Education

Home Depot Foundation Donates Merchandise to Ashburton Elementary School Garden

By MCS Staff

Ashburton Elementary School partnered with The Home Depot Foundation to celebrate its success in fostering environmental awareness, conservation and stewardship. With a Community Impact Grant, the Bethesda Home Depot donated more than $6,000 in merchandise to refresh the school’s garden, including power-washing, raised beds, soil, large planters and plants, a shed, garden arch, deck box, umbrellas, bird feeders, a wheelbarrow and paint.

“We are most excited about this project because it directly impacts so many kids,” said assistant store manager Michael Johnson. In the spring, Ashburton completed a 12-year process, achieving Maryland Association of Environmental and Outdoor Education Maryland Green Schools Sustainability status. Kindergarten teacher Erin Burrell has also been awarded an excellence in teacher award by the Maryland Agricultural Education Foundation and a Presidential Innovation Award for Environmental Educators by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for the innovative ways she uses creative experiences in the garden to enrich student learning.

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Four MCPS Students Selected to Play in All-National Honors Bands and Orchestras

By MCS Staff

Four MCPS students from two different schools have been selected to play in All-National Honor Bands and Orchestras.

Thomas S. Wootton High School sophomore Sara Bock, who plays clarinet, and Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School sophomore Shisui Torii, who plays French horn, were selected to be in the National Association for Music Education’s (NAfME’s) All-National Honor Band. Wootton sophomores Jackson Bernal, who plays bassoon, and Anderson Bernal, who plays double bass, were selected to the All-National Honor Orchestra.

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Annual MCPS Used Car, Computer Sale Coming Dec. 10

By MCS Staff

Students in the Montgomery County Students Automotive Trades Foundation (ATF) and Information Technology Foundation (ITF) will be selling used cars and computers that they have refurbished on Saturday, Dec. 10, at Gaithersburg High School, from 9–11 a.m. The school is located at 101 Education Blvd. in Gaithersburg.

The cars and computers are refurbished and reconditioned by the students as part of their classroom and lab studies. The sales provide students with the opportunity to practice their sales skills, earn Student Service Learning hours, and develop a deeper appreciation for community involvement.

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Scratch Kitchen Olney to Provide Thanksgiving Meals to 130 Multilingual Learners at Gaithersburg High School

By MCS Staff

Scratch Kitchen opened it’s doors in Olney just a couple months back and the restaurant is already giving back to the community, generously providing a “true Thanksgiving meal”  for 130 new multilingual learners at Gaithersburg High School next week.

On Tuesday, November 22nd, Gaithersburg High School will host it’s annual Thanksgiving Lunch to the school’s newcomer multilingual learners. Per a community message sent out by Gaithersburg High School, “Every year, we invite our newcomer students to experience the true Thanksgiving meal during lunch on the day before our Thanksgiving break. This luncheon typically includes all of the newcomer students, our administrative team, our counseling team, and our English Language Development teachers. The goal is always to help our students feel comfortable breaking bread with school staff, and to help them experience an American tradition. It is typically the first time our students have tasted turkey, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce or pumpkin pie.”

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MCPS to Celebrate Longtime MoCo Board of Education Member and Teacher/Administrator, Dr. Judith Docca

By MCS Staff

A retirement celebration for Dr. Judith Docca, longtime Montgomery County Board of Education member who also spent 38 years as a teacher and administrator with MCPS, will be held at the Universities at Shady Grove (USG) on Tuesday, Nov. 29.

Doors open at 5 p.m.; the program begins at 6 p.m. Individual tickets are available for $45; tickets are available here. Proceeds from ticket sales will be used to create an MCPS Educational Foundation scholarship in her name.

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University of Maryland Will Bring New Health Computing Institute to North Bethesda

By MCS Staff

The University of Maryland Strategic Partnership: MPowering the State(MPower) announced a transformative partnership to establish the University of Maryland 3 – Institute for Health Computing (UM-3-IHC), which is being led by the University of Maryland, Baltimore(UMB) and the University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP), in collaboration with the University of Maryland Medical System (UMMS) and Montgomery County. The institute is expected to open in leased space in early 2023. Final completion of laboratory and office space in the North Bethesda Metro area in 2028, according to officials. Video below shows Thursday’s announcement.

Per the press release: This new Institute will leverage recent advances in artificial intelligence (AI) and computing to create a premier learning health care system that evaluates both de-identified and secure digitized medical health data to diagnose, prevent and treat diseases in patients across the state of Maryland. “We are witnessing an unprecedented revolution in health care that is being driven by biomedical innovation, the digitization of medical records, and advances in machine learning and artificial intelligence,” said UMB President Bruce E. Jarrell, MD, FACS. “This new Institute will include all of these elements in a synergistic effect that will transform our health care system.”

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Second Round of High School Football Playoff Scores (MCPS Schools)

By Damon Anderson

Results of second round games can be seen below. Scores will be updated as we receive them (an F will signify the score is final, no F means the score is from the game while it is/was in progress). If a score isn’t listed, it’s because we haven’t yet received a report from the game.

Friday 11/11:

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MCPS Answers Frequently Asked Security Questions

By MCS Staff

“Preparing for emergency situations often raises questions and concerns. All schools are engaging in updated safety and security protocol training.” MCPS has developed a list of Frequently Asked Questions to provide information and reassure families. The questions and answers can be seen below:

What is a shelter-in-place? A shelter-in-place is an emergency response when there is danger in the school community or near school property. It provides heightened awareness by staff of what is occurring on or in the area around the school. If the danger or threat to the school becomes imminent, the shelter-in-place prepares the school to move quickly to a lockdown. A shelter-in-place may also be utilized to hold students in their classrooms to address a medical emergency or safety situation, or in response to a biological, chemical, or radiological incident.

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MCPS Invites Community to FY24 Budget Information Sessions; First In-person Meeting This Saturday, November 12

By MCS Staff

MCPS has sent a letter to the community inviting stakeholders to an information session regarding the fiscal year 2024 budget. The letter and additional information can be seen below:

Dear MCPS students, families, and community members: We are fortunate to live in a community that invests in public education, in our students’ futures, and that sees education as a cornerstone of our vibrant community. As a school system, the programs, strategies, and opportunities that we provide are funded through our operating budget. How that budget is developed, funded, and finalized has a meaningful impact on how we serve our students each and every day.

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