Commentary

Frederick County Public Schools secluded and restrained students with disabilities thousands of times over three years, in repeated violation of federal law, a federal investigation revealed. In a settlement agreement announced this week, the school system acknowledged the findings of the investigation and pledged to change its practices. We are ashamed and embarrassed for our school system.

Last week, many of the major politicians and transportation leaders representing Baltimore — from a senator to the mayor to the U.S. and state transportation secretaries — gathered to announce the city’s big award from the $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill. Wait for it … $22 million for some improved bus stops. Really?

Did you hear the one about the Towson priest who spoke out against COVID-19 vaccination mandates as going against the teachings of Jesus? And no, that’s no a setup for a bad joke. Edward Meeks, pastor of Christ the King Catholic Church in Towson, can be seen on a YouTube video gravely warning his congregation that “no earthly king or president or public health official or billionaire technocratic gets to dictate what we must put into our bodies.” It’s gotten thousands of hits and national attention.

As a speaker at the fall conference of the Municipal League of Maryland, I recently expressed a positive sense of the impact of technology on people with disabilities but also a clarion call that society must continue to improve its accessibility. Considering the continuous robust discussion in such fields of law and policy as administrative law and civil rights, I thought the National Disability Employment Month an opportune occasion for fostering dialogue.

In early 2020, tenant lobbyists began to warn of an imminent eviction tsunami that could cause as many as 100,000 evictions and decimate Maryland’s economy. That tsunami never arrived. Even as evictions remained at historical lows into 2021, predictions of an eviction tsunami reached a crescendo in Annapolis during the state legislative session. Stoking fears of a tsunami became the most popular method to push extreme and unprecedented housing policies that would have exponentially inflated rent prices and decimated affordable housing across the state.

Bob Kleinschmidt is a mild-mannered, self-employed management consultant and corporate leadership coach. He teaches managers how to be better managers, and all workers of the world know what a vital service that can be. Kleinschmidt has been doing this sort of work for 20 years, the last five trading as C3 Transformation. His clients are in health care and higher education, biotech and pharmaceuticals; they include managers in government agencies, companies and nonprofits.

In our high-risk pregnancy clinics there are three vaccine conversations that we have with patients regularly. First, there are patients who are vaccinated for COVID-19 and counting down the days until they can schedule a booster shot. Then there are patients who will accept vaccines for influenza and Tdap (tetanus, diphtheria, pertussis), but not COVID-19. The third conversation is with expectant mothers who not only decline a COVID-19 vaccination but also other vaccines recommended in pregnancy.

The media have been awash in hand-wringing stories from reporters and columnists concerning 2020 census data showing a decline in the rate of population growth from 2010. A major newspaper editorial titled “A quickening U.S. baby bust” went so far as to opine that such “demographic stagnation” may lead to “diminished national stature.” The sky-is-falling nature of this coverage is faulty and unworthy of such distortions especially in the region in which we live.

There is ample data that makes the case for the value of diversity in corporate, education, private and public sector leadership. A quick internet search reveals that companies and organizations that embrace and value diversity in leadership outperform their peers. And the relationships that are formed and nurtured may even — someday — keep pace with the financial returns. The data about representation in leadership positions, however, is discouraging.

After five years of political, economic and social upheaval in America, this month has seen some hints of a return to normalcy. The question is whether the two political parties (and their rabid ideological bases) are willing to settle for the benefits of “normal” politics instead of going for the “transformative” variety — which is tempting but almost always destructive. Consider the events of November so far: Republicans won a gubernatorial race in Virginia by running an issues-based appeal to voters, particularly on education.