Weeks before AACPS schools closed in response to Covid-19, I sought information on its existing Distance Learning policies and practices. Alas, the responses I got were delayed, incomplete, and highly politicized. AACPS treated the information I sought as highly sensitive. At a minimum, its website as it existed on Feb. 22 was an embarrassment, reflecting the low priority AACPS placed on Distance Learning. Its course list was three years out of date, and one notable link went nowhere. Vital information was missing. Most annoying to me, AACPS’s claimed contact person for Distance Learning, Patrick Malone, didn’t want to answer any questions from me concerning how his program worked. Nor would his boss, Stephanie Kelly, answer any of my questions. All questions would have to come via AACPS’s Public Information Officer, Bob Mosier. Journalists call just practices “Censorship by PIO.” It’s a longtime policy endorsed by both AACPS’s superintendent and most of its Board of Education.

On February 22, 2020, I contacted AACPS’s head of Distance Education with a request for the written rules under which he operates. He referred me to AACPS’s Public Information Officer, Bob Mosier, to get this information. After I failed to get the requested information from Mr. Mosier, I followed with a formal PIO request on February 28, 2020. That PIO was responded to on March 25, 2020, two days before the Public Information Act deadline. I immediately wrote back to Mr. Mosier and his information sources responsible for Distance Learning noting the apparent omissions in the documents provided. As has been past practice when I followup seeking to understand apparent omissions, the PIO provided no response.

Among the missing documents was any serious attempt at holding Distance Education accountable.

However, I did receive some relevant documents, and I’m including them below:

Academic literature on censorship by PIO:

Journalistic organizations advocating against censorship by PIO:

From: ‘J.H. Snider’
Sent: Wednesday, March 25, 2020 4:34 PM
To: ‘Kelly, Stephanie’ <MSKELLY@AACPS.org>; ‘Malone, Patrick J’ <PMALONE@AACPS.org>
Cc: ‘Mosier, Bob’ <RMOSIER@AACPS.org>
Subject: RE: Public Information Act Request

Dear Ms. Kelly and Mr. Malone:

Please read my comments below, marked in red, to confirm that you have not overlooked providing any requested documents in response to my Public Information Act request. The PIA mandated 30-day deadline to respond to my request is this Friday.

  1. AACPS Online Campus Instructional Technology Specialist’s Patrick Malone’s most recent official job description.
    Got it.
  2. AACPS’s reporting requirements from Patrick Malone for the Distance Learning program he runs on behalf of AACPS. This may be part of Instructional Technology’s report to AACPS.
    • Patrick Malone’s job descriptions says he is to help in the “Coordination of data, and preparation of reports” for the “the MVLO Coordinator and AACPS.” But based on the documents sent to me, the only report he provides is the AACPS MFR, which provides aggregate student enrollment data for each offered course broken down by number of original and credit recovery students. Unless you tell me otherwise, it is reasonable from your response for me to infer that that is the only data Mr. Malone provides to AACPS and MSDE concerning the program he operates. In fact, I find that inference implausible because it would be impossible for him to manage his operation effectively, and for Stephanie Kelly and her superiors to oversee AACPS’s Distance Education effectively, with such skimpy data and reporting. At a minimum, I would expect that Instructional Technology (i.e., Messrs. Kelly and Malone) would report the budget vs. actual expenditures of the students accepted to take online courses.
    • Why is it that Mr. Malone reported not a single AACPS student taking an Anne Arundel Community College approved “online course”? I infer from the lack of requested information that no AACPS student took such a course even though the document “AACPS Approved Online Courses” says it approves such courses. If that inference is incorrect because you did not provide the requested information, please provide the missing information.
    • Based on the information provided, AACPS has no written explanation why not all students approved by their guidance counselor and principal to take an online course are not in fact allowed to take an online class. If that inference is incorrect, please let me know why.  The criteria for guidance counselors and principals to make decisions as to which students will not qualify are clearly stated, but not the criteria that AACPS central administration, that is, Instructional Technology (Messrs. Kelly and Malone), have used to prioritize which students will be allowed to take online courses. The only specified criteria are that seniors will be given priority over upperclassmen who will be given priority over middle schoolers but not who, within those groups, has been given priority. No budget limitation on number of students allowed to take online courses was provided. But I would surely imagine such a budget constraint exists, which would seem to be confirmed by the remarkably consistent number of students who take online courses from semester to semester.
    • Based on the information provided, I infer that no information is gathered and reported about how many students withdraw from online courses after the initial five-day period when the student becomes responsible for all course-related charges. Again, if this information is wrong, please supply the missing information.
    • Based on the information provided, I infer that no definition is provided for the specific criteria “credit recovery” students must meet to be classified as credit recovery.  Nor is it specified whether they have higher or lower priority than online original credit students to qualify for online courses.  If written guidance exists regarding these resource allocation decisions, please provide it.
  3. The State of Maryland’s reporting requirements from Patrick Malone for the Distance Learning program he runs on behalf of AACPS. This may be part of Instructional Technology’s report to the State of Maryland.
    • See my comments to 2) above. Based on what AACPS Instructional Technology (Messrs. Kelly and Malone) provided, the only written guidance and reporting requirements provided by MSDE is the AACPS MFR included in Messrs. Kelly and Malone’s response to my Public Information Act request. Please correct me if that inference is incorrect.  And, if so, please email me the missing documentation. 
  4. The reports mentioned in 2) and 3) above for FY2017 through FY2020.
    • See my comments to 2) and 3) above.
  5. The currently operative written guidance MSDE’s Maryland Virtual Learning Opportunities Program (MVLO) has provided to AACPS’s Distance Learning program.
    • See my comments to 2), 3), and 4) above.
  6. The Student Participation Form on the Distance Learning website (on Monday, I filled out the website form to receive this document but have received nothing to date).
    Got it.
  7. The current AACPS Approved Courses, including pricing, on the Distance Learning website (as of Monday, the document provided online was three years out of date).
    Got it.

In my original written request to you more than a month ago—followed up with multiple phone call voice mail messages—I asked for “a list of all the written rules, including policies and regulations, pertaining to AACPS’s distance learning options.”  These rules are scattered in various written AACPS and MSDE policies and regulations. For the record, I would like to note that neither of you provided me this information.

If Bob Mosier or any other AACPS official provided you with a written rule stating that certain information requests to any AACPS official or subject matter expert must be handled by Mr. Mosier’s office, please email it to me.  As noted in my March 9 email to Mr. Mosier (see below), he has often cited such a rule but never been able or willing to show me where it exists in writing. Mr. Mosier, as I requested in my March 9 email to you, please email me a copy of the rule you used to prevent Mssrs. Kelly and Malone from responding to my initially informal request for basic information about AACPS’s Distance Education program.

Sincerely,

–J.H. Snider

From: Mosier, Bob <RMOSIER@AACPS.org>
Sent: Wednesday, March 25, 2020 8:28 AM
To: ‘J.H. Snider’
Subject: RE: Public Information Act Request

Dear Mr. Snider:

This communication is in response to your request under the Public Information Act, Annotated Code of Maryland, General Provisions Article (GP) § 4-101, et seq., seeking information related distance learning courses in Anne Arundel County Public Schools.

Documents responsive to your request are attached to this communication.

In the event you disagree with any determination regarding this Maryland Public Information Act request, you have the right to seek review or remedy, in accordance with GP §4-1B-01 through §4-1B-04, with Maryland Public Access Ombudsman Lisa Kershner at lkershner@oag.state.md.us, (410) 576-7037, or by mail at the Office of the Attorney General, 200 St. Paul Place, Baltimore, MD 21202. Under GP §4-362, you also have the right to file a complaint in Circuit Court requesting a review of this decision.

If you have further questions, please feel free to contact me at 410-222-5312 or by email at rmosier@aacps.org.

Sincerely,

Bob Mosier
Chief Communications Officer
Anne Arundel County Public Schools
Phone: 410-222-5312
Web: www.aacps.org
Facebook: www.facebook.com/aacps
Twitter: @AACountySchools
Instagram: AACountySchools

From: ‘J.H. Snider’
Sent: Monday, March 9, 2020 11:42 AM
To: ‘Mosier, Bob’ <RMOSIER@AACPS.org>
Cc: ‘Malone, Patrick J’ <PMALONE@AACPS.org>; ‘Kelly, Stephanie’ <MSKELLY@AACPS.org>
Subject: RE: Information requests

Dear Mr. Mosier:

Of course, I assumed that Patrick and Stephanie would forward my correspondence with them to you, as they would face severe penalties if they didn’t.  And yes, as you note, AACPS staff have a track record of engaging in such practices in response to your demands. But I would like to remind them and you that they, not you, will be responsible for actually gathering the information I requested, as they are the subject matter experts, not you. And if you fail to provide all the requested information, you would blame them rather than take responsibility yourself, claiming that you were merely passing along the information they provided. They cannot and should not be able to pass the buck entirely to you, especially when AACPS does not appear to have a written rule endorsing that you should be able to endlessly delay and censor the information that expert staff have at their fingertips.  If you have such a written rule—endorsed by the Board of Education or otherwise—please email it to me. In the past, you have not been able to produce the claimed written rule.  In any case, the sentence you wrote “I am working on fulfillment….” should be amended to more accurately reflect the information flows “We are working on fulfillment….”

I look forward to your good faith fulfillment of my information request.

Sincerely,

–J.H. Snider

From: Mosier, Bob <RMOSIER@AACPS.org>
Sent: Monday, March 9, 2020 5:51 AM
To: ‘J.H. Snider’
Cc: Malone, Patrick J <PMALONE@AACPS.org>; Kelly, Stephanie <MSKELLY@AACPS.org>
Subject: Information requests

Mr. Snider,

We have respectfully asked repeatedly for you to make information requests through my office. Mr. Malone and Ms. Kelly will simply forward those to me.

I respectfully ask you yet again to send requests to me. I am working on fulfillment of your current Public Information Act request at this time.

Sincerely,

Bob Mosier
Chief Communications Officer
Anne Arundel County Public Schools
Phone: 410-222-5312
Web: www.aacps.org
Facebook: www.facebook.com/aacps
Twitter: @AACountySchools
Instagram: AACountySchools

From: ‘J.H. Snider’
Sent: Monday, March 9, 2020 1:22 AM
To: ‘Kelly, Stephanie’ <MSKELLY@AACPS.org>; ‘Malone, Patrick J’ <PMALONE@AACPS.org>
Subject: my requests for information concerning AACPS Distance Learning documents

Dear Stephanie and Patrick:

Last Friday I left a voice message for Patrick requesting that he email me the requested documents piecemeal rather than all at once on a delayed basis. In particular, I requested a copy of your recent reports to your superiors at AACPS concerning your distance learning activities. I also once again left Patrick with my contact information.  Since I didn’t get through to Patrick, I followed up with a call to Stephanie.  

Stephanie, your assistant said you weren’t in and recommended I email you, so that is what I’m doing now. As I requested of Patrick, please email me the portion of my request that you have readily available, including your recent reports to AACPS concerning your activities. If you’d like to discuss my request further, please either call or email me.

The journalism community is very upset about the type of “Censorship by PIO” that AACPS has been exhibiting in handling my now two-week old request to you for basic information that should already be posted online about what in recent months has become a vital, high profile public issue. Concerning censorship by PIO, see this letter to Congress from the Society of Professional Journalists that my non-profit, iSolon, signed on last fall. The letter, which the Capital endorsed in an editorial, focuses on censorship by PIO at the federal level of government. The Brechner Center for Freedom of Information, which is cited in the letter, has focused on censorship by PIO at the local level.

I look forward to your at least partially fulfilling my request in the next few days.

Sincerely,

–J.H. Snider

From: ‘J.H. Snider’
Sent: Saturday, February 29, 2020 8:18 PM
To: ‘Mosier, Bob’ <RMOSIER@AACPS.org>
Cc: ‘Malone, Patrick J’ <PMALONE@AACPS.org>; ‘Kelly, Stephanie’ <MSKELLY@AACPS.org>
Subject: RE: Public Information Act Request

Dear Mr. Mosier:

Regarding your comment that I “expect an instantaneous response,” I submitted my PIA request only after waiting five days and getting no response to my multiple previous requests. Moreover, much of the information I requested should already have been online, especially for an agency involved with the provision of online services. The fact is, there are many requesters to which you provide instantaneous information and don’t make them go through the hassle and delay of a PIA request. I should never have been forced to make a PIA request to get basic information from an AACPS employee.

Sincerely,

–J.H. Snider

From: Mosier, Bob <RMOSIER@AACPS.org>
Sent: Saturday, February 29, 2020 3:02 PM
To: ‘J.H. Snider’
Cc: Malone, Patrick J <PMALONE@AACPS.org>; Kelly, Stephanie <MSKELLY@AACPS.org>
Subject: RE: Public Information Act Request

February 29, 2020

Dear Mr. Snider:

This communication is in response to your request under the Public Information Act, Annotated Code of Maryland, General Provisions Article (GP) § 4-101, et seq., seeking information related distance learning courses in Anne Arundel County Public Schools.

This request has been forwarded to the appropriate staff, and pursuant to the Maryland Public Information Act, we will provide that information which is public within 30 days of the February 28, 2020, receipt of your request, and certainly sooner if it is readily available. Please note that the Act does not require an agency to create new documents to satisfy a request.

I appreciate that you contacted Mr. Malone and he did, in fact, forward your request to me. I know well from your plethora of requests over the last 14 years I have been in this position that you expect an instantaneous response. Unfortunately, that is not always possible given the many other duties that AACPS employees have during the course of any given day. I apologize if the fact that I was tending to other duties and had not yet had the opportunity to gather the information to respond to you caused you any inconvenience.

As you did, I have copied Mr. Malone and Ms. Kelly on this response so that they are aware of it.

Since you have compiled all of the information you seek into this single request, I will aggregate the information responsive to it and deliver it to you in a single response. As you are aware, §4-206 (b) allows a custodian to “charge a reasonable fee for search for, preparation of, and reproduction of a public record.” Under the provisions of the Act, the first two hours of labor would be provided free of charge. You would be responsible for reimbursing Anne Arundel County Public Schools for the labor required to complete all other research and compilation of documents.

If we determine that there will be a charge to you, we will notify you before proceeding with your request.

If you have further questions, please feel free to contact me at 410-222-5312 or by email at rmosier@aacps.org.

Sincerely,

Bob Mosier
Chief Communications Officer
Anne Arundel County Public Schools
Phone: 410-222-5312
Web: www.aacps.org
Facebook: www.facebook.com/aacps
Twitter: @AACountySchools
Instagram: AACountySchools

jackie impact

From: ‘J.H. Snider’
Sent: Friday, February 28, 2020 3:13 PM
To: Mosier, Bob <RMOSIER@AACPS.org>
Cc: Malone, Patrick J <PMALONE@AACPS.org>; Kelly, Stephanie <MSKELLY@AACPS.org>
Subject: Public Information Act Request

Dear Mr. Mosier:

Under the Maryland Public Information Act, State Government Article (SG) §§ 10-611, et seq., I request the following information:

  1. AACPS Online Campus Instructional Technology Specialist’s Patrick Malone’s most recent official job description.
  2. AACPS’s reporting requirements from Patrick Malone for the Distance Learning program he runs on behalf of AACPS. This may be part of Instructional Technology’s report to AACPS.
  3. The State of Maryland’s reporting requirements from Patrick Malone for the Distance Learning program he runs on behalf of AACPS. This may be part of Instructional Technology’s report to the State of Maryland.
  4. The reports mentioned in 2) and 3) above for FY2017 through FY2020.
  5. The currently operative written guidance MSDE’s Maryland Virtual Learning Opportunities Program (MVLO) has provided to AACPS’s Distance Learning program.
  6. The Student Participation Form on the Distance Learning website (on Monday, I filled out the website form to receive this document but have received nothing to date).
  7. The current AACPS Approved Courses, including pricing, on the Distance Learning website (as of Monday, the document provided online was three years out of date).

Please email me all the requested documents as an email attachment.

If you deny any part of this request, please cite each specific Public Information Act exemption that justifies your denial of the information.

I originally requested items 2) and 3) directly from Patrick Malone on Feb. 23 (copied below).  He subsequently twice asked you to fulfill my request, and, as instructed by Mr. Malone in a telephone conversation with him, I followed up with an informal email to you yesterday (copied below). Please set the Maryland Public Information Act clock for items 2) and 3) from my initial request on Feb. 23.

I’m cc’ing Patrick Malone and Stephanie Kelly, Patrick’s boss. Since they will have to provide and approve the requested information before passing it along to you, I hope this will speed the process along. Hopefully, you can fulfill this request by the end of the day next Monday. As for gathering and emailing the documents, that should take only a few minutes.

Your good faith fulfillment of this Public Information Act request would be greatly appreciated.

Sincerely,

J.H. Snider, Editor
eLighthouse

From: ‘J.H. Snider’
Sent: Thursday, February 27, 2020 4:12 PM
To: ‘Mosier, Bob’ <RMOSIER@AACPS.org>
Subject: Patrick Malone’s requests to you

Hi Bob—

Since Monday, Patrick says he has contacted you twice about providing me with the information requested below. Please let me know your intent in providing it.

Sincerely,

–Jim Snider

From: ‘J.H. Snider’
Sent: Monday, February 24, 2020 3:04 PM
To: ‘Malone, Patrick J’ <PMALONE@AACPS.org>
Subject: RE: Please email me a list of all the written rules pertaining to AACPS’s distance learning options

Hi Patrick—

As noted below, you are listed in various AACPS publications as the contact person for distance learning.

Bob will just have to get the requested information from you, so going through Bob should be a waste of not only my time but AACPS’s resources.

Please email me the written guidance you provide to parents when they ask how to best utilize AACPS distant learning resources.

Thank you in advance.

Sincerely,

–Jim Snider

From: Malone, Patrick J <PMALONE@AACPS.org>
Sent: Monday, February 24, 2020 11:13 AM
To: ‘J.H. Snider’
Subject: RE: Please email me a list of all the written rules pertaining to AACPS’s distance learning options

Jim,

For a request of this type please contact Bob Mosier at RMOSIER@AACPS.org

Patrick J. Malone
Online Campus Specialist
Office of Instructional Technology
Anne Arundel County Public Schools
P-410-721-8353
F-410-721-8369

From: ‘J.H. Snider’
Sent: Sunday, February 23, 2020 9:54 PM
To: Malone, Patrick J <PMALONE@AACPS.org>
Subject: Please email me a list of all the written rules pertaining to AACPS’s distance learning options

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of AACPS. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender and know the content is safe.

Hi Patrick—

Please email me a list of all the written rules, including policies and regulations, pertaining to AACPS’s distance learning options, as briefly described on AACPS’s Distance Learning web page.

I am writing to you because AACPS lists you as its contact to request this information.

Sincerely,

–Jim Snider