IN THE CIRCUIT COURT FOR Baltimore Cit a CIVIL - NON-DOMESTIC CASE INFORMATION REPORT DIRECTIONS CIVIL DIMiSiO) Plaintiff: This Information Report must be completed and attached to the complaint filed with the |Clerk of Court unless your case is exempted from the requirement by the Chief Judge of the Court of \ppeals pursuant to Rule 2-111(a). Defendant: You must file an Information Report as required by Rule 2-323(h). THIS INFORMATION REPORT CANNOT BE ACCEPTED AS A PLEADING. |FORM FILED BY:@PLAINTIFF ODEFENDANT = CASE NUMBER. cere me——| \cASE NAME: Jovani Patterson & Shawnda Patterson ys, Baltimore City Board of School Comm lPARTY's NAME: Jovani Patterson and Shawnda Patterson PHONE: |PARTY'S ADDRESS: lPARTY'S E-MAIL: It represented by an attorney: PARTY'S ATTORNEY'S NAME:ScottH. Marder___ PHONE: 410-752-2468 PARTY'S ATTORNEY'S ADDRESS:25 S. Charles St, Ste. 2015, Baltimore, MD 21202 PARTY'S ATTORNEY'S E-MAIL: shmarder@tandllaw.com JURY DEMAND? Oyes {No IRELATED CASE PENDING? 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OProperty Damages §, ALTERNATIVE DISPUTE RESOLUTION INFORMATION Is this case appropriate for referal to an ADR process under Md, Rule 17-1012 (Check all that apply) A.Mediation Yes No C, Settlement Conference Yes No B. Arbitration Yes No D. Neutral Evaluation Yes No ‘SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS: 1D if Spoken Language Interpreter is needed, check here and attach form CC-DC-O41 i it you require an accommodation fora disability under the Americans with Disebilities Act, check here and attach form CC-DC-049 ESTIMATED LENGTH OF TRIAL. [ith the exception of Baltimore County and Baltimore City, please fill in the estimated LENGTH OF| lneraz. (Case will be tracked accordingly) 0 1/2 day of trial or less 3 days of trial time 11 day of trial time O More than 3 days of trial time 112 days of trial time BUSINESS AND TECHNOLOGY CASE MANAGEMENT PROGRAM. [For all jurisdictions, if Business and Technology track designation under Md. Rule 16-308 is requested, attach a duplicate copy of complaint and check one of the tracks below. Expedited: Trial within 7 months of I Standard - Trial within 18 months of Defendant's response Defendant's response EMERGENCY RELIEF REQUESTED. (CC-DCM-002 (Rev. 04/2017) Page 2 0f3COMPLEX SCIENCE AND/OR TECHNOLOGICAL CASE, MANAGEMENT PROGRAM (ASTAR) FOR PURPOSES OF POSSIBLE SPECIAL ASSIGNMENT TO ASTAR RESOURCES JUDGES under ‘Md. Rule 16-302, attach a duplicate copy of complaint and check whether assignment to an ASTAR is requested. Expedited - Trial within 7 months of | Standard - Trial within 18 months of Defendant's response Defendant's response TF YOU ARE FILING YOUR COMPLAINT IN BALTIMORE CITY, OR BALTIMORE COUNTY, [PLEASE FILL OUT THE APPROPRIATE BOX BELOW. CIRCUIT COURT FOR BALTIMORE CITY (CHECK ONLY ONE) Expedited Trial 60 to 120 days from notice. Non jury matters. OD civit-short ‘Trial 210 days from first answer. OF ciit-standara ‘Trial 360 days from first answer. ®B custom ‘Scheduling order entered by individual judge. Asbestos Special scheduling order. 1 Lead Paint Fill in: Birth Date of youngest plaintiff. © Tax Sale Foreclosures Special scheduling order. Mortgage Foreclosures No scheduling order. CIRCUIT COURT FOR BALTIMORE COUNTY 1 Expedited Attachment Before Judgment, Declaratory Judgment (Simple), (Trial Date-90 days) Administrative Appeals, District Court Appeals and Jury Trial Prayers, Guardianship, Injunction, Mandamus. Standard Condemnation, Confessed Judgments (Vacated), Contract, Employment (Trial Date-240 days) Related Cases, Fraud and Misrepresentation, International Tort, Motor Tort, Other Personal Injury, Workers’ Compensation Cases. (Extended Standard Asbestos, Lender Liability, Professional Malpractice, Serious Motor Tort ot (Trial Date-345 days) Personal Injury Cases (medical expenses and wage loss of $100,000, expert and out-of-state witnesses (parties), and tril of five or more days), State Insolvency. Complex Class Actions, Designated Toxic Tort, Major Construction Contracts, Major (Trial Date-450 days) Product Liabilities, Other Complex Cas January 26, 2022 Date of Counsel 7 Party 25 8, Charles Street, Suite 2015 Scott H. Marder Baltimore MD 21202 Printed Name Gi “Sites Zip Code CC-DCM-002 (Rev. 04/2017) Page 3 of 3IN THE CIRCUIT COURT FOR BALTIMORE CITY Jovani Patterson and Shawnda Yvette Patterson 2205 Elsinore Avenue Baltimore, MD 21216-2526 Plaintiffs, v. BALTIMORE CITY BOARD OF SCHOOL COMMISSIONERS. Serve on: Joshua Civin, Esq. Chief Legal Officer Office of Legal Counsel 200 E North Avenue, Room 208 Baltimore, MD 21202 and MAYOR & CITY COUNCIL OF BALTIMORE, Serve on: 101 City Hall Baltimore, MD 21202 Defendants, Case No, + WR JN 26 Py g, SVL Olvisiay EOE EERE EE OOOH EOC EOC ERIS OE OCU EL ECE EE AEE Ee Ee nee COMPLAINT FOR DECLARATORY JUDGMENT Plaintiffs, Jovani Patterson and Shawnda Yvette Patterson, sue Defendants, Baltimore City Board of School Commissioners and Mayor & City Council of Baltimore, and states as follows: INTRODUCTION 1. Despite receiving some of the highest funding per pupil in the nation for many years, the Baltimore City Public Schools (sometimes referred to as the “School System”) has 4expended billions of dollars in taxpayer money, while failing to properly educate Baltimore City’s children. Without a proper education, as adults, many of these children cannot find jobs that are both personally rewarding and adequate to support themselves and their families. As such, all too often, as adults, these children require public assistance and may become involved in the criminal Justice system, creating additional burdens for the taxpayers of Maryland and Baltimore City, Beyond that, the Baltimore City Board of School Commissioners (the “School Board”) has wasted significant sums of money through the illegal and ultra vires acts described below, 2. This taxpayer standing action for declaratory judgment, brought under Section 3- 412 of the Maryland Courts and Judicial Proceedings Article on behalf of all taxpayers similarly situated, seeks to enjoin the waste of millions of dollars of taxpayer funds through the illegal and ultra vires actions of the School Board and the Mayor & City Council of Baltimore (“the City”), PARTIES 3. Plaintiffs, Jovani Patterson and Shawnda Yvette Patterson, reside at 2205 Elsinore Avenue in Baltimore City, Maryland, Plaintiffs own this property, and pay property and income taxes annually. 4. The School Board is a body politic and corporate doing business in Baltimore City, with its principal office located at 200 East North Avenue, Baltimore, Maryland 21202, 5, The Mayor and City Council of Baltimore City (“the City”) is a body politic and corporate doing business in Baltimore City, with its principal office located at 100 N. Holliday Street, Baltimore, MD 21202. JURISDICTION AND VENUE 6, This Court has jurisdiction over the School Board and the City pursuant to ‘Maryland’s common law taxpayer standing doctrine, which grants taxpayers the right to sue‘municipal corporations or public officials who engage in an illegal or ultra vires action which may reasonably result in a pecuniary loss to the taxpayers or an increase in taxes, 7. This Court has subject matter jurisdiction over this action, pursuant to Md. Code Ann., Cts, & Jud, Proe. § 1-501 and Md, Code Ann,, Cts, & Jud. Proc, § 3-403. 8. Venue is proper in this Court under Md. Code Ann., Cts. & Jud, Proc. § 6-201 because Defendants carry on their business in Baltimore City. STATEMENT OF FAC’ 9. Access to a free, quality public education is one of the foundations of American society. No child living in the United States should be deprived of receiving the education he or she needs to succeed in life. 10. Children rely on public schools to teach them critical skills, such as reading, math, writing, and how to communicate with their peers. These skills equip children to become full and productive members of society. For children who live in impoverished areas, schools are safe havens providing stability when their families face challenges such as unemployment, food insecurity, and inadequate health care access. Public schools are their only option to receive an ‘education, and impoverished families lack the resources to help them compensate for instruction that public schools fail to provide. See BALTIMORE EDUCATION RESEARCH CONSORTIUM, EARLY ELEMENTARY PERFORMANCE AND ATTENDANCE IN BALTIMORE CITY SCHOOLS’ PRE- KINDERGARTEN AND KINDERGARTEN (2012), attached as Exhibit A. 11. A high-quality education changes lives. Education benefits individual students, taxpayers, and the community. It has been linked to higher income, better health, higher life satisfaction, reductions in crime, increased voter participation, and higher life expectancy, See THE CAMPAIGN FOR EDUCATIONAL EQUITY, PROVIDING COMPREHENSIVE EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITYattached as Exhibit E. Despite this, only 16% of thitd-graders in City Schools read at a proficient Jevel, compared tothe state average of 41%, See Chris Papst, Former School Board President says root cause of problems hasn't changed in 30 years, FOX4S News (Oct. 27, 2021), ‘https://foxbalti problems-30-vears attached as Exhibit F. According to the most recent statewide test for English and math proficiency, only 19.7% of students in grades 3 through 10 are proficient in English, and only 14.1% are proficient in math. Liz Bowie, et al., Maryland PARC scores: Math results worst since 2015, though English scores see bump, BatmimoRe SuN (Aug, 27, 2019), hitps://www.baltimoresun.com/education/bs-md-maryland-2019-test-scores-20190827- fTbmkyju3vbo3odiiddzbhhSw4-story.html, attached as Exhibit G. The School System's graduation rates demonstrate the impossibility of students ever catching up when the school system fails them so early on; the School System’s graduation rate is 15 percent lower than the state average. MARYLAND STATE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION, MARYLAND STATE 2018-2019 SCHOOL RePoRT CaRD (2019), attached as Exhibit H. 15. For the first three quarters of the 2020-2021 academic year, an astounding 41% of the School System’s high school students earned a GPA of below 1.0 — less than a “D” average. Chris Papst, Baltimore City Schools: 41% of high school students earn below 1.0 GPA, FOX45 News (July 12, 2021), httpsi//foxbaltimore.com/news/project-baltimore/baltimore-city-schools- 4-of-high-school-students-earn-below-10-gpa, attached as Exhibit I. During the same school year, 62% of the School System’s middle schoolers and 52% of elementary schoolers earned at least one failing grade. Chris Papst, Baltimore City Schools: 62% of middle schoolers have at least ‘one failing grade, POX45 News (July 21, 2021), hitps://foxbaltimore.com/news/project= baltimore/baltimore-city-schools-62-of-middle-schoolers-failing-one-or-more-grades, attached asExhibit J; see also Chris Papst, In Baltimore, failure starts early ~ half of elementary school students fail at least one course, FOX45 News (July 26, 2021), hitps://foxbaltimore.com/news/project-baltimore/calls-for-city-schools-ceo-to-resign-as-52-of. clementary-students-fail-course, attached as Exhibit K. 16. The School System's students are among the lowest-performing in the nation, Data released by the National Assessment of Educational Progress (“NAEP”) shows that the School System’s students’ dcademic achievement falls below almost every other large school district in the nation that takes the NAEP exam. See Nation's. Report Card, available at https:/www:nationsreporteard.cov/profiles/districtprofile/overview/XMcti=PeTab_OT&chort= 28&sub=RED&s}=XMéefs=Gradedist=AB&year=2019R3 &se-Gender43A+Male+vs.Femaled: sev=Differencedts-Singlet Year&tss=-2019R3&sf}=NL, attached as Exhibit L. In fact, the School System’s 4th and 8th grade students’ achievement levels were below those of students in 19 other large schoo! districts. The School System’s students’ average score was only higher than those of students in Detroit on each of these NAEP assessments. Id. 17. Alarmingly, 70% of the Baltimore City students who do manage to graduate high school and attend a Maryland public university must take remedial classes in basic reading and math, See Marta Mossburg, Maryland parents may now be able to sue for better schools, WASHINGTON EXAMINER (June 4, 2019), https://www.washingtonexaminer.convopinion/op- eds/maryland-parents-may-now-be-able-to-sue-fot-better-schools, attached as Exhibit M. Even those students who have beaten the odds and graduated have not received a basic education, which is a severe disadvantage when trying to compete for employment or succeed in a challenging academic environment while also catching up on basic skills that the School System should have taught them over the course of several years.18. ‘The School System’s 2020-21 budget was $1.4 billion for 78,000 students ~a cost ‘of $18,000 per student, The School System is spending 25.2% above the national average, while its students are performing worse than most school districts in the nation. Adam Andrzejewski, Baltimore City Public Schools Promoted Student With 0.13 GPA While Spending A $1.4 Billion Budget, FORBES.COM (Mar. 30, 2021), http://www. forbes.com/sites/adamandrzejewski/2021/03/30/baltimore-city-public-schools- promoted-student-with-013-epa-while-spending-a-14-billion-budget/?sh=7aee7b1263de, attached as Exhibit N. In 2021, the Census Bureau reported that the School System’s per-pupil expenditure during fiscal year 2019 was $15,888, or the 1th highest among the nation’s 100 largest school districts, See Exhibit L. The School System’s CEO, Sonja Santelises, eams a salary of $339,028. Jd. In comparison, the U.S. Secretary of Education ears $126,000 less than Santelises. See Exhibit N. Ms, Santelises receives her exorbitant salary despite the abysmal performatice of the School System. 19, The School Sysiem's waste of taxpayer money does not end with spending hundreds of millions of dollars and failing to teach its students. The School System has acknowledged a history of committing fraud by intentionally misrepresenting enrollment data, which is directly linked to the amount of funding it receives for its annual budget. In 2014, the School System overreported its enrollment data by 978 students, and was required to return $2.9 million in funding from Baltimore City. Only two years later, the School System misreported its enrollment data yet again, this time inflating its enrollment by 1,900 students. In that case, the School System’s failure to accurately report enrollment data forced the School System to return $25 million in city funds. See Erica L. Green, Baltimore schools lose hundreds of students, millionsin funding, BALTIMORE SUN (Jan. 30, 2016), https://www.baltimoresun.com/education/bs-md-ci- schools-enrollment-drop-20160129-story.htm! attached as Exhibit O. 20, In April 2021, media reports surfaced identifying further fraud in reporting student enrollment numbers at The Augusta Fells Savage Institute of Visual Arts (“Augusta Fells"), a public school within the School System. According to the report, Augusta Fells included 21 students who no longer attended schoo! in its required annual enrollment count to the Board. The accuracy of this enrollment data is crucial, because itis used to determine the amount of funding needed for the 2020 school year. See Chris Papst, ‘Ghost Student’ scandal hits Baltimore City Schools, FOX4S News (Apr. 7, 2021), bttpsi//foxbaltimore.com/news/project-baltimore/ghost- student-scandal-hits-baltimore-city-schools, attached as Exhibit P, 21, . In August 2019, the School System’s own review of graduating student records showed fraud in Augusta Fells’ enrollment and graduation practices, and the School System began an internal investigation in September 2019, After an extraordinarily lengthy investigation spanning nearly two years, the School System finally released the results of its investigation in August 2021. See AFS Investigation Report, attached as Exhibit Q. At the conclusion of the Augusta Fells investigation, the School System had identified at least 69 potentially current instances of fraudulent enrollment recordkeeping involving 52 students. Id. This fraudulent enrollment increased the amount of money the School Board received from taxpayers, 22. The former principal of Claremont Middle/High School in Baltimore City, Angel Lewis, recently informed the media that in 2016 she discovered that five deceased students were enrolled at the school. See Chris Papst, Bombshell allegations at another City school ~ Dead students enrolled, Classes. didn’t exist, FOX45 News (Sept. 15, 2021), https://foxbaltimore.com/news/project-baltimore/dead-students-enrolled-classes-didnt-exist-baltimore-school, attached as Exhibit R. An investigation she conducted revealed that while 130 students were enrolled, only 30 students were actually attending. Ms. Lewis reported these discrepancies to the School System, and also complained that Claremont was cheating on the statewide assessment, graduating students who were not eligible, and enrolling students in classes that did not exist. Jd. Ms. Lewis even reported that one of the students enrolled in Baltimore City Public Schools was dead, and the School System knew he had died. 23, . ‘Therefore, on at least four known occasions, the School System has fraudulently misrepresented enrollment data and obtained more funding in its annual budget based on fraudulent student enrollment numbers. This most recent waste of taxpayer funds was only made public because of the local media, not because of the School Board’s oversight of the City acting as a fiduciary over the taxpayers’ money. The School System has a clear pattern of falsifying student enrollment data to obtain excessive taxpayer-derived funding, and upon information and belief, there are multiple additional examples of falsified enrollment records that have not yet been uncovered because the School System has shown it actively conceals its misconduct, and has created a culture of fear and coercion to prevent School System employees from disclosing this fraud, 24, The School System has profited from its pattern of fraudulent enrollment data repoiting by receiving more taxpayer funding than that to which it was lawfully entitled. As such, the School System has likely engaged in criminal racketeering by engineering and participating in a widespread conspiracy to fraudulently report student enrollment data, in violation of 18 U.S.C.A. § 1962. Augusta Fells reported approximately 100 students who were not enrolled at the school, according to the School System’s own report. Since the School Systeni’s budget provides forapproximately $18,000 per student, the fraud discovered at Augusta Fells alone resulted in approximately $180,000 in purloined taxpayer funds. 25, The School System’s fraudulent enrollment data reporting is also a violation of Maryland’s statute criminalizing the falsification of public records. Md, Code Ann,, Crim, Law § 8-606, 26. Additionally, the prevalence of grade inflation throughout the School System has led to the widespread promotion of students to the next grade level who have not met the requirements of their current grade level. Simply put, the School System is failing to teach its students basic skills each year, then giving up and advancing them without equipping them with the knowledge needed to succeed at the next grade level. This practice of “social promotion” absolutely cripples Baltimore City schoolchildren and has done so for generations, setting them up for failure for the rest of their lives. It also wastes taxpayer dollars. A recent study has found that adults with low levels of literacy eam approximately $28,870 less per year than adults who have attained a minimum level of proficiency in literacy. See Jonathan Rothwell, Assessing the Economic Gains of Eradicating Mliteracy Nationally and Regionally in the United States, Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy (2020), attached as Exhibit S. Baltimore City Public School students had an average reading proficiency score of 11-13% in 2019, See Exhibit L. This means that approximately 68,640 students are on track to earn a combined total of nearly $2 billion less per year on average than if they had attained a minimum level of literacy. 27. Within the last year, multiple investigations have revealed disturbing and illegal practices at individual city schools, including Augusta Fells. A parent of an Augusta Fells student reported that no one from the school contacted her to tell her that over four years, her son only passed three classes and failed 22, and was late or absent from school on 272 days over the first 10three years of attendance. Year after year, Augusta Fells ignored his failing grades and the fact that hhe was not even showing up for class, and simply promoted him from grade to grade until finally informing his mother that he had a 13 GPA and would not be graduating in his senior year of high school. See Chris Papst, City student passes 3 classes in four years, ranks near top half of class with 0.13 GP4, FOX45 News (Mar. 1, 2021), https://foxbaltimore.com/news/project= baltimore/city-student-passes-3-classes-in-four-years- iks-near-top-half-of-class-with-013-gpa, attached as Exhibit T. 28. The School System’s own investigation concluded that Augusta Fells? administrators conspired with each other to violate the School Board's Policies on student grading, and created a culture of fear within the school by pressuring teachers to participate in the conspiracy to change student grades and give them grades they did not earn. See Exhibit Q. The results of that one investigation at that one school out of 170 in the School District revealed that 15 students were improperly given passing grades without actually meeting the credit requirements, and some even were allowed to graduate based on the improperly-earned credits, Id. The Augusta Fells investigation also revealed that school administrators falsified enrollment records to indicate that students were enrolled in classes that did not exist, or which they did not attend, although Board Policy requires schools to withdraw students for lack of attendance. Id, 29. Augusta Fells also operated credit recovery programs which did not comply with School System requirements, awarding credits to students for classes that were taught by untrained teachers or for completing work packets that did not meet the School System’s standards for alternative credits, thereby acting illegally and deliberately providing a pathway for students to eam credits and ultimately graduate without actually leaming the skills that they need to be successful. See Exhibit Q. rT30. The School System has a long history of pushing students through school without giving them the education those schools have been entrusted to provide. In 2019, thousands of emails released by the School System pursuant to a court order showed multiple instances of schools rounding failing grades up to passing and promoting students with chronic absences, See Chris Papst, City Schools Emails Spark Calls for State Investigation,” FOX4S News (Sept. 28, 2021), httpsi/foxbaltimore.com/news/project-baltimore/city-schools-emails-spark-calls-for-state- investigation, attached as Exhibit U, To date, itis unclear whether a state investigation by the Maryland Education Inspector General has resulted in any official findings or remedial action to compel the Schoo! System to do its job and provide an adequate education to Baltimore students. ‘The need for an independent investigation and clear remedial and disciplinary action is manifest through the School System’s repeated attempts to cover up any misconduct, and to prevent the taxpayers from discovering the waste of taxpayer funds through the School System’s illegal, ulera vires, and fraudulent actions, 31. The School Board has a history of violating the law and concealing records that would alert the public to its fraudulent acts. In 2017, FOX45 News filed a records request to the School Board under the Maryland Public Information Act to view and obtain a report from the School Board's internal investigation into grade changing. Without this report, there was no way to independently verify the information on grade changing that teachers within the School System had alleged. However, the School Board first refused to release the records, and then gradually provided more than 10,000 pages of documents over 15 months, many of which had been redacted, FOX4S sued in order to obtain the unredacted documents, and Baltimore City Circuit Court Judge Jeannie Hong ordered the School Board to turn them over. In het ruling, Judge Hong stated that the School Board’s actions: 12were calculated to deny complete access to responsive records in order to hide possible wrongdoings within the Baltimore City Public Schools, Therefore, Defendant failed to turn over or submit documents it knew to be responsive to the MPIA Requests, and only fashioned production of documents when faced with the potential for litigation costs and proceedings, The School Board has a recognized history of attempting to hide evidence of fraud within the School System. As such, the School Board has demonstrated that it will not simply identify and remedy instances of illegal and ulira vires conduct on its own, further showing the necessity for this taxpayer lawsuit 32. In another known example of the School System’s attempts to conceal the gross misconduct occuring at City schools, Ms. Lewis informed the media that she discovered shocking acts of fraud taking place at Claremont before she took over as principal, and reported the fraud to the School System ~ but the School System not only ignored her, it retaliated against her for complaining. Ms. Lewis reported the same exact types of fraud and other misconduct that the School System has now admitted occurred at Augusta Fells. Namely, Claremont’s administrators were falsifying student records to push ineligible students through to graduation, forcing students to take classes with unqualified and untrained teachers, and depriving students of basic courses they needed to earn required graduation credits, including math and science. As such, the School System had direct knowledge of widespread fraud throughout the School System, but deliberately chose not to take action, and even fired Ms. Lewis for her attempts to protect the schoolchildren of Baltimore City from the unscrupulous actions of school staff that so miserably failed them. See Exhibit R. 33. Ms. Lewis also reported widespread fraud to hide administrative costs, resulting in the theft of taxpayer dollars to pay supposed “employees” who did not work at Claremont and who Ms. Lewis, as school principal, never even met. According to Ms. Lewis, she would regularly see 13,‘one person park his car with hazard lights on in front of Claremont, enter the building, sign in and leave without ever working in the school. Id 34, According to Ms. Lewis, the fraudulent and illegal conduct she described was occurring in other schools within the School System because the administrators at School Board headquarters conspired with unscrupulous staff within the School System to pressure employees to permit and participate in this misconduct by retaliating against any employees who complained. ‘See Exhibit R. In so doing, the School Board deliberately created an environment of fear for any educators within the School System who would otherwise consider reporting the School System’s illegal actions. 35, All of the illegal or ultra vires conduct described by Ms. Lewis wasted taxpayers’ dollars. 36. The School System is a governmental unit of Baltimore City, established to provide formalized instruction at pre-elementary, elementary, and secondary levels to Baltimore City residents. The City is charged with establishing and maintaining a system of free public schools in Baltimore City. Md. Code Ann., Educ. § 4-302. The City is also responsible for providing local funding to the School System to pay the expenses incurred for educational purposes. Md. Code Anti,, Epuc, § 4-315. 37. The School Board is accountable for the academic achievement of the students in the School System. Md, Code Ann, Educ, § 4-303(c). The School Board also has the authority over, and is responsible for, all functions relating to the School System, including adopting rules, policies and procedures for the management, maintenance, operation and control of the Schoo! System. Md. Code Ann., Edue. § 4-303(é). 1438. The School Board’s Policy Manual contains the written policies and administrative regulations formulated and adopted by the School Board to manage the School System. See School Board’s Policy Manual, BGA ~ Policy Development, attached as Exhibit V. 39. Defendants have failed in their statutory duties to oversee and manage the Schoo! System, because the School System is depriving generations of Baltimore City students of an adequate public education. As such, Defendants are wasting taxpayer dollars through their illegal and ultra vires actions. Defendants have effectively put Baltimore City students ata disadvantage for their entire lives, impacting not only the individual students but their greater community, specifically taxpayers. 40. Upon information and belief, as explained in this Complaint, the School Board has violated multiple criminal laws through fraudulently creating, maintaining and reporting false enrollment data and attendance and graduation records, Specifically, the School Board has violated, and conspired to violate, criminal statutes including making false entries in public records, racketeering, mail fraud, theft, and embezzlement, 41, Defendants have also violated multiple provisions of state and local education laws and regulations through the School System’s systemwide practice of failing to provide mandated support services arid required notice to students who have not performed at grade level, and then promoting them to the next grade so that the students lack the opportunity to ever catch up, thereby wasting taxpayer dollars, 42, Defendants have also violated their regulatory duties to monitor and report student attendance, allowing schools to Keep sloppy and inaccurate records either deliberately or through. neglect. Not only does this result in taxpayer waste by leading to excessive funding being provided to schools based on inflated enrollment numbers, but it also creates a barrier to chronically absent 15students who do not receive the support services they need and who consequently fall behind in school with no hope of getting back on track. When these students fail to obtain an adequate education, many of them become a further burden on the taxpayers of Baltimore City and Maryland. 43, As taxpayers, Plaintiffs are injured by Defendants’ unlawful acts or omissions because Plaintiffs and all similarly-situated taxpayers have contributed, through theit tax payments, to the School System funding that has been misused, and will continue to contribute to the ongoing waste in the future. 44. Plaintiffs are seeking injunctive relief to prevent Defendants from further wasting taxpayer funds, Specifically, Plaintiffs request that this Court compel Defendants to follow their own procedures for identifying, notifying parents of, and providing support services to truant students and students in danger of failing/not graduating. This remedy will prevent the waste of taxpayer funds by ensuring students receive the education they need to succeed. Further, it will ensure that students who no longer attend classes are removed from school records and not included in the enrollment data reported to the Board for use in calculating the budget. Plaintiffs further request that this Court enjoin the City from providing funding to the School Board beyond those amounts required by applicable law. 45. Plaintiffs also request that this Court order Defendants to eliminate grade inflation and follow their own policies for promoting students to the next grade level, so that students actually progress through school rather than being pushed through without ever mastering the skills they need to succeed in the future, This will ensure that Defendants stop wasting taxpayer funds by delivering a woefully inadequate education to Baltimore City students,46. Plaintiffs also request that this Court order oversight of the waste and abuse at Baltimore City Public Schools, The School System’s Reporting Of Inflated Enrollment Numbers Has Increased The Amount Of Taxpayer-Derived Funds To The School System Schools 47. Under state law, the School Board must prepare a proposed annual budget and submit itto the Mayor of Baltimore for approval, who may deny in whole or reduce in part major categories of the proposed budget, then submit the proposed budget to the City Council for ‘approval. Md. Code Ann., EDUC. § 5-102. 48. The School Board’s budget includes funding from five categories of sources: (1) Jocal, (2) state, (3) federal, (4) unliquidated surplus from prior fiseal years, and (5) all other sources, Md. Code Ann., EDUC, § 5-101(b)(1). 49. The City has ultimate approval over the School Board’s budget and also provides the School Board’s local funding, The City has the power to levy and collect taxes on the assessable property in Baltimore City to raise its share of funds. Md, Code Ann., EDUC. § 4-315(a). 50. The School System’s 2020-2021 budget includes $295 million in local funding. See ADOPTED BALTIMORE CITY PUBLIC SCHOOLS OPERATING BUDGET FOR 2020-21, attached as Exhibit W. The City and the State of Maryland together must meet a minimum “foundation program” requirement for funding, a computation based on the School System’s full-time equivalent student enrollment count and a dollar amount per student. Md. Code Regs. 13A.02.06.02(B)(11)-(12); Md, Code Ann,, Ebuc. § 5-202. 51. The City must provide a minimum share of the foundation program, known as “maintenance of effort” (“MOE”) funds, by levying an annual tax sufficient to fund the local share, and appropriating local funds for the budget “in an amount no less than the product of the county's 7full-time equivalent entollment forthe curren fiscal year and the local appropriation on a per pupil basis for the prior fiscal year.” Md, Code Ann., EDUC. § 5-202(4)(1)(i). 52, If the City fails to meet the minimum MOE requirements, it forfeits the State's share of the foundation program. Md, Code Ann., EDUC. § 5-213(b)(3); see also 94 Md. Op. Att'y Gen. 177 (2009), attached as Exhibit X. 53. Section 4-316 of the Education Article requires the School Board to provide an annual report to the Maryland State Department of Education, including the School System's expenditures and the number of children taught. Md, Code Ann, EDUC. § 4-316. 54. Upon information and belief, based on the foregoing, the City has failed to provide proper oversight over the School Board's budget, and the School Board has fraudulently provided false enrollment numbers upon which to calculate the correct local and state tax fund allotment. Administrators at Augusta Fells committed fraud by signing false enrollment verification forms to misrepresent the number of students enrolled at Augusta Fells. The School System’s investigation found at least 100 students with potentially fraudulent enrollment records, and there are at least 69 instances of fraud that, at the time of the Report, still have not been resolved. See Exhibit P; Exhibit Q. 55. The School System’s own investigation concluded that the falsely reported enrollment data at Augusta Fells was deliberate, and that school administers engaged in a conspiracy to commit fraud. See Exhibit Q. The School System's 2019-2020 Operating Budget adopted by the School Board on April 23, 2019, listed Augusta Fells’ total enrollment as 399 pupils in FY2019 and projected 406 enrolled pupils for FY2020. Based on the number of enrolled pupils, the Board allocated $3,422,236 in total funds to Augusta Fells for FY2019 and $3,443,059 for 18FY2020. See ADOPTED BALTIMORE CrTy PUBLIC SCHOOLS OPERATING BUDGET FOR 2019-20, attached as Exhibit Y, 56, Upon information and belief, based on the foregoing, the identification of “ghost students” in Augusta Fells’ enrollment data is not an isolated incident, given the School System's history of falsifying enrollment records, and given that the School System itself has admitted that the false enrollment data at Augusta Fells was part of an “intentional” scheme, and not the result of disorganization or sloppy recordkeeping. Rather, it was a deliberate, coordinated act perpetuated by multiple school administrators. See Exhibit P; Exhibit Q. 57. The Board was aware of the false reporting of enrollment data as eatly as 2016, when the former principal of Claremont, Ms. Lewis, reported that under the previous principal, at least five deceased students were enrolled at the school. Ms, Lewis stated that the false reporting of enrollment data had been going on for many years prior to her arrival, but that she was fired after reporting it to the School System and the School System deliberately created a culture of fear, to intimidate employees and prevent them from revealing the widespread fraud. See Exhibit R 58. Upon information and belief, based on the foregoing, the Board has deliberately falsified the number of enrolled students at other schools in the School System in addition to Augusta Fells, resulting in excessive funds being appropriated by the Board in the annual budget. 59. The Board's falsification of enrollment data is a violation of state-and federal criminal statutes. 60. - Specifically, the Board has willfully made a false entry in a public record by submitting false enrollment data to the State Board of Education, a unit of the State, Md, Code Ann,, Crim. Law § 8-606. 1961. Further, Defendants have committed theft by deception by falsifying student data ‘o obtain a larger share of taxpayer funds and have also embezzled taxpayer funds in their capacity as fiduciaries. The taxpayer funds allocated to the School System are based on student enrollment numbers because those funds are meant to be spent on the education of those students, However, by falsifying enrollment records and illegally obtaining an inflated amount of funding, Defendants have appropriated funds that were meant for the “ghost students.” Md. Code Ann,, Crim, Law § 17-104; 7-113. Additionally, upon information and belief, Defendants have committed mail and/or wire fraud by using U.S. Mail or wires in devising or intending to devise a scheme to defraud or obtain money by means of false pretenses, representations or promises, Defendants engaged in a scheme to obtain money from taxpayers by fraudulently misrepresenting the number of enrolled students. Further, upon information and belief, Defendants used the U.S. mail or wires to transmit fraudulent enrollment numbers in an annual report to the Maryland State Department of Education. 62, Since the City has a statutory and regulatory obligation to provide its minimum share of the School System's funding which is based on school enrollment numbers, the City is required to allocate a greater amount of funds to the School System budget if'a higher number of students is reported as enrolled than is actually attending city schools. 63. Upon information and belief, based on the foregoing, the City has levied taxes and contributed funds to the School System based on repeated fraudulent student enrollment numbers provided by the School System without adequately verifying the enrollment data, 64. The School System’s repeated practice of fraudulently misreporting its student enrollment numbers has led and can reasonably be expected to continue to lead to higher taxes paid by Baltimore City taxpayers including Plaintiffs 2065. Since the City is required by law to appropriate a minimum amount toward the MOE which is dependent upon the number of enrolled pupils, the City’s required share of funds to the School System inereases as the number of pupils increases. Since those funds are largely comprised of money raised by Baltimore City taxes, Baltimore City taxpayers are subject to higher taxes to pay for the education of “ghost students.” 66. Furthermore, since the City’s failure to comply with its obligation to contribute the correct share of its MOE obligation could lead to the State withdrawing its obligation, Defendants’ failure to accurately report enrollment data could potentially lead to a tax increase to compensate for the lost state funds with local revenue. Md. Code Ann., Edue, § 5-213(b)(3); see also Exhibit x. 67. A spokesperson for the Maryland State Department of Education has confirmed, when asked to comment on the Augusta Fells investigation, that typically the State asks for funds that were erroneously disbursed to a school system to be returned to the State. See Lillian Reed, Maryland education department may ask Baltimore school system to return funds after enrollment inflation scheme at high school, THB BALTIMORE SUN (Sep. 3, 2021), https://vwwbaltimoresun.com/education/bs-md-augusta-fells-savage-20210903-20210903- i6wSaq3xdjdivbbwe7bdra3knu-story html, attached as Exhibit Z. The School Boatd has already been required to pay back $2.9 million in 2014 to the City government after its misrepresented enrollment numbers were discovered, ‘The School System’s Failure To Monitor Student Attendance Records Wastes Taxpaver Funds, 68. In addition to the direct impact on taxpayers that an inflated enrollment number presents based solely on the resulting calculation of taxpayer funds appropriated to the School 21System, Defendants’ fraudulent reporting of student enrollment data in violation of the law is also a waste of taxpayer funds because it harms indi lual students in need of intervention. 69. Each child residing in Maryland who is five years old or older and under the age of 18 by September 1 of the school year, shall attend a public school regularly during the entite school year, See Md. Code Ann., EDUC. § 7-301; see also Baltimore City Public School Board Policies and Regulations, JEA-RA-Compulsory Attendance Regulation, 70, COMAR 13A.08.01.05 also requires the Board to develop a student attendance policy, including: (3) Procedure to verify absences/tardiness includes responsible persons, time limits, and methods of absent/tardy verification. (4) Penalties for not meeting standards for regular attendance requirements include actions taken by school system staff when a student is unlawfully absent ot accumulates an equivalent number of excessive or unlawful absences which exceeds the standard for regular school attendance. The penalties should be identified, and should reflect a continuum of excessive or unlawful absences, 71, Further, the Board must have an attendance-monitoring policy which includes: (a) Record-Keeping format to comply with State attendance reporting requirements; (b) Intervention strategies and procedures for dealing with absenteeism at the beginning stages of the problem as well as chronic absenteeism; and (©)A referral process to pupil services or other central office professionals for case management of chronic attendance cases, Mad. Code Regs. 13A.08.01.05. Additionally, Section 7-302 of the Education Article provides that public schools “shall report immediately” to the school superintendent or other designated official the name of an enrolfed child who has been absent without lawful excuse “so that the causes may be studied and solutions worked out.” Md. Code Ann., EDUC. § 7-302 (a). It further provides the required procedures for investigating the cause of the truancy. Id. at § 7-302 (a) 72. — The School Board’s Attendance Policy provides: 22G. Any absence, including absence for any portion of the day, for any reason other than those cited as lawful, shall be considered unlawful and may constitute truaney. 1. Students who are truant may fail to meet the requirements for earning credit. The principal and appropriate affiliated personnel concerned shall review cases of this nature and shall determine whether ot not a passing grade may be given, and a credit. awarded for the subject(s) in question, 2. The principal shall refer court referrals for truant students to the appropriate District Office, Baltimore City Public School Board Policies & Regulations, JEA-RA-Compulsory Attendance Regulation. 73. Asreported by the media, the Board has a pattem or practice of failing to follow its own attendance protocols. In one case, a student at Augusta Fells was enrolled at the school for four years and was late or absent from school on 272 days during the first three years. The School System did not contact the student's parent to verify his absences or to communicate intervention strategies and procedures as required by the Board’s own policies, as well as state law, See Exhibit 74. According to media reports, another former student at Augusta Fells appears to have been fraudulently included in the enrollment data reported for its 2019 annual funding, but that student was incarcerated beginning in 2017 and never enrolled in, not did he attend, any classes at Augusta Fells, See Chris Papst, Former Baltimore City student kept on rolls while in jait - Im basically a ghost student, FOX4S News (Apr. 26, 2021), https://foxbaltimore.com/news/project-baltimore/former-baltimore-city-student-kept-on-rolls- while-in-jail-im-basically-a-ghost-student, attached as Exhibit AA. The School System's own investigation into Augusta Fells identified cases of falsified records including students placed on a course roster and given passing grades without attending a single class. See Exhibit Q. In the 2016-17 school year, the School System had the highest rate of chronic absenteeism in the state. 2337% of Baltimore City students were chronically absent, defined as missing at least 10% of school ina year. Liz Bowie & Talia Richman, Nearly J in 5 Maryland students is chronically absent. At some schools, the rate is more than 75 percent, BaLtiMort SUN (lune 6, 2018), https://www.baltimoresun,conVeducation/bs-md-chronic-absentecism-20180604-story html, attached as Exhibit BB. According to school data, in 2019, 40 students at Augusta Fells were labeled “WSO,” or “whereabouts unknown” — meaning that the school could not find 40 students it was charged with educating. See Chris Papst, Billion-dollar dilemma ~ Maryland Comptroller calls for . school funding overhaul, FOX4S News (Dec 6, 2021), hitps://foxbaltimore.com/news/project-baltimore/maryland-comptroller-school-funding-change- project-baltimore, attached as Exhibit CC. 75. Based on the conduct of the School Boatd in the foregoing, and the Boards history of covering up its illegal and ultra vires acts and intimidating educators to prevent them from disclosing fraud, it is reasonable to believe that this misconduct is occurring at other Baltimore City Public Schools. 76. A 2012 study of Baltimore City students found that students who were chronically absent in kindergarten were mote likely to be chronically absent in subsequent years and that students with low attendance had lower standardized test scores, Furthermore, schoolwide attendance rates impacted student attendance and academic outcomes, The study notes: [tJhis makes intuitive sense when one thinks of the challenges posed for instruction when a classroom has several students who attend school inconsistently. Instruction must be provided for students present every day while also covering material missed by students who are absent. In addition, in schools where absenteeism is more normative, not attending may not be as big a concern as in schools when absenteeism is rare. See Exhibit A. 2477. In failing to track and address student attendance, Defendants have violated the Education Article of the Maryland Annotated Code §§ 7-301 and 7-302; COMAR 13A.08.01.08, 13A.08.01.05; and Baltimore City Public School Board Policies & Regulations, JEA-RA- Compulsory Attendance Regulation, In so doing, Defendants have wasted taxpayer funds by grossly mismanaging the schools that they have been charged with overseeing and that are falsifying student records over and over. By failing to intervene at the beginning when chronic absenteeism becomes a problem, as the law requires Defendants to do, they failed to identify students who needed additional assistance to succeed, This is a serious misuse of the taxpayer funds allocated to the School System and has long-reaching negative consequences, ‘The School Board’s Failure To Adhere To State And Local Promotion/Retention Laws ‘And Policies Has Wasted Taxpayer Funds 78. Section 7-205 of the Education Article requires the Board to follow its own policies in promoting students and in determining that high school students have met the requirements for graduation and allowing them to graduate. Md, Code Ann., EDUC. § 7-205. The School Board’s Graduation Standards Policy provides that “schools should be in ongoing communication with students and parents/guardians to ensure awareness of graduation requirements and student progress.” Baltimore City Public School Board Policies & Regulations, IKEB-Graduation Standards. 79. Pursuant to Board Policy, the School System's staff must implement school-based supports and intervention for students who do not meet the expected grade-level standards prior to being recommended for retention by the school. Baltimore City Public School Board Policies & Regulations, IKEA-RA-Promotion, Acceleration, and Retention (Grades K Through 12) 80. All parents of students in the School System who are recommended for retention must be notified in writing by the end of the last day of school and must be invited to discuss an 25‘academic plan that includes interventions to discuss the student's learning needs, Baltimore City Public School Board Policies & Regulations, IKEA-RA-Promotion, Acceleration, and Retention (Grades K Through 12). When a student is not meeting grade level standards, staff will initiate intervention strategies, Jd. In order to be promoted from one grade level to the next, high school students must eam the required number and types of credits corresponding to their specific grade level. Id. 81. School System staff must comply with the high school graduation requirements set forth by the State Board of Education, including COMAR 13A.03.02.07, providing that principals shall provide annual notice to each student and his or her parents or guardians of the student's progress on fulfilling Maryland’s graduation requirements and a plan for appropriate assistance, if applicable, 82. The School System must also comply with the School Board's standards for ‘grading and reporting, including procedures that must be strictly followed to change student grades after a teacher initially records them and identifies the limited legitimate reasons and extenuating circumstances for doing so. Baltimore City Public School Board Policies & Regulations, IKA- Grading and Reporting, These reasons include a student completing make-up work, the accidental omission of an assignment, a long-term medical absence, or a mathematical error. When one of these legitimate reasons has occurred, a teacher may change a student’s grade after it was first recorded only with the school principal’s approval and supporting documentation of the extenuating circumstances justifying the grade change. Id. 83. Pursuant to COMAR 13A.03.02.04, the School System’s programs for allowing students to eam alternative credits (je. summer school and work study programs) must meet 26stringent requirements to ensure that students participating in credit recovery programs are assigned credits that they truly eamed, and that contribute to a meaningful education. 84, The School System’s student assessment data indicates that Defendants have failed to comply with state laws and regulations and Board Policies seting and implementing promotion, retention and graduation standards. Student scores for tests administered at a city school indicate that students enrolled in 11° grade performed far below their grade level. See Chris Papst, Leaked documents show Baltimore high schoolers perform math, reading at grade school level, FOX4S News (June 2, 2021), hitps://foxbaltimore.com/news/project-baltimore/city-high-schoolers- performing-math-and-reading-at-elementary-level, attached as Exhibit DD. In 2018-2019, 11 of 48 high school juniors at Augusta Fells tested ata third-grade reading level, and 27 out of 54 tenth graders tested at a third or fourth-grade reading level. In the 2017-2018 school year, at least 39 of 55 Auigusta Fells freshmen tested at an elementary school reading level. The School System refused to release the complete testing data, and upon information and belief many additional Augusta Fells students tested at elementary school reading levels. See Chris Papst, Majority of freshmen tested at Baltimore City School read at elementary level, Fox45 News (Dec 20 2021), https://foxbaltimore.conYnews/project-baltimore/majority-of-freshmen-tested-at-baltimore-city- school-read-at-clementary-level, attached as Exhibit EE. 85. Upon information and belief, based on the foregoing, Defendants’ mismanagement of the School System has violated state education laws and regulations and Board Policies, because the School System’s staff has failed to provide the required interyention services to students who have not met grade level standards, and to provide the required notice to those students’ parents as to their lack of sufficient progress in fulfilling Maryland’s promotion and graduation requirements, In addition, the School System has falsified student records in order to hide its failures, 2786. "As stated in School Board Policy, “Students who fail to master specific requisite skills prior to entering high school are at increased risk for poor performance and low achievement.” Baltimore City Public School Board Policies & Regulations, IKEA-RA-Promotion, Acceleration, and Retention (Grades K Through 12). Therefore, Defendants’ failure to notify Parents when their children were not meeting grade level standards or were in danget of not fulfilling graduation requirements prevented students from receiving the assistance needed to ‘master specific skills, increasing the number of students at risk for retention in the future at the expense of Baltimore City taxpayers. 87. According to media reports, the Schoo! Board has a pattern or practice of failing to follow these protocols and falsifying student records to cover up their failures. In one case, a student at Augusta Fells was enrolled at the school for four years, and eared.a Grade Point Average (“GPA”) of .13, Over four years, the student only passed three classes, but his GPA ranked him 62 out of 120 students. See Exhibit T. However, Augusta Fells promoted him each year, and never provided notice to his parent that he was not on track to graduate, His mother was only informed during his senior year that her son would be sent back to ninth grade since he had only eamed 2.5 credits, despite his school promoting him every single year after he failed nearly every class. Id, 88. The School System’s investigation into Augusta Fells identified multiple deliberate violations of Board Policy IKA, where school administrators pressured teachers to change students’ grades without a legitimate reason, and pressured teachers to ask their colleagues to change students’ grates. The Augusta Fells administrators blatantly disregarded the Board grading policies and explicitly instructed teachers to violate them by changing grades after the grading ‘window had passed, and without the required extenuating circumstances. Administrators also used 28their positions of authority to coerce teachers to provide make-up assignments to students who had never attended class, to recalculate student grades based on make-up assignment that students tuimed in late, to curve exam grades to ensure students passed, and to allow students to take final exams after the exam period ended. These multiple acts of fraud were part of a deliberate and coordinated attempt to push students through the school without giving them a meaningful education. The Augusta Fells investigation also revealed that the school operated credit recovery programs which did not comply with the School Board’s requirements, The investigation found that unqualified teachers provided instruction, teachers listed as course instructors did not actually teach those courses, and students were allowed to complete work packets to receive altemative credits, which is a violation of the requirements for credit recovery programs. See Exhibit Q Based on the foregoing, upon information and belief, this illegal and ultra vires misconduct is occurring at other Baltimore City Public Schools, ‘The Taxpayers of Baltimore City Are Defrauded 89. The School System's failures have perpetuated the abysmal performance of its students and the alarmingly high dropout rate, low graduation rate, and low literacy rate, High school dropouts themselves earn less money on average than high school graduates, and the greater community is impacted as well. A higher population of high school dropouts means there is a greater probability of crime. Higher crime necessitates more government spending on policing, the court system, and incarceration, which becomes a burden on the taxpayers. See Exhibit B. 90, Further, the School System is partially funded by Baltimore City taxpayers. Thus, each dollar wasted by the School System can potentially lead to increased taxes for the residents of Baltimore City 2991. The citizens of Baltimore City receive no benefit from a School System that so completely fails to perform its most important function, to educate Baltimore City schoolchildren, Yet, Baltimore City taxpayers funded the salaries and benefits for the School System’s staff, while the students they were entrusted to educate were left to fall through the cracks. By failing to ‘monitor students’ performance and attendance and to intervene as required when students struggled, by inflating grades and enrollment numbers, by pushing students to the next grade level instead of teaching them the skills they need to survive and thrive, and by engaging in a coordinated effort to falsify records and commit fraud to ensure their actions are concealed and can continue for generations, the School System has squandered tax dollars, and wasted the enormous potential of the children of Baltimore City. This waste has the potential to increase taxes paid by the residents of Baltimore City, Declaratory Judgment 92. The School Board’s actions in failing to raise the level of academic achievement of Baltimore City students are ultra vires and illegal. Therefore, Plaintiff request that this Court declare that the School Board is in violation of Section 4-303 of the Education Article of the Maryland Annotated Code, and compel compliance with it, and compel the School Board and the City to institute policies and procedures to attain and maintain compliance, and to develop and ‘maintain an independent monitoring system to ensure future compliance. 93. Defendants’ actions in failing to properly calculate the School System’s annual budget through the falsification of student enrollment data is also ultra vires and illegal, Plaintiffs request that this Court issue a declaratory judgment finding that Defendants are in violation of the Education Article of the Maryland Annotated Code §§ 5-101(b)(1), 5-102, 5-202, 4-315(a), 4-316, and 5-202(d)(1)(ii); and COMAR 13A.02.06.02(B)(11)-(12), and ordering Defendants’ 30compliance with it, and ordering Defendants to institute policies and procedures to attain and maintain compliance, and to develop and maintain an independent monitoring system to ensure future compliance, 94. Additionally, Defendants’ illegal and ultra vires failure to accurately monitor student attendance, and Defendants’ falsification of student attendance records, deprive students of erucial resources and results in the appropriation of excessive taxpayer funds in the School System's annual budget, Plaintiffs request that this Court issue a declaratory judgment finding that Defendants are in violation of the Education Article of the Maryland Annotated Code §§ 7-301 and 7-302; COMAR 13A.08.01.05, 13A.08.01.05; and Baltimore City Public School Board Policies & Regulations, JEA-RA-Compulsory Attendance Regulation, and ordering Defendants? compliance with it, and ordering Defendants to institute policies and procedures to attain and ‘maintain compliance, and to develop and maintain an independent monitoring system to ensure future compliance 95. Defendants’ actions in failing to adhere to the required standards for student promotion, retention, and graduation are also ultra vires and illegal, Plaintiffs request that this Court issue a declaratory judgment finding that Defendants are in violation of the Education Article of the Maryland Annotated Code § 7-205; COMAR 13A.03.02.07; COMAR 13A.03.02.04; and Baltimore City Public School Board Policies & Regulations, IKEA-RA- Promotion, Acceleration, and Retention (Grades K Through 12) and IKEB-Graduation Standards, and ordeting Defendants’ compliance with it, and ordering Defendants to institute policies and procedures to attain and maintain compliance, and to develop and maintain an independent ‘monitoring system to ensure future compliance, 3196. Plaintiffs request that this Court order Defendants to follow their own procedures for identifying, notifying parents of, and providing support services to truant students and students in danger of failing/not graduating, 97. Further, Plaintiffs request that this Court order Defendants to eliminate illegal and ultra vires grade inflation and to follow their own poticies for promoting students to the next grade level, including identifying students who are in danger of failing to meet promotion standatds, timely notifying parents and guardians, and providing the intervention services needed to help students succeed at each grade level, 98, Further, Plaintiffs request that this Court order the City to not fund the School Board based on fraudulent or inaccurate enrollment data and to implement procedures to ensure that the enrollment data is accurate. 99. A present controversy exists as to the validity of Defendants’ actions. 100. Plaintiffs request that this Court enter a declaratory judgment and award supplemental relief, pursuant to Section 3-412 of the Maryland Courts and Judieial Proceedings Article, WHEREFORE Pleintiffs request that this Court enter a declaratory judgment ordering the relief requested herein and granting such other and further relief as this Court deems just, equitable and proper. 32Dated: January 2& , 9922 33 Respectfully submitted, Scott H. Marder Email: shmarden@tandllaw.com Francis R. Laws Email: flaws@tandllaw.com Jennifer B. Ciatrocchi jeiarroochi@tandllaw.com THOMAS & LIBOWITZ, P.A. 25 South Charles Street, Suite 2015 Baltimore, MD 21202 Phone (410) 752-2468 Fax: (410) 752-2046 Attorneys for PlaintiffsEXHIBIT AEarly Elementary Performance and Attendance in Baltimore City Schools’ Pre-Kindergarten and Kindergarten Tl rt B-E-RC Beltimore Education Research Consortium March 2012 Faith Connolly and Linda S. Olson.‘Baltimore Education Research Consortium & BERC Executive Committee Andrés Alonso, Ed.D., Chief Executive Officer, Baltimore City Public Schools Jennifer Bell-Ellwanger, Chief Accountability Officer, Baltimore City Public Schools Diane Bell-McKoy, President/CEO at Associated Black Charities Faith Connolly, Ph.D., Executive Director of the Baltimore Education Research Consortium Jacquelyn Duval-Harvey, Ph.D., Deputy Commissioner for Youth and Families for the Baltimore City Health Department J. Howard Henderson, President & CEO of the Greater Baltimore Urban League Philip Leaf, Ph.D., Director of the Center for the Prevention of Youth Violence and the senior associate director of the Johns Hopkins Urban Health Institute Glenda Prime, Ph.D., Chair of the Department of Advanced Study, Leadership, and Policy at ‘Morgan State University Sonja Brookins Santelises, Ed.D., Chief Academic Officer, Baltimore City Public Schools Jane Sundius, Director of the Education and Youth Development Program at OSI-Baltimore Without the assistance of numerous partners, this research would not have been possible, The authors extend their gratitude to Dr. Sonja Brookins Santelises, Michael Sarbanes, Charlene Tannone-Campbell, Shannon Burroughs-Campbell, Lisa Kane, Bonnie Legro, Jane Sundius, Taylor Krieger, Ike Diibor, Sue Fothergill, and Arezo Rahmani. ‘The study was completed through the generous support of the Annie E, Casey Foundation, the Abell Foundation, the Open Society Institute-Baltimore, and the Jacob and Hilda Blaustein Foundation,Baltimore Education Research Consortium —_ ‘Table of Contents Executive Summary. Background... ‘Methodology. Findings ...... ‘ eer Students Who Are Chronically Absent in PreK and K 1... Attendance and Chronic Absence in PreK or K and Academics Attendance and chronic absence in PreK or K and Later Achievement Kindergarten Students’ PreK Experience and Later Early Grade Performance. : 14 School Attendance. Discussion and Recommendations ..., References... Appendix A: Methodological Issues. Appendix B: Characteristics of Students Entering PreK in 2006-07. Appendix C: Characteristics of Students Entering Kindergarten in 2007-08.. Appendix D: Characteristies of Students Entering PreK in 2008-09... El Appendix E: Regression Models for Students Entering PreK in 2006-07 .. Appendix F: Regression Models for Students Entering Kindergarten in 2007-08.. FI Appendix G: Regression Models for Students Entering PreK in 2008-089 ... Appendix H: Charts of Student Enrollment Over Time Early Elementary PerformanceBaltimore Education Research Consortium ——e—e—e—e—e—e—e—e—eeeeee——e——EEE List of Tables Table 1: Percent of Baltimore City Students Who Are Chronically Absent by Grade and School Year for Students Enrolled 5+ days for 2006-07 Through 2010- fi Table 2: Demographics and Service Receipt for Students in Who Enrolled in PreK 2006-07 and Students Who Enrolled in PreK. in 2008-09. 9 Table 3: Attendance, Chronic Absence, and Retention Rates for Students Enrolled in PreK in 2006-07 and Those Enrolled in PreK. in 2008-09 by Chronic Absence Patterns in PreK and Kindergarten. vod Table 4: Demographics of Students Who Enrolled in City Schools K in 2007-08 by ‘Their Participation in PreK Programs in 2006-07. Table 5: Attendance Rates of Students Who Enrolled in Baltimore City Schools K in 2007-08 by Their Participation in PreK Programs in 2006-07 16 Early Elementary PerformanceBaltimore Education Research Consortium rr List of Figures Figure 1: Percent of students CA in PreK in 2006-07, K in 2007-08 and both 2006-07 and 2007-08. 7 Figure 2: Percent of Baltimore City students who were CA in PreK (2006-07) or K (2007-08) and the number of additional years they were CA through 2010-11. as Figure 3: Students who were in home care before enrolling in City Schools Kindergarten who qualified for free meals by neighborhood and proximity to Head Start facility a Barly Elementary PerformanceBaltimore Education Research Consortium __ This page intentionally left blank. Barly Elementary Performance "Baltimore Education Research Consortium Early Elementary Performance and Attendance in Baltimore City Schools’ Pre-Kindergarten and Kindergarten Executive Summary This study looks at attendance in the carly grades of elementary school. In particular, we focus on students enrolled in Pre-Kindergarten (PreK) and Kindergarten (K). We follow these young students over several years to determine their pattern of chronic absence (CA), defined as ‘missing more than one-ninth of days enrolled, and their later attendance and academic outcomes. We found that students who are CA in both PreK and K often continue to be CA in later years, ¢.g. one-half of them will be CA the following year. They are also more likely to be retained, with more than a quarter being retained by Grade 3. Interestingly, for students who experience a first episode of CA in K the consequences are also continued low attendance, and lower academic outcomes compared to their peers who attend school more regularly. If attendance pattems for these students change, the impact of CA can be reduced. This is important because it suggests that it’s never too late to improve attendance. One of the more striking findings was that Head Start students began with, and maintained higher rates of attendance compared with similar students. While they underperformed in reading and math in Grades 1 and 2, by Grade 3, they performed as well as their peers on the state assessments; perhaps their high attendance finally paid off. Further study is needed to explore this pattern. One area of concem for Baltimore is the consistent underperformance of children who were in hhome care prior to enrolling in K. We were surprised to find that these students shared similar demographic characteristics with the Head Start students in our study. We discovered that these students may have met the economic qualifications for Head Start in that they qualified for “free” meals in K. A concerted effort needs to be made to determine why they are not attending a pre-school program, and to ensure that all qualified children are enrolled in Head Sturt or City Schools PreK. As a result of our analyses we would like to recommend that: + MSDE report average daily attendance (ADA) and CA rates for students in PreK and K. * A concerted effort among relevant Baltimore City agencies should aim to maximize enrollment in Head Start and City Schools PreK programs. * City Schools work with Head Start to develop family education and outreach to emulate the high attendance rates seen among Head Start graduates + There be monitoring of student attendance as well as of school-wide attendance, examining both ADA and CA as important indicators arty Elementary Performance .‘Baltimore Education Research Consostium __ ‘This page intentionally left blank. Early Elementary PerformanceBaltimore Education Research Consortium Early Elementary Performance and Attendance in Baltimore City Schools’ Pre-Kindergarten and Kindergarten Feith Connolly and Linda S, Olson Background Research has established the positive impact of early childhood education on students” later academic achievement and on non-academic areas such as later health, depression, obesity, and ‘wages. Investment in quality programs pays off in improved academic achievement and non- cognitive skill development (Heckman, 2011, Ludwig & Miller, 2007; Bamett & Hustedt, 2005; Barnett, 2002; Garces, Thomas, & Currie, 2002), In numerous recent studies and public discussions a central criterion employed to gauge the success of early childhood education is whether students are reading on grade level at the end of the third grade. In one study, using data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study (ECLS- K), Hull 22011) found that students with Pre-Kindergarten (PreK) and half-day Kindergarten (K) performed significantly better on Grade 3 reading skills. This is interesting as it identifies the greater impact of two years of half-day programs, PreK and K, rather than a single year of full- day K. The impact was greatest for Hispanic children, African American children, English Language Learners (ELL), and children from low-income families. While suggesting the importance of investment in early childhood programs, these studies did not look at the attendance of students in these programs or the quality of programs. Impact of Attendance in Early Childhood Programs ‘While early education has important implications for student learning, children living in poverty have higher rates of missing school. Too often, families must deal with multiple life challenges, such as unemployment, home instability, food insecurity, health and health care access, and other obstacles. Not only do the children in these families miss more school, but they also have fewer resources available to help them make up for lost instruction. The impact of absence on children in early childhood programs has not been studied extensively. Drawing from an analysis of ECLS-K data, Ready (2010) found a connection between social class, attendance, and cognitive growth in K and first grade. Children from low socioeconomic families with good attendance gained more literacy skills than peers from higher SES backgrounds during K and first grade. These findings reinforce other research (e.g., Downey et al. 2004) showing that formal schooling ‘matters more for disadvantaged than advantaged students, Chang and Romero (2008) looked explicitly at the impact of chronic absence (missing 10% or ‘more of school days) on later student performance. They found that chronic absence in K is associated with lower academic performance in first grade for all children regardless of gender, race/ethnicity or socioeconomic status. The relationship is especially strong for Hispanic children, who had much lower first grade reading scores if they were chronically absent in K, and for children from poor families who had the lowest levels of educational achievement at the end of fifth grade if they were CA in K. ER SE Early Elementary Performance :