Following a long investigation, former Baltimore County Schools Superintendent, S. Dallas Dance, has been indicted on 4 counts of perjury for failure to report nearly $150,000 in outside income.
After a five-year tenure, Dance resigned from his position last April, where he oversaw the Baltimore County Public School system, which ranks among the worst counties in Maryland in school performance.
The Baltimore Sun previously reported that then Superintendent Dance spent more than a third of 2016 school days traveling out of state. Pretty ironic, considering this Tweet:
Following five years of Mr. Dance's dedication to the Baltimore County school system, US News reported that: less than 30% of graduating seniors are college ready, only 37% are proficient in English, and a mere 4% are proficient in mathematics.
For his incompetence, Dance received an annual salary of $275,000. To put that figure into perspective:
- Governor of Maryland Larry Hogan: $150,000
- U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen & Ben Cardin: $174,000
After the 2016 Presidential election, Mr. Dance posted the following on Instagram:
“As the Superintendent of one of the largest most diverse school systems in our country, I always lead from an equity lens with an intense focus on all student populations and ensuring they feel welcome and supported. Education is not void of politics and during the last two years, our country has had one of the most divisive campaigns in modern history. Comments were made that disenfranchised several groups of students we serve in Baltimore County Public Schools.
As our nation moves forward, it is our collective responsibility to make sure all students feel safe and know we are their advocates. As I continue leading our school system and as a member of several educational organizations, my continued focus is to work with local, state and national government representatives to move public education forward for all students.”
Mr. Dance, as I teacher I am here to tell you that your time as Superintendent was best spent focusing on the education of your students. Your duty was to advocate for a superior quality of education, not to ensure that your students' political ideology aligns with yours. Education should be void of politics, and it was your duty to keep it out of the classroom.
Baltimore County students deserve to be empowered through education. They deserve to be taught how to think, not what to think, so that they leave the school system best prepared for any challenges, and ready to grasp any opportunities, that life throws their way.
As our nation moves forward, I can only hope that Baltimore County finds someone better than you to serve its students. You have been accused of lying, cheating, and stealing - these are the very first things that our children are taught not to do. What a shameful example. For the sake of Baltimore County Public School children, I hope that these charges are erroneous.
Baltimore: your deserve better.
