MCPS Superintendent Dr. Monifa McKnight sent out a letter to the community inviting students, parents, staff, and community members to discuss school strengths, areas for growth, and priorities. The full message can be seen below:
“Dear MCPS Community:
The Northwest Jaguars Coed Volleyball Team, coached by Jaqueline Queirolo, finished its regular season with an undefeated record of 11-0, making them the #1 seed heading into the County Playoffs next week. “I’m so proud of this team who truly came together day after day and worked incredibly hard. They focused and fought for every point and hustled constantly,” Said Coach Quierolo.
Northwest did not drop a set all season (33-0). Co-captain Senior Andrew Ahn consistently led Northwest with kills and blocks and brought the team together through encouragement on and off the court. “We have worked extremely hard and deserve to be where we are, and I couldn’t ask for a better group of players to finish out my Senior year with,” said Ahn.
Last night the Atlanta Falcons quickly made a trade to get into position to draft Penn State’e Arnold Ebiketie with the 38th pick in the draft. The 6-2, 250-pound linebacker transferred to Penn State from Temple and was named first-team All-Big Ten in 2021. He had18 tackles for loss, 9.5 sacks, and seven quarterback hits for the Nittany Lions last season.
Ebiketie originally attended Richard Montgomery High School in Rockville before transferring to Albert Einstein High School in Kensington where he had 21.5 sacks as a senior in 2017. While at Einstein, he also played basketball and was a sprinter and high jumper for the track & field team.
Johnathan Dunn, choral teacher at Sherwood High School, was named the 2022-2023 Montgomery County Teacher of the Year during a virtual celebration on April 28. Dunn will now go on to compete for Maryland Teacher of the Year. Per MCPS: Dunn has been the choral teacher at Sherwood for nine years. He brings positive energy, love and kindness to everyone he encounters. A joyful and enthusiastic educator, Dunn works tirelessly to see that students benefit from his lessons.
He teaches chorus, piano and music perspectives. Believing that music is a way to connect, he makes the music department a home for everyone. He takes great pride in making sure that all students have an opportunity to express themselves and experience the joy of music, regardless of their background, physical capabilities, learning differences, mental health challenges or musical proficiency. He encourages them all to perform in concerts and get involved in the Rock n‘ Roll Revival production, a 50-year tradition at Sherwood. With a cast of more than 300 students—from the highly skilled to first-time performers—Dunn unites them for a creative three-hour show. He also leads other school events, including vocal direction for the fall musical production and a Night of Jazz event in the spring.
In partnership with the gardening club Food Grown at Einstein, Food Grown Home is excited to announce that on April 22nd, the first-ever aeroponic Tower Garden will be established at Albert Einstein High School (AEHS). AEHS will be the first school in Montgomery County to implement this futuristic aeroponic food-growing technology, which will enable students to learn more about sustainable farming practices and empower them with the ability to grow their own food.
FGH is passionate about involving youth and young adults in food-growing STEM activities, which can illuminate career pathways into the fields of agriculture, horticulture, public health, environmental science, and more. Further, this STEM engagement provides inspiration for critical discussions on the viability of our food systems, opportunities for increased sustainability in their schools and local communities, strategies for reducing food insecurity, and how one can apply sustainable farming methods to increase access to nutritious food. FGH is hopeful to recruit more students from schools across MCPS to start their own Food Grown Home clubs and increase access to sustainable food-growing equipment that will help others learn to grow their own food. Interested students are encouraged to send an email to [email protected] to schedule an information meeting with an FGH staff member.
The Board of Education of Frederick County (the Board) appointed Dr. Cheryl L. Dyson to serve as the next superintendent of Frederick County Public Schools.Dr. Dyson will assume the role on July 1, 2022, contingent upon approval by the State Superintendent of Schools. Dr. Dyson’s contract was approved and signed at today’s Board of Education meeting and is posted at fcps.org.
Per FCPS:
We continue to work in collaboration with our county health partners and, in the event of an identified COVID-19 outbreak, we will conduct contact tracing and inform the school community of additional mitigation strategies, which may include mask-wearing and PCR or rapid testing on-site or at home. We will monitor the number of cases and adjust our strategy to ensure the health and safety of students, staff and communities.
Montgomery County Public Schools
Ten age-appropriate student focus groups at all three levels in February and March.
A series of youth-police dialogues with MCPS and police representatives in each of the 10 police districts in Montgomery County.
On Tuesday, the Montgomery County Council will receive a briefing on the memorandum of understanding between the Montgomery County Police Department and MCPS regarding the Community Engagement Officer Program. MCPS Superintendent Dr. Monifa McKnight, BOE President Brenda Wolff, and Montgomery County Police Chief Marcus Jones will be among those in attendance.
Paint Branch High School sophomore, Djenabou Bokoum, hosting a personal hygiene product donation drive next Saturday, April 30th at Paint Branch High School (14131 Old Columbia Pike, Burtonsville, MD).
Goods such as *full-sized soaps, shampoos, conditioners, body washes, deodorant, lotion, face wipes, toothpaste, floss, menstrual hygiene products, etc. will be collected during the drive and all donations will go out to the National Center for Children & Families in Bethesda to aid vulnerable women and mothers in their various support programs.
Niche, a rankings and review resource that provides information on K-12 schools, colleges, cities, neighborhoods, and companies across the United States, has released its 2023 ‘Best Public High Schools’ list for the state of Maryland. The top 3 schools on the list (and many more ranked very high) can be found right here in Montgomery County. There are 282 public high schools in Maryland. Each year the company releases a ‘Best Public High Schools’ list that according to Niche, is “based on rigorous analysis of academic and student life data from the U.S. Department of Education along with test scores, college data, and ratings collected from millions of Niche users.” Note: Niche has a separate ranking for Best Private High Schools.
MCPS Schools Ranked High on the List: