MCPS celebrated excellence in autism services during the second annual Autism Unit Awards on May 24. Teachers, paraeducators, administrators, service providers, volunteers and substitutes were recognized. Awards included:
• Outstanding New Paraeducator: Given to paraeducators in their first two years with the autism program, who have demonstrated a commitment to excellence in their roles.
Carolynn Walsleben, principal at Candlewood Elementary School in Redland/Rockville, is this year’s winner of the Mark Mann Excellence and Harmony Award. The Mark Mann award is presented annually to an MCPS administrator who has shown exceptional performance in promoting academic excellence, positive human relations and community outreach.
Walsleben has been principal at Candlewood since 2020. She began her teaching career in MCPS in 1999, as a first grade teacher at Bells Mill Elementary School. Colleagues, staff members and parents say Walsleben is a natural leader. She is a strong administrator who exemplifies what it means to be a caring, forward-thinking, data-driven leader. She sets high expectations, and believes in progress and celebrating along the way. As curriculum changes, she ensures that adequate tools and support are put in place so staff can efficiently meet student needs. She continually encourages staff to become social together and to build strong relationships, knowing that students will benefit from their strong bonds and positive energy. She helps teams build on one another’s strengths, and uses her skills to build the capacity of other leaders.
The third annual Montgomery County Children’s Business Fair will return in August after a three-year hiatus. Applications are being accepted for the fair, set for 11 a.m.-2 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 19. The fair, which will be held in Rockville Town Square, is open to youth aged 6-15.
The deadline to apply is Friday, June 2. Applications are available here. Open to the public, the fair will host 40 young entrepreneurs. Those selected will have an opportunity to present innovative ideas and make sales pitches to a panel of judges from the local business community and celebrity influencers.
Model United Nations (UN) students at Gaithersburg Middle School organized a Food Insecurity Day to bring awareness to people facing food insecurity in the world, across the country and in Montgomery County community. Gaithersburg offers a Model UN class as an elective. Video below:
Sam Dickey, a senior at Sherwood High School, was awarded the $180,000 Navy ROTC Scholarship (Marine option) on Thursday, May 25th. Rockville Marines announced yesterday, “Today, Sam is one of the hand selected few who have been awarded the $180,000 NROTC Scholarship (Marine Option)!! What an awesome way to represent your family and Sherwood High School! Thank you for all of your hard work and dedication!”
Per the NROTC: The purpose of the Navy ROTC Program is to educate and train qualified young men and women for service as commissioned officers in the Navy’s unrestricted line, the Navy Nurse Corps and the Marine Corps. As the largest single source of Navy and Marine Corps officers, the Navy ROTC Scholarship Program plays an important role in preparing mature young men and women for leadership and management positions in an increasingly technical Navy and Marine Corps.
Graduation Ceremonies Kick Off May 31: Nearly 12,000 MCPS students will begin receiving their diplomas during commencement ceremonies between Wednesday, May 31, and Thursday, June 15. Graduation ceremonies will take place on individual high school campuses, at DAR Constitution Hall in Washington, D.C., and on the campuses of Mount St. Mary’s University and the University of Maryland, Baltimore County.
This year’s keynote speakers include Tony Award-winning actor Myles Frost, Maryland Lt. Gov. Aruna Miller, husband-and-wife journalists Peter Baker of The New York Times and Susan Glasser of The New Yorker, former University of Maryland and NBA star Walt Williams, author and television producer George Pelecanos, and more. Full list of Graduation dates, times and locations. Read more.
Per MCPS: Wheaton High School held its first Unified Field Day on May 23 in honor of Sarah Gilbert, a former Learning for Independence (LFI) student who unexpectedly passed away last summer. The event was named Gilbert Games in her honor. The event was planned and executed by Wheaton High School staff members in conjunction with Albert Einstein, John F. Kennedy and Springbrook and Wheaton high schools. More than 100 students from all four schools attended (video below).
Leadership students coached students from the LFI program, which is designed for students with complex learning and cognitive needs, including mild to moderate intellectual disabilities, and the School Community-based (SCB) programs, which includes students with severe or profound intellectual disabilities and/or multiple disabilities. Students from the extensions program, which is a program that includes students with the same disabilities in need of additional behavioral support, also participated.
The Montgomery County Board of Education approved the following six administrative appointments at its meeting today:
Seth P. Adams, currently Director, Department of Facilities Management, Office of District Operations, Office of the Chief Operating Officer, as Associate Superintendent, Office of Facilities Management, Office of the Chief Operating Officer
Dozens of MCPS high school seniors were recognized for their accomplishments in dance, theatre performance, technical theatre, choral and instrumental music, media arts, and 2D and 3D visual art at the 22nd annual Superintendent’s All-County Fine Arts Awards Celebration on May 22 at Seneca Valley High School.
The event featured musical and dance performances from four high schools, plus the All-County Dance Ensemble, which performed Origins, choreographed by Alice Howes and directed by Tiffany Alastanos. Other performances included—
Students and members of the Construction Trades Foundation (CTF) celebrated the completion of the 43rd student-build house with a cornerstone ceremony on May 23. Construction and interior design students built the house over the past two years (video below).
Located at 14105 Alderton Road in Silver Spring, the 3,100-square-foot home has four bedrooms and three upstairs bathrooms with a half-bath on the main level. It includes beautiful, large windows with an open floor plan and a two-car garage with a remote door entry. The kitchen features stainless steel appliances, silestone countertops, a kitchen island, window above the kitchen sink and contemporary lighting. The house also includes HVAC units in the basement and attic, a wraparound porch, screened patio and oak hardwood flooring.
MCPS hosted a Future Educators celebration for 24 graduating seniors on May 24. This is the second year that the Office of Human Resources and Development has hosted a “Grow Your Own” strategy to attract, recruit and excite MCPS students with the possibility of a teaching career with the district.
The event recognized the students for their outstanding academic performance and commitment to return to MCPS once they have finished college. In addition, each of these students are receiving a $5,000 scholarship toward their college studies. The scholarships are funded by the Maryland Leads Grant. The Maryland Leads Grant and the MCPS “Grow Your Own” initiatives support the long-standing need to establish and strengthen teacher pipelines and development.