For more information about eligibility guidelines, required documents and how to register online, call 240-740-4530 or visit the MCPS website.
Education
Doodle for Google is holding its 15th annual art contest for students in grades K-12. Students in Montgomery County are invited to create their own Google Doodle for the chance to have it featured on Google.com, as well as win scholarships and tech packages for their schools.
This year’s theme is: “I am grateful for …” Taking a step back to think about what you’re grateful for can be a great way to take care of mental health and refocus on what’s most important. What moments, people, places and things are special to you? What or whom can you not imagine living without? What are the things that get you through the day? Share what you appreciate most. Doodles are meant to surprise and delight people when they visit Google.com. The deadline to apply is Tuesday, March 14. How to Enter. Submit a Doodle.
As such, beginning Saturday, March 4, 2023, all Northwood outdoor facilities will be closed to community members until further notice. This includes our athletic fields, track, tennis courts, and all other external areas of the building. Additionally, the Loxford Terrace access gate between our baseball and softball fields will remain closed. This closure does not include MCPS approved activities. We recognize and regret the inconvenience this causes for our surrounding community. However, the safety of our students, staff, and community must take precedence. It is our sincere hope that facilities will reopen as soon as a suspects) is apprehended or there is confidence the hate vandalism against our community has stopped.
We are asking parents and guardians receiving this message to please share it with any community members without students attending Northwood who use our facilities so they are aware. This message will also be provided to feeder schools and local listservs. If any community members have any questions, comments, or any information regarding the recent incidents of hate vandalism, please contact school administration: 240-740-6950″
Registration is open for Prekindergarten and Head Start for the 2023-2024 school year. Children must be 4 years old on or before Sept. 1, 2023, and families must be income-eligible to apply. Families can register their children online or in person. For families who want to register in person, weekday and weekend locations are open through March 31:
Registration is also still open for the current 2022-2023 school year. For more information about eligibility guidelines, required documents and how to register online, call 240-740-4530 or visit the MCPS website. Prek, Head Start Registration, 2023-2024. When and Where to Register, 2023-2024
Longtime MCPS teacher and coach Larry Hurd has accepted the Athletic Specialist (formerly known as “Athletic Director”) position at Walter Johnson High School. Hurd, who has been the football coach at the school, will be stepping down as coach in order to take the position. He will be replacing the legendary Tom Rogers. Below is Hurd’s full statement:
“Wildcat Nation,
New York Times bestselling author Sheree Renee Thomas spoke to Northwood High School students during a visit to Maryland last month. Thomas wrote Marvel’s Black Panther: Panther’s Rage novel, adapted from the legendary comics. She is the editor of The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, founded in 1949, and Obsidian, founded in 1975. Last year, she co-curated Carnegie Hall’s historic, citywide Afrofuturism Festival. She also spoke at the Rockville Library on afrofuturism and diversity in sci-fi.
The featured photo, courtesy of MCPS, shows Sheree Renee Thomas speaking to students at Northwood High School.
Congratulations to the following MCPS high schools that won recent athletics championships:
Basketball County Champions
Per MCPS: The Montgomery County Alliance of Black School Educators (MCABSE) is accepting submissions for its annual Distinguished African American Scholars.
Applicants must be graduating MCPS high school seniors who plan to pursue post-secondary studies at an institution of higher learning, including community college and technical training schools, for the 2023–2024 school year. Scholars must be committed to academic excellence and to leadership in their high school schools and communities. Principals, resource counselors and college and career information coordinators are asked to submit the name of one student to represent their school.
By a unanimous vote during its business meeting on Feb. 23, the Board of Education (BOE) approved a $3.2 billion Operating Budget recommendation for Fiscal Year 2024. The request includes a $296 million increase—10%—over the current budget and $272 million above the minimum amount required by the maintenance of effort law.
The budget reflects amendments based on BOE feedback to provide focused investments to improve literacy and math across the district. This includes the addition of supervisors, instructional staff and coaches to increase math and literacy support; oversight and progress monitoring for schools, and increased professional development opportunities for staff. The budget also prioritizes salary increases to support recruitment and retention and the addition of security assistants to promote a safe and inclusive school climate.
This article was written by Ashley Huynh, Editor-in-Chief of Watkins Mill’s student newspaper The Current
Watkins Mill High School principal Carol Goddard will retire at the end of the 2022-23 school year, spending almost 50 years working in education and 30 years in Montgomery County Public Schools.Goddard’s retirement comes with mixed emotions for the community, including herself. “I love this place. Love the kids. Love what I do,” Goddard said. She will miss the kids and staff, and “all the tight, tight friendships I’ve made in the professional world.” “I am happy for Ms. Goddard to retire,” social studies teacher Lauren Squier said. “I’m sure it was a very difficult choice for her to ‘hang up her pencils,’ but I’m excited for her to enjoy a new chapter in her life.”
Kimani Gray, supply services coordinator for the Supply and Property Management Unit, doesn’t have an easy job. Even though it regularly pulls him in multiple directions, he always remains calm and focused. Colleagues call him the “behind-the-scenes glue” that keeps schools and offices running. Gray has been named this year’s Supporting Services Employee of the Year, an annual award given by SEIU Local 500.
He has exceptional customer service skills, exceeds expectations with his attention to detail and has in-depth knowledge of the school system’s inventory, which help him meet design and spatial needs for all offices. He deftly juggles several projects at once, and is described as a flexible, positive and kind leader. He also works closely with local businesses as he coordinates the furniture donation program, which allows the Department of Materials Management to obtain new or gently used furniture for MCPS facilities.