Politics & Government

Harford County Exec Responds to Baltimore County Education Forum Arrest

County Executive David Craig sounded off on Common Core and the arrest of a parent during a state-sponsored forum.

After a parent was arrested in Baltimore County during a public education forum last week, Harford County Executive David Craig issued a statement criticizing the program and encouraging officials to listen to their constituents.


"The value in public meetings—whether it is about Common Core or any other policy issue affecting a community—is giving people the opportunity to speak," Craig, who is running for Maryland governor, said in a prepared statement Monday.

After David Small of Ellicott City attempted to ask a question about the preparatory aim of Common Core during a Sept. 19 forum in Towson, he was removed by security and charged with assault on a police officer and disturbing a school operation, according to The Baltimore Sun.

The charges were dismissed Monday afternoon by the Baltimore County State's Attorney's Office, which said: "In the interest of justice, further prosecution will not accomplish anything more."

Small reportedly spoke out of turn at the forum, where Examiner.com reported the questions were submitted on paper and screened by Superintendent Dallas Dance.

Afterward, Small told The Baltimore Sun that he was "manhandled and shut down" for asking "inconvenient questions."

The Maryland State Department of Education sponsored the event, which was one of four regional public forums it is holding on Common Core, a set of standards that takes effect statewide with the 2013–2014 school year. 

"The Common Core national education standard is controversial and for good reason," Craig said.

Common Core is part of President Barack Obama’s administration’s Race to the Top program to set national standards for education. The state says the program emphasizes critical thinking and technology within a language arts/English and math-based curriculum.

Small, who has two students in the Howard County Public School System, said he was concerned the program was designed to prepare children for community colleges, the Daily Caller reported.

While asking his question, Small was removed by a security guard who was an off-duty police officer from the forum at Ridge Ruxton School in Towson, according to WBAL.

"School administrators should be holding public forums like the one in Baltimore County, but these officials will actually learn more by encouraging a robust debate and the exchange of ideas," Craig said. "Their ultimate constituents are students and their parents and those voices must be heard."

Harford County briefed parents on the program in June. Parents in Harford County had concerns about larger class sizes and fewer teachers, ABC 2 News reported. Since then, the political activist group Harford Campaign for Liberty has been collecting signatures on a petition to repeal Harford County's Common Core standards.


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