On Wednesday, June 21, 2023, the Gaithersburg Planning Commission conducted a courtesy review of the plans for the upcoming Crown High School. The Montgomery County Board of Education approved the design plans for Crown High School back on March 24, 2022. The $180 million high school will be located in the undeveloped 31.7 acre site that is adjacent to Crown Neighborhood Three and is located at the intersection of Fields Road and Omega Drive. The presentation focused on the location/site plan of the school, building perspectives, parking, forest conservation amendment, and retaining wall design (video of the meeting is linked below).

Per the presentation, the disturbed land area is 31.7 acres, the building will be 358,009 SF, student capacity will be 2,219 with a core of 2,700, and the substantial completion date is August 2026. The Crown High School site will be located on the opposite side of the Downtown Crown community, with the residential portion of Crown between the two areas. The new school will relieve crowding at Gaithersburg, Northwest, Quince Orchard, Thomas S. Wootton and Richard Montgomery high schools. According the presentation from last year, the school will be a five story building that will utilize onsite renewable energy sources such as solar panels and geothermal energy. The City of Gaithersburg was able to secure the site as part of the negotiations related to the Crown Farm Annexation Agreement X-182 on August 7, 2006.


Schools may have just ended, but anyone looking to put the finishing touches on their summer plans may be interested in knowing about the Back-to-School Fair scheduled for Saturday, August 26th.

Per Montgomery County Public Schools: All MCPS students and families are invited to kick off the 2023-2024 school year at the MCPS Back-to-School Fair on Saturday, Aug. 26 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Westfield Wheaton mall.


The Montgomery Virtual Academy (MVA) application is reopening for families interested in placing their child on the waitlist. The primary focus of the MVA is to foster a safe, inclusive online learning environment that meets the individual needs of all students. The waitlist application period will run from June 26–July 28. Students on the waitlist will be considered for Semester 1 enrollment based on space availability. Interested families can submit an application on ParentVUE.

The Montgomery Virtual Academy (MVA) is part of the continuum of digital learning opportunities offered to students and part of the choice programs in MCPS. The primary focus of the MVA is to foster a safe, inclusive online learning environment that meets the individual needs of all students in an academic setting where staff know their students’ interests, and want to see them excel as learners. The program includes the following highlights:


There are 182 public high schools in Maryland with an approximate average of 1,030 students per school. All of the 20 largest schools when it comes to enrollment have at least double the average. Full list below using data following the 2021-2022 school year (Montgomery County high schools in bold):

20. Duval High School (Prince George’s County): 2,206 students


Leading up to Public Works Week, eleven Montgomery County middle schools participated in the “Paint the Plow” contest to celebrate the many contributions made by public works employees that keep the County running.

The snowplow entries were showcased during MCDOT’s family-friendly ‘Truck Day’ event that was held on Saturday, May 20. The free event had more than 1,000 attendees who were invited to vote for their favorite snowplow design. The decorated plows will be part of the MCDOT fleet that will be clearing snow from streets this winter. The middle school winners selected were (pictured below):


The Jack Kent Cooke Foundation announced earlier this school year that three graduating high school seniors from Montgomery County will receive the Cooke College Scholarship. This year’s recipients will receive up to $55,000 annually to cover the costs of their undergraduate education, as they go on to attend the nation’s top colleges and universities next fall. The winners from Montgomery County are:

The Cooke College Scholarship Program seeks to help high-achieving students with financial need earn a college degree. In addition to substantial financial support, Scholars also receive ongoing academic coaching and advising, graduate school and career advising, and access to a network of thriving and motivated peers in the Cooke Scholar community. Scholars will also receive opportunities for internships, study abroad, and access to graduate school funding.


As we say goodbye to this school year, I am filled with gratitude and pride for all that we have accomplished, and I cannot wait to see what the future holds for our amazing school community. Here is my video message to the community on this, the last day of the 2022-2023 school year.


Representatives from Salesforce, a cloud-based software company headquartered in San Francisco, visited Springbrook High School on June 9 in a career day presentation.

The Salesforce executives, which included engineers, account managers and sales leaders, talked with about 300 students in 9th through 12th grades. Students asked questions about work/life balance, networking, the e-commerce business and how executives landed positions with the company.


Two fifth grade students serving as safety patrols at Stone Mill Elementary School in North Potomac have been recognized by AAA Mid-Atlantic for their efforts to help a classmate who fell from a second story banister during dismissal earlier this year.

The students, Matina Naum and Alex Rossoshek, were at their safety patrol posts by a stairwell in the school. During dismissal, a fellow student fell from a banister to the cement floor two stories below. The girls remained calm, cleared the stairwell, navigated students away and got immediate adult help. Despite their emotions and their friendship with the boy, they were able to answer many questions from emergency personnel.


Eleven graduating seniors who completed apprenticeship programs within MCPS were awarded certificates and cords during a ceremony last month. Representatives with the Maryland Department of Labor presented students with the Apprenticeship Maryland program certificates and cords for graduation. The students and the programs they completed were:

Apprenticeship Maryland is a youth apprenticeship program for students, ages 16 and up, that is designed to lead to sustainable employment and further education based on a student’s selected career.  This program was developed in partnership with the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) and the Maryland Department of Labor (MDoL).


Sherwood High School rising senior Conor Pugh was recognized by county health officials and MCPS for his efforts to produce and distribute diabetes kits for students recently diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes.

Diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes in 2020, Pugh has packaged tools, including glucose tablets, an insulin cooler, a medical ID bracelet, water bottle, pocket calculator and needle disposal container for storing used needles into a kit to help students adjust to a diabetes diagnosis. He put the kits together as part of his Eagle Scout service project.


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