Commentary

“So do you think that some time this school year, you’ll want to walk by yourself?” I asked my kid. We were unpacking Amazon boxes of notebook paper and No. 2 pencils, and as I envisioned hauling them down to the school building where he’s going to be starting fourth grade today, I suddenly thought, “What if he doesn’t need me to walk him with him anymore?” Then: “What if he doesn’t need me anymore?”

The word futuristic is defined as an “imagined” future. Which is an upbeat way, as schools get ready to reopen, to view the nationwide future of public education. The alternative to an imagined future is the somber present. Public schools are widely viewed as facing a bleak future. Learning loss from the pandemic is getting worse not better; even before the pandemic, nearly 70 percent of schoolchildren were below proficiency in literacy. There’s a growing loss of faith in the political possibility of true education reform.

Over the past year, 12 construction workers have come forward alleging they have not been fully compensated for work performed on new school buildings in Prince George’s County. Wage theft is a crime. The number of lawsuits filed against the lead developer, as well as several subcontractors, is growing as wage theft allegations — including failure to pay overtime, misclassifying employees as 1099 contractors, and failure to pay wages entirely — continue to surface on Prince George’s County Public Schools (PGCPS).

In both an interview and speech last week, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore became the first of the region’s elected officials to say in public that the state’s economic performance in recent years has been “lackluster” and that it has underperformed adjacent states. In June, Moore, a Democrat, established an Economic Council that is to report its recommendations in January. Though the governor did not say so, he surely knows that Maryland’s economic problems are interdependent with those of the District of Columbia and Northern Virginia.

Listening to proponents and opponents of “accessory dwelling units” — garages converted to small homes, in-law flats, basement apartments — this seems obvious: Proponents bring fresh ideas and common sense to the nation’s housing shortage; opponents offer only tired arguments. Opponents say what they always say when advocates or developers propose more affordable housing for low- and moderate-income families: It will bring crime and increased traffic to nice neighborhoods, burden schools and disrupt “the character of our community.”

A few weeks ago, I held a fashion show in my living room. Instead of swimwear and bridal, the categories were more “Does that have holes in it?” and “Can you just wear a belt?” and “Trousers that are now the same length as cut-off shorts.” Yes, it’s the annual back-to-school scramble, when families transition their emotions, schedules, wardrobes and wallets from relatively laid-back summer mode to sensible bed times, packed lunches and permission slips due today shoved in your face on the way out the door.\

Congratulations to Maryland State Police Trooper 3 for 50 years of lifesaving service to the citizens of Frederick County and surrounding areas. Serving as a Central Alarm dispatcher when Trooper 3 first went in service, I vividly recall the early days of medivac helicopters. Early Bell Jet Rangers were about the size of a Honda Accord. Patients were loaded lengthwise, lying beside both the paramedic and the pilot. It was interesting to see tall troopers such as Eric Smothers and Paul Crutchley squeeze themselves into extremely small aircraft.