3A Football Maryland State Championship Game: Damascus vs. Oakdale (7pm kickoff)
In-game updates by Damon Anderson:
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Education
The Damascus Swarmin’ Hornets take on the Oakdale Bears tonight at 7pm at the Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis for the 3A Maryland State Championship.
The Swarmin’ Hornets defeated River Hill 42-7 in the semifinals. RB Dillon Dunathan rushed for 245 yards and 4 touchdowns in the win. Oakdale, from Frederick County, defeated St. Charles 27-22. Damascus will be appearing in their 17th State Final and will be attempting to win their 12th State championship, which would tie the state record currently held by Seneca Valley.
Earlier this month, more than 12,000 second grade students enjoyed performances by the National Philharmonic Orchestra at the Music Center at Strathmore. This program gives students exposure to the world of classical music in a concert hall setting, inspiring a love and appreciation of music and the arts at a young age. Before attending, second graders learned about the instrument families of the orchestra and how the instruments work together in a concert setting. Video below:
The Poolesville High School boys’ cross country team and the Damascus High School cheerleading team won their respective 2A state championship titles. This was the first-ever cheerleading championship title for MCPS.
Congratulations to teams who also made it to the championship finals—Winston Churchill High School boys’ cross country and girls’ field hockey, Walter Johnson High School girls’ cross country, Poolesville’s girls’ cross country, and Sherwood High School’s cheerleading team, which came in third.
The deadline is fast approaching to submit an application for the MCPS Healthy Schools Award. The application deadline has been extended and is now Wednesday, Dec. 7. More information on the process and application is available here.
The MCPS Healthy Schools Award is given to schools that are leaders in addressing the essential health needs of students, staff and families. The application process also offers an opportunity for schools to connect and learn about best practices related to school health, to build relationships with colleagues and to identify areas for improvement.
MCPS annually recognizes Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (MLK) with a week of service projects and acts of kindness in schools from Jan. 14-22, 2023. All schools are encouraged to host one of the following experiences:
The district is partnering with WE Schools to host a free one-hour MLK Week of Service planning workshop for staff on Thursday, Dec. 8 and Tuesday, Dec. 13, from 3:30-4:30 p.m. on Zoom. Interested staff may register on Professional Development Online (PDO), course #91440. Check out this flyer for additional details. WE Schools MLK Planning Workshop Flyer
Newly elected members of the Montgomery County Board of Education Grace Rivera-Oven (District 1), Julie Yang (District 3) and re-elected members Brenda Wolff (District 5) and Karla Silvestre (At-Large) were ceremonially sworn in on Thursday, Dec. 1, at Carver Educational Services Center, 850 Hungerford Drive in Rockville.
Ms. Karla Silvestre was elected to her first four-year term on Nov. 6, 2018. Ms. Yang will succeed Dr. Scott Joftus, and Ms. Rivera-Oven will succeed Dr. Judith Docca, who did not seek re-election.
The MCPS Department of Transportation and the Montgomery County Department of Transportation’s (MCDOT) Safe Routes to School are looking for adult volunteers to help energize a safe and fun way for children to get physical activity as they walk to and from school with supervision.
The Walking School Bus program allows for students to walk along a set route with one or more adults leading the way, picking children up at designated stops along a predetermined route and walking them to school. Interested adult volunteers can sign up to request more information and to speak with an MCPS and/or MCDOT representative about starting this program in their school community.
Here are six things to know in MCPS for Thursday, Dec. 1. Get information about a Walking School Bus initiative, an upcoming mental health forum, how to stay involved in the operating budget process, a retirement celebration for longtime Board of Education member Dr. Judith Docca, reminders about inclement weather information, and two football teams making it to this year’s state championship.
The Walking School Bus program allows for students to walk along a set route with one or more adults leading the way, picking children up at designated stops along a predetermined route and walking them to school.
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4A Football Maryland State Championship Game: (2) Quince Orchard vs. (1) Flowers
In-game updates by Damon Anderson:
The All-Big 12 Conference football teams and individual award winners have been announced and Montgomery County’s very own Johnny Hodges has earned two awards. Selections are made by the league’s 10 head coaches, who are not permitted to vote for their own players.
Hodges, a 6’2, 240 pound junior linebacker from Darnestown, who graduated from Quince Orchard High School in 2019, is a starting linebacker for the TCU Horned Frogs– currently ranked 3rd in the country. He has been named to the 2022 All-Big 12 Second Team and won the award for “Defensive Newcomer of the Year.” Hodges was also recently named the Big 12 Defensive Player of the week after he had a team-best and season-high 11 tackles, more than double the next-closest Horned Frog, to lead a strong defensive effort in then No. 4 TCU’s 17-10 win over then No. 18 Texas. The junior LB had 1.5 tackles for loss as part of his 11 stops and combined on a tackle for no gain on a 4th-and-1 Bijan Robinson rush on Texas’ opening series to set the tone for the game.