There is one more important postscript to the exit interview with Montgomery School Superintendent Jerry D. Weast:

The numbers.

Here is a quick rundown of a few selected metrics of performance in the 144,000-student school system that Weast has led for 12 years.

Percentage of Montgomery County eighth-graders who passed the Maryland math exam, by race and ethnicity:

Asian: 77 percent in 2003/ 80 percent in 2004/ 85 percent in 2005/ 84 percent in 2006/ 87 percent in 2007/ 91 percent in 2008/ 91 percent in 2009/ 92 percent in 2010

Black: 29 (2003)/ 31/ 39/ 42/ 43/ 51/ 55/ 57 (2010)

White: 75 (2003)/ 76/ 81/ 83/ 84/ 88/ 89/ 89 (2010)

Hispanic: 30 (2003)/33 / 41/ 46/ 46/ 56/ 57/ 58 (2010)

Four-year graduation rates for Montgomery County students, by ethnicity.

Asian: 93 percent Class of 2009, 94 percent Class of 2010

Black: 78 percent Class of 2009, 77 percent Class of 2010

White: 93 percent Class of 2009, 93 percent Class of 2010

Hispanic: 71 percent Class of 2009, 71 percent Class of 2010

Number of Advanced Placement exams taken in selected years by Montgomery County students, by race and ethnicity:

Asian: 2,040 (2000)/ 4,966 (2004)/ 6,813 (2008)/ 7,940 (2010)

Black 398 (2000)/ 1,330/ 2,510/ 3,309

White 5,646 (2000)/ 11,576/ 14,149/ 15,427

Hispanic 389 (2000)/ 1,220/ 2,379/ 3,111

Average SAT scores for Classes of 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2010, by race and ethnicity in Montgomery County public schools. Scores on a 2400-point scale.

Asian: 1710 (2006)/ 1706 (2007)/1720 (2008)/ 1748 (2009)/ 1769 (2010)

White: 1735/ 1736/ 1740/ 1733/ 1748

Black: 1360/ 1357/ 1336/ 1356/ 1405

Hispanic 1410/ 1418/ 1401/ 1398/ 1452