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Quince Orchard High School principal Beth Thomas tweeted the following regarding the lunch policy at the school,“In light of the continued safety concerns & disruptive behaviors that have taken place off school property, QOHS will actively enforce our lunch policy beginning tmrw Fri 3/24 for the remainder of the year. We will not waver from implementation of this policy.” The full policy can be seen below:
“Quince Orchard High School has a Closed Lunch Policy for all students in Grades 9 and 10. Students in Grades 11 and 12 may leave QO property for lunch. They must have a student ID card that reflects their lIth and 12′ grade status. If an Ilth or 12th grader wants to leave campus during lunch, they MUST show their current year school ID card to school statt. No exceptions.
Watkins Mill High School at 10301 Apple Ridge Rd in Montgomery Village was placed on a brief shelter in place on Thursday afternoon after an incident involving a juvenile driver near the school. According to MCPD, “At approximately 12:06 p.m., an off-duty federal officer was picking up his child at a bus stop near Watkins Mill HS when he observed a car driving erratically and at a high rate of speed. The off-duty officer stopped the driver, a juvenile male.
Following the stop, several students in the area converged on the officer. He called for assistance and MCPD officers responded. The car was towed. Watkins Mill HS was placed on a brief shelter in place. The driver was cited for driving without a license.”
At Burtonsville Elementary School of Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS), MD, nutrition and food access, family and community engagement, and staff well-being are inseparable. School staff and families have come together in leading campus beautification projects, food waste reduction initiatives, and stigma-free nutrition access for all. And the result? “Oh, they love it!” says Vice Principal Terry Gobourne, who leads the beautification initiatives.
Community-driven programs have set Burtonsville apart as one of America’s Healthiest Schools. In October 2022, they received recognition in six topic areas, including Increasing Family & Community Engagement, sponsored by Kohl’s, and Cultivating Staff Well-Being, sponsored by Kaiser Permanente and Harmony SEL at National University. Burtonsville also received the 2022 MCPS Healthy Schools Award.
A Quince Orchard High School student was found unconscious in a nearby McDonald’s bathroom on Tuesday, March 21. According to Montgomery County Police, “at approximately 11:56 a.m., a Quince Orchard High school student was located unconscious in a bathroom in the 12100 block of Darnestown Road. Narcan was administered. The victim left the McDonald’s where he was stopped by an MCPD officer. He has been transported to an area hospital in stable condition.” Quince Orchard High School Principal Elizabeth L. Thomas sent the following message to Quince Orchard staff, students, and families (courtesy of FOX 5):
Feature image courtesy of Google Maps.
Go to Quince Orchard Student Found Unconscious in McDonald’s Bathroom; Narcan Administered
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Radio station Hot 99.5 (WIHT FM) is currently running it’s annual “Best High School in the DMV” contest on Instagram. The six Montgomery County high schools to make the “Sweet 16” are Montgomery Blair, Northwest, Richard Montgomery, Rockville, Walter Johnson, and Wheaton. The schools included in the tournament were selected after receiving the most nominations and the winning high school will be awarded with $1,000 (courtesy of Burn Bootcamp in Rockville.) Wheaton High School lost to Osbourn Park High School (Manassas, VA) in the final round of the 2021 tournament. Voting takes place in Hot 99.5’s Instagram page’s stories. Hot 99.5 (WIHT) broadcasts out of the IHeartMedia studios at 1801 Rockville Pike in Rockville.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CqB3fRVL8WA/
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A recent change to the recommendation on the MCPS CIP that would delay the major capital project at Damascus High School by two years has led the Damascus community to call for a meeting that will take place at the high school on Tuesday, March 21 at 7pm.
The major capital project was previously approved to address various building systems and programmatic needs for Damascus High School, located at 25921 Ridge Road. The Board of Education, in the requested FY 2021–2026 CIP, included expenditures in FY 2022 to continue the planning and design of this major capital project with a completion date of August 2025, but the County Council delayed the expenditures by one year. An FY 2023 appropriation was approved to begin the design of this Major Capital project. A FY 2024 appropriation was recommended for construction funds, but that has now changed to “not recommended”, delaying the project for two years.
Per Montgomery County: The joint Public Safety (PS) and Education and Culture (EC) Committee will meet on Monday, March 20 at 9:30 a.m. to receive a briefing on the Community Engagement Officer (CEO) Program and restorative justice practices within Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS). The joint committee will also receive a briefing and discuss school bus safety. The members of the PS Committee include Chair Sidney Katz and Councilmembers Dawn Luedtke and Kristin Mink. The members of the EC Committee include Chair Will Jawando and Councilmembers Gabe Albornoz and Mink.
The Transportation and Environment (TE) Committee will meet at 9:30 a.m. to review a $250,000 FY23 Supplemental Appropriation and FY23-28 Capital Improvements Program (CIP) Amendment for streetlighting. The committee will also review CIP amendments for transportation projects and receive a briefing on the Purple Line. The members of the TE Committee include Chair Evan Glass and Councilmembers Marilyn Balcombe and Kate Stewart. The Planning, Housing and Parks (PHP) Committee will meet at 1:30 p.m. to receiving a briefing from representatives of the Housing Opportunities Commission (HOC) on Housing Choice vouchers. The members of the PHP Committee include Chair Andrew Friedson and Councilmembers Natali Fani-González and Jawando.
The Gaithersburg Book Festival has selected the finalists for its 5th annual poetry contest for high school students. More than 150 entries poured in from around the region from students who wrote poems on themes of diversity or inclusion.
The finalists, listed in alphabetical order with the school they attend, city in which they reside and grade, are:
Montgomery College (MC) is providing a $500 tuition scholarship to Montgomery County residents who are spring 2023 graduates from a Montgomery County high school and are taking at least six MC credit hours this fall. The $500 “Raptor Ready” Scholarship can only be applied to fall 2023 tuition and fees, and the application must be completed by Tuesday, Aug. 1. The first 1,500 eligible applicants will be considered, with others added to a waitlist. Additional information below, courtesy of Montgomery College:
Montgomery College offers a $500 tuition scholarship to help 2023 spring Montgomery County high school graduates jump into their academic program in fall 2023. The $500 scholarship will be applied to fall 2023 tuition and fees at Montgomery College. The program is for spring 2023 Montgomery County high school graduates who are Montgomery County residents who register for and attend at least 6 credit hours at Montgomery College in the fall 2023. The scholarship cannot be used for any other semester.
MCPS will host the 2nd Annual Youth Climate Summit from 8:30 a.m.–3:30 p.m. on Saturday, April 22. The event will take place at Tilden Middle School, which achieved a LEED Silver Certification in 2021 from the U.S. Green Building Council.
This student-led event is designed to educate MCPS high school students about climate change and equip them with the tools to create climate action projects to bring back to their communities. During the summit, students will talk with environmental mentors, collaborate with peer leaders and grow as environmental activists.