Category: Trump Effect

    Charter Schools By Kristina Hong   In response to the Trump Administration, Frederick County public education officials show praise for their current system involving public charter schools.     After much controversy following the 2017 election, President Trump appointed Betsy DeVos to his cabinet as secretary of education. For most, this decision was met with skepticism.   “I was not excited about Betsy DeVos as secretary of education because of her lack of experience with public schools,” Brad Young, president of the Frederick County Board of Education said. “I felt there was a much better choice that could have been made.”   “I’m concerned about secretary DeVos,” Liz Barnett, vice president of the Board of Education added. “During her confirmation hearings, for example, she did not demonstrate knowledge of special education and civil rights laws… She lacks a genuine understanding of public schools.”   One of the education policies the Trump cabinet intends to push involves more private institutions and for-profit public charter schools. Hoping to open doors to better educational...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iI38g94ctXw&t=3s   By: Brandon Green With President Trump enforcing stronger immigration policies, such as the travel ban and the proposal of the U.S.-Mexico border wall, the Frederick County Police have had no problem implementing stronger procedures. According to the Frederick County Sheriff’s office, the county police are a part of the 287(g) program, which allows trained deputized officers to detain illegal immigrants who committed crimes and give them to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).   The Frederick County Police Sheriff Chuck Jenkins said they want to administer stricter immigration policies and he promotes establishing a stronger relationship with ICE. However, Frederick City Police Chief Edward Hargis believes there is a problem with terrorism and that enforcing stronger immigration policies would be helpful in keeping this country safe. But, the Frederick City Police have not enforced stricter immigration protocol. “From the city police perspective we are not going to block off neighborhoods, that’s not what we're about,” Hargis said. “We know we’re responsible to police a community and you...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CBNBHptVBsE By: Tim Sylvia Amidst growing concerns that President Trump and his administration will undo and reverse the renewable energy progress made by previous administrations, it appears that the county’s move towards renewable energy will will remain unchanged. On March 16, the Trump administration released a proposed budget that would cut funding for the Environmental Protection Agency by 31 percent and the Department of Energy by 6 percent. The President also signed an executive order on March 28, aimed at creating jobs by expanding energy extraction on public lands and reviewing and potentially removing the Obama administration’s Clean Power Plan. According to an EPA fact sheet, the Clean Power Plan aims to reduce the carbon emissions of American power plants by 32 percent of their 2005 level by 2030. The executive order has been promoted under the argument that it will bring American jobs back to the energy sector by reducing regulation on non-renewable energy, namely coal. Trump has stressed his belief on the...

By: Kaylene Wright While advocates push to make Frederick a sanctuary city, city officials are unable to decide what actions the city should take around this issue. In February, Safe Haven Frederick, a group of citizens dedicated to making sure that the city is inclusive and safe for all, started a petition to make Frederick a sanctuary city. The petition got more than 500 signatures in its first week. Defining “Sanctuary City” “The idea of a sanctuary city is kind of an elusive thing,” said Frederick Alderman Phil Dacey. “I think it’s a largely political term and there’s no real set amount of policies that you can point to and say ‘these policies make this a sanctuary city.” Generally speaking, a sanctuary city is a city that limits its cooperation with federal authorities in order to protect undocumented immigrants in their jurisdiction. This definition, however, is vague and a lot of people have different definitions. Alderman Michael O’Connor spoke similarly when it came to defining the...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rQGej3MIHfw&feature=youtu.be By: Elmer Diaz As the nation underwent President Trump’s first 100 days in office, it has had an adequate amount of time to reflect, react, and express on his administration. Agencies, organizations, and businesses       all over the country have been affected by his policies, proposals, and executive orders. In the city of Frederick, Maryland, these effects have been made clear in a wide range of mixed emotions and expression. Trumps policy on immigration, his proposal of foreign visa restrictions, and his executive order of budget cuts have been the forefront of issues pertaining to school systems and economic development in Frederick. “We have a large student population of international students in our graduate programs,” Hood College President, Andrea Chapdelaine said. “We have seen a drop in the number of applications for next fall.” Trump is proposing restrictions in attaining international visas and this looks to directly affect colleges from recruiting international students and businesses from recruiting international employees. This drop is not only confined...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qpRukLJe_y0&feature=youtu.be by Christie Wisniewski Despite a remarkable shift in policy plans with the new presidential administration, The Frederick County Sheriff’s Department believes that not much will change in terms of the county’s law enforcement. If anything, they believe that the Trump administration will further aid their cause. According to Lieutenant Colonel Scot Hopkins, the three largest current issues in Frederick are the heroin crisis, public unrest with police, and diminishing recruit numbers. However, the Sheriff’s Department believes that the Trump administration will help battle those issues. Still, Hopkins admitted that there is “a lot of unrest” with new president. “Police are getting shot and there’s growing unrest with police,” he said. “We have to remind deputies that we don’t have what’s happening in other cities.” Hopkins added that there is also a lack of trust with the government, which doesn’t help the police’s relationship with skeptical citizens. “We’re the first representative of [the government],” he said. “We have uniforms and guns and that intimidates some people.” He continued...