At the first meeting of the new Baltimore City school police advisory community board, Linda Muhammad of the Govans Elementary School PTA told the board her foremost safety concern is the inadequate background check that allowed a teacher with felony convictions to work for the past several yearsat the York Road school.
Muhammad was shocked upon returning from vacation last week to learn that a special education instructor at Govans, Martius Harding, had pleaded guilty in August to conspiracy to distribute cocaine but had taught the entire year.
“I?ve had 50 to 60 parents call me and they?ve been coming over to the house and knocking on the door, too,” Muhammad said. “We still don?t know how he was allowed to teach. I?ve tried talking to the principal, but all she?ll say is, ?It?s a personnel matter and I can?t talk about it.? ”
Harding, 28, wrestled at McDonogh, a private school in Baltimore County from which he graduated in 1995, and collegiately at Virginia and West Virginia. He was convicted of mail fraud charges in 2001, but nonetheless was hired to teach in 2002.
“Either a background check wasn?t done,” Muhammad said, “or it was done and ignored.”
Muhammad attempted to find out from school board member George Van Hook how someone with a recent felony conviction could slip through the cracks.
“Our investigation is ongoing and we still don?t know how on earth that happened,” said Van Hook, chairman of the school board?s community outreach committee. “The school board is accountable and we?re investigating our procedures to make sure that same mistake doesn?t happen again. Mostly likely, someone in human resources didn?t do their job. There was some kind of disconnection in the process, a hole ? a hole we have to close.”
