded to our email saying, “I have received your inquiry and will send it along to get information needed to respond.” He did not reply to any subsequent messages which requested a timeline for information or answers themselves on August 3, August 10 or August 27. Fischer did not include any contact information or email signature in his single communication with us on July 28; however, we left a message for him at the county executive’s office on August 28, when we were told he was out of the office. He has not responded.
On August 27, we emailed Braveboy and have so far received no response.
On August 27, we also reached out to Board Chair Jackson, who on June 27 emailed Braveboy to request she initiate the process to fill the seat, as we know from correspondence returned through an MPIA request to PGCPS. (Unlike the county executive’s office, PGCPS complied with our MPIA request). We asked Jackson if he had any information about the status of the appointment, timeline or opportunity for public input. Like others we’ve requested information about this appointment from, Jackson did not respond.