. Thank you so much for joining us here today. This is something that we started new this school year where before Board of Education meetings were taking just a few moments to celebrate some of the things that we have resolved to do.
And the Board of Education each month passes resolutions of recognition and opportunities for celebration. And we have a several that are being celebrated this month and this week. And this is a great opportunity for us to lift up
some really exciting and positive things that are happening in our school system, and today is no exception. Today we're celebrating Special Education Day, National Inclusive Schools Week, and the for a state champion football
team, the Quince Orchard Cougars. Lots of awesome things to celebrate. We have a short program that goes with this, and a few pictures and a few certificates and resolutions that we get to pass out. So we're so excited that you're
here, even if you're here for public comment and for other stuff. We're excited that you are a part of today and this celebration. So first up, to do our very first recognition for the evening is board member
Laura Stewart. Thank you. Just a second. Hello. Good to see everyone here. Today. We proudly recognize Special Education Day and the 50th
anniversary of the individuals with Disabilities Education Act, better known as I.d.e.a. Since its signing on December 2nd, 1975, Ida has guaranteed that every child with a disability is entitled to a free and
appropriate public education, an essential promise that continues to shape our schools and communities. I'd like to say that the court case that came before the law was decided was brought in 1971, the year I
was born. So this has extra significance for me because 1971 was a big year. I would like to welcome the following people up to the stage. Mrs.
Sarah Starr, principal of Longview School. Doctor. Longview is amazing place. Doctor Carla McNeil, principal of Holy Wells Middle School.
Joshua Fine, principal of Flower Hill Elementary School. The Rs program. Kyle Heatwole, principal of Singer Elementary School at the Learning Center.
Greg Baron, principal of Dufief Elementary School at the Learning Center. And representing the Division of Specialized Support Service. Doctor Lisa Gaylord Jones. I'd
also thank you. I'd also like to welcome Doctor Megan, school psychologist of Rock Creek Terrace School. I don't know who's here. Chris Turk, director of school leadership and improvement, Jordan Masker, Carl Sandburg Behavioral
Support Center Patricia Cochran, supervisor of transition services. Lisa Court, instructional specialists. Ashley Doyle, supervisor of the
Alternate Learning Outcomes and Learning for independence and school community based programs and extensions. That's a long title. And Kristin Erickson, supervisor of the Autism Spectrum Disorder Services. And
the following CFT Floyd Branch doctor Bridget Meyer, Michelle Farooq, Alison O'Connor, Dawn Firstburns, and Kashara Perry.
As you can tell, it takes a full village to do this work. Today we honor our students, families, educators, and service providers whose dedication brings the promise of idea to life every day. Their commitment not only strengthens our schools and
reflects our district's unwavering commitment to inclusion, equity, and opportunity for all learners. As we mark this milestone, we reaffirm our responsibility to uphold Ida's legacy. Even as
federal support is in jeopardy, we will always stand by our kids. We will continue to build school communities where every student is empowered to learn, grow, and thrive. Happy special
education day! As a formal recognition of M.C.P.S. commitment to excellence in special education, we would like to acknowledge everyone here and for all of those watching from home who make a difference. I also want to give
a special shout out to our advocates and parents who also support this effort, because we all come as a community to do this together. So thank you so
much. Okay. Thank you miles right here. 321. You guys look
over here. 321. Thank you. Congratulations. All right.
Well good afternoon I'm excited to continue our celebrations and even kind of continue. What Miss Stewart was just mentioning. My name is Natalie Zimmerman. And as a member of the M.C.P.S. board, I'm proud to join in recognizing Inclusive Schools Week
celebrated nationally from December 1st through fifth, 2025 and observed an M.C.P.S. from December 8th through 12th, 2025 with the theme Children First. M.C.P.S. has long been committed to providing a high quality, welcoming and
equitable education for every student, no matter their backgrounds, ability or identity, and I would like to welcome the representative of each of these departments and organizations. So when you hear that you are called, please come join us up here. And I would like to recognize Rock
Terrace School. M.C.P.S. Spring Mill field office. College gardens elementary school.
M.C.P.S. Office of Human Resources. And perhaps these both have a representative here, but I also have M.C.P.S. warehouse. And the Montgomery
County Animal Services and Adoption Center. During this week, we celebrate the dedication of our educators, support staff, specialists, and families who work tirelessly to ensure that every student has
access to a rich curriculum, individualized support, and a genuine sense of belonging. We also reaffirm our commitment to continuously strengthening our programs and services, from general education classrooms to specialized and adaptive learning environments so that all learners can thrive. We
commend the work already underway across our schools and encourage our entire M.c.p.s community, staff, families and partners to reflect on inclusion, share their experiences, and recommit to building a school system where every child is seen, supported and valued. Together, we will
continue to make M.c.p.s. A place where where inclusion isn't just a policy, but a promise. I would like to highlight the Department of Special Education's apprenticeship program with work based learning opportunities, which plays a vital role in preparing our students for life after school.
This program gives students the chance to gain meaningful, in-demand job skills while learning at least minimum wage, often paving the way to full time employment and continued skill development. These opportunities are transformative, helping our students build confidence, independence, and a sense of
purpose. Today, we extend our deepest gratitude to these partners and all others across the county who collaborate with us year round to provide work based learning experiences for our students. Your support makes our mission of true inclusion possible. Thank you for helping us create the
schools where every child can flourish, belong and know that they matter. Thank you. Yeah of
course, superintendent sweet.
Here. Yeah. One. Three. One. Two three. Got it. Thank you. Another one right here. Thank
you. Three. Two. One. Thank you. Congrats. Nice. Okay. Well
hello everyone I'm Brenda Wolff representing district five. And we are here today to celebrate our state football champions. Today we are here to celebrate
and recognize a team that didn't just cross the finish line. They spiked the ball, did a victory dance and lit up the scoreboard while doing it. Please give it up for our Maryland State for a champions who. They told me to do this.
The Quince Orchard Cougars. Come on down. Come on down. So.
The entire team got looking good. Yep. All right. Thank you.
All right, you come stand up here beside me with that. Yeah, yeah. Come on, come on, come on. Leading this championship operation, we've got the unbeatable trio. Doctor. Irina,
I just saw you. Hey, Irina Lagrange, principal of Quince Orchard, who keeps the school runn smoother than a two minute drill. Athletics director Jeff Ryvell, who makes sure every cougar has what they
need to succeed. And coach John Kelly, the man who apparently coaches football the way Beethoven wrote symphonies flawlessly, powerfully, and always with a dramatic finish. Now, about that game. On
December 5th, the Cougars took the field against Henry, a wise high school team, and said, Hope you brought your defense. You're going to need it. Four quarters later. With a 26 to 21 victory, the Cougars were once
again state champions. It wasn't just a win, it was a touchdown. And this wasn't just a season. This was an undefeated season, 14 to 0.
Back to state championships. In the last five years, the Cougars have earned four state titles. You want to know their total record 64 wins and only one loss. That's not dominance.
That's a dynasty with better stats than most video game teams. And let's talk about that 27 game streak win. At this point the Cougars haven't just been winning. They've been collecting victories like some
people collect coffee punch cards. This team treats the end zone like it's its home address. They show up, they deliver, and they sign the scoreboard on their way out. So today we honor not just champions, but a
team that makes touchdowns look inevitable and victory look routine to the players, coaches, and entire Cougar community. Congratulations on another season of grit, glory and greatness. Let's give it up one
more time for the state champion Quince Orchard Cougars. May your future be full of more touchdowns, long runs, big stops, and maybe just a few more trophies. Go show who. All
right, guys, I'm holding it. I had to hold it up straight. To see you. We love the sweatshirt on you. Very, very well. Well.
Yeah, I know, I'm sure. We're going to do a couple of pictures. Okay. Yeah, yeah,
yeah. And like big smile on. 43. 123. Got it. Okay. And now we're going to do another one I want number one okay. Let's go. Big smiles. 3122. Got it. And
we're going to do a social video to we're going to take touchdown at the count of three okay. You do I got. Make sure up above your head okay. Make
sure you're 321 touchdown. We're good with energy. All right. All right. Everyone on
this side. You're the winners. The champions 321 touchdown. Okay, stay so parents can get
their parents. Parents, I promise. Yep. Come down here.
You're shorter than they are. That much. All right. Great job
Cougars. Appreciate. Good job. Congratulations. Thank you. All right. Thank you everybody. This concludes our presentations for today. And we'll rejoin with our board and
our regular scheduled board
meeting at 4:00.
Oh that's so because they're making all that noise. Yeah. Okay. Here we go. Good afternoon. Good afternoon. We're ready to start. Thank you.
Good afternoon and welcome to the December 11th, 2025 board business meeting. Welcome to our board members, M.C.P.S. staff and members of our community who are joining us here today. And to those who
are watching this meeting via live stream, let us begin by standing for the Pledge of Allegiance. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands
one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Thank you. I will now ask board members to introduce themselves to establish a quorum, starting
with our student member. Good afternoon. Student member of the board. Good afternoon, Natalie Zimmerman representing district two. Good afternoon. Rita montoya, board member at large. Good afternoon, Julie Yang. District three. Good
afternoon. Buenas tardes. Carla Silvestre, school board member at large. Good afternoon. Laura Stewart, representing district four. And I'm Brenda Wolff, representing district five. Is there a motion to approve the
revised agenda? Motion? Second. There's a motion and a second. All in favor, raise your hand. And that is unanimous of those present. The next item on the agenda is association. Comments.
I would ask that is Kimber Kane here? Kimber I don't see her at this time. Okay, well, we will continue on. And if she comes in, we will come back. The next
item on the agenda is public comment. While the board encourages public input on policy programs and practices and will consider the comments received, it is not the board's practice during its public
meetings to respond to questions, provide comment or take action on these issues raised. This is a public meeting and the board expects the conduct of all speakers and members of the audience to be within the bounds of proper
etiquette. Inappropriate personal remarks, rude retorts, or other such behavior is out of order and will not be tolerated. Those who demonstrate disruptive or disrespectful behavior during public comment may be asked to
leave the room. In addition, public comment is not the proper avenue to address specific student or employee matters. Such matters should be directed through the complaint appeal process. Each speaker
has two minutes to deliver comments. When your name is called, press the flat button and speak clearly into the microphone. A yellow light and a single beep indicate you have 30s remaining. A red light and repeating beep signal. That
time has expired. Once you have finished speaking, press the same button to turn off the microphone. Following live testimony, audio and video testimony will be played. Copies of testimonies are posted with other materials on
board docs. So at this time I'm going to call the first six names Julia Fitzpatrick. Mahalia Hussein. And please forgive me if I mispronounce
your name. Lowell. DeWitt Dewey, Joanna Woessner and Debbie Metta and Monica Bassi. Julia.
Press the button. Yes. There you go. Hello, my name is Julia Fitzpatrick, and I'm grateful for this opportunity to speak tonight. I am a current fourth grader at Woodfield Elementary. I learned that Damascus could
be getting a new high school soon and I am very excited. I recently went on a tour of Damascus High School and I saw how old and unsafe it was when we were walking through the school. Some of the parts were a little bit scary and dark. The stairwells were really small and tight, and I don't
think a lot of kids could use them safely. At the same time, I also learned that during football games, some of the people announcing the game have to sit on the roof because the normal place they sit in is so unsafe. Plus, the bathrooms are really old and outdated. They also smelled weird. We did get
to see the automotive shop, and I hope that it will still be there when they rebuild our high school. A lot of problems we have with our high school could be fixed when we building a new school. I heard that we could go to a different high
school while ours is being rebuilt, and I think that is a great idea. Taking turns using Crown High School, which doesn't have any students yet, just makes sense to me. Older schools that are being rebuilt can send their students to to the Crown until their new school is ready. Why would we
not share Crown High School if that would keep kids safer during construction? I hope that everyone knows that keeping kids safe is the most important thing to remember. Damascus deserves to have a safe new school for their students at their in. Their students deserve to stay safe
during a rebuild. Please keep us safe at Crown High School while rebuilding Damascus. Thank you, thank you. Julia, Mahalia. Mahalia. Mihaela. Mihaela. Go ahead. Hello. My name is Mihaela and I'm nine years old. I want to talk about why having a holding school or
a hybrid school is not for good for kids like me, school is supposed to feel safe and steady when you keep moving kids around or split them between different buildings. It's confusing and stressful. It's really hard to learn when you're worried about making friends or what, where you're
going to be next year or even next month. Kids need stability so we can make friends, know our teachers, and not feel scared about big changes. We didn't even ask for. A holding school also breaks diversity. My school has kids from everywhere, and I love that I
learned from kids that are different from me, and it makes me feel like everyone belongs in this certain school. If you move kids far away and separate us, you take that away and it feels like you're breaking apart. Our school, family and in proximity matters too. When
students get moved to a holding school far away, it means really long bus rides, waking up earlier and being more tired in class. Some kids might not be able to join after school activities because their parents can't pick them up from
far away. It makes everything harder for families and takes away that kids should have time for homework, rest and just being kids. We already went through so much with Covid and other things and kids are still
catching up. Please don't move us again or take anything away. We need stability. We need to stay with our friends. We need to stay close to home. And we need schools that keep us together, not apart. Please don't make crown of holding school. Kids deserve better
than that. Thank you. Thank you. Good evening, board members and staff. My name is Leo DeWitt. I'm a sophomore at Northwood High School. Now, today, I'm not here to argue about one particular policy or decision. I'm here to talk about
something broader, yet just as important. That being process, trust and voice. For the past few years, especially with this past week, with the weather closures, the major decisions that affect students daily lives from safety, communication, weather closures and school wide policies have
too often felt like they were made about us rather than with us. Now, let me be clear. This is not about every whether every decision made was right or wrong. Because even when decisions are right, how they are made and how they are communicated still matters. When students don't understand the reasoning behind decisions,
uncertainty fills that gap. Rumors begin to spread, frustration and animosity builds, and that trust slowly erodes. And once that trust erodes, it becomes harder for students to buy into not just one policy, but the system as a whole. Student voices should not be symbolic. It should be
actively integrated into how decisions are made. That doesn't mean students run the system, necessarily, but it guarantees that students are constantly consulted, listened to, and acknowledged even soing as simple as clearly explaining the rationale behind a decision can make a difference, and that doesn't
weaken leadership in students. It strengthens it. When students feel heard, they're more willing to engage, cooperate, and have trust in the system that serves them. My hope is that moving forward, M.C.P.S. including you all, can continue to not just value student voice and principal, but integrate it into practice
so that trust is not something we do not have to keep trying to repair and maintain, but rather build on instead. Thank you for your time. Thank you, Joanna Woessner. Hello everyone! My name is Joanna Woessner and I am a Damascus cluster
coordinator. M.C.P.S. is a huge system. Every decision affects thousands of students. That scale sometimes drives parents to extreme measures to get your attention from taping their mouths shut, to starting GoFundMe campaigns or posting
on social media. But the board represents all students and all schools, not just the ones in the headlines. Every day in Damascus, building issues disrupt learning, yet rarely make the news or are brought to your attention. Classrooms
colder than outside temperatures. Inconsistent heat that needs to be managed in ten minute increments. Gas smell, evacuations, crumbling walls, fire systems so old that portions of them don't work, roof leaks and plumbing issues. M.C.P.S. has announced it is
now taking a data driven approach to make decisions. The data around using Crown as a holding school is clear. It is the safest, most practical solution for the most students. It expedites construction and ensures CIP funding goes
further so all students can learn in safe, equitable environments as quickly as possible. The time, money and headaches caused by hybrid or alternative holding school options are unnecessary. They don't make sense for the big
picture or for most students. The decisions you make, whether about boundaries, holding schools, regional programs, or the CIP need to be made with the best interest of the most students in mind, not to appease the loudest parents.
It's time for the board to stand firm and make decisions based on safety, equity and data, not media attention or outside pressure. That was the old way of doing things, and it brought us to the challenges we
face today. You have the opportunity to do better and be better for all students. I trust you will make the right decisions for our school community. Thank you, thank you. And next up we have Debbie
Mehta. Hello again. My name doesn't matter, but all of the fields, road, community and school behind us, they do. I'm the PTA president at Fred's, and I'm here to inform you of a diverse school and a diverse community as we are the number five most diverse school in
Maryland. First, we are here with one clear request. Please add Fields Road Elementary boundary to option H. Do this by creating an expanded permanent Crown High School option with us that reflects that. Crown High School belongs in Gaithersburg. By keeping us together, our diversity is our
strength. For Crown High School as a whole, Gaithersburg is the most diverse city in America, and Fields Road communities reflect that. This point matters because option H with us moves the needle positively in all four FAA factors. We all value. Moving towards better
equity requires us. Our strength is this options diversity. We bring it the racial and socioeconomic diversity of our 36% Hispanic and 19% African American population, plus a growing number of multiracial students. Our high farms rates and ML
rates support this. Adding us ensures that Crown becomes more racially and socioeconomically inclusive, reflecting our real population, not just in its most advantageous pockets. While we bring more equity to region four as a whole, Crown High School is literally on our road. The address for Crown
High School is 9410 Fields Road. We are the closest to Crown only 1.8 miles away. We can safely cross intersections to walk to Crown and to get to Crown High School. So it's the best for student safety and stability. And facility utilization is balanced in under 100%, even in the long
term. As Wootton's population continues to decline, we would still stay under the capacity and not even get close to the max capacity at the school. This is the best stable, stable utilization balance across all schools and even over time. So when you add Fields road to the
boundary to option H, let us know how you plan to schedule it or how you plan to put it as another option. So thank you very much for your time. Thank you. Miss Bassett. Good evening,
Doctor Taylor and members of the board. I'm here as a parent and resident of Gaithersburg who cares deeply about strong, sustainable and equitable schools. I want to start by being clear I support options A through D, but if they're off the table, I support option H
only if it is modified to include all of Fields Road Elementary School. Without Fields Road. Option H does not meet M.C.P.S. Far goals. With projected declining enrollment, there will be enough room at Crown High School under option H to absorb Fields Road and
include more of Gaithersburg, the city it sits in. As you consider the future of Crown High School, you have an opportunity to align with your FAA policies regarding geographic proximity. Fields road must be zoned for Crown High School. It's the closest feeder school I can see
downtown Crown from my house. Fields road has never been zoned for Gaithersburg High School for a reason. It takes most of our students over Interstate 270, which is unnecessary and unsafe. Fields road is also one of the most diverse schools in the region, bringing together students from
many cultures and socioeconomic backgrounds without bringing all of Fields Road into region four, Crown will fall short of the diversity goals set by you, the Board of Education. Moving Fields Road into the Crown boundary directly eases overcrowding at existing Gaithersburg high schools. This
minor boundary shift creates a more balanced and sustainable distribution of students, opening Crown as a permanent school directly supports the board's assignment. Stability goals. Students need consistent placements and predictable pathways. Crown should open strong, permanent and equitable,
and that requires including all of Fields Road in its boundary. To reiterate, Gaithersburg fully supports options A, B, C, and D, and we support option H only if it is modified to include Fields Road. Anything less undermines diversity, geographic logic, equity, and
student stability. Thank you for your time and for making a decision that reflects fairness and the long term future of our students. Thank you. Okay, I'm going to call up the next six people I see. We've been joined
by Kimber Kane. Kimber. Dana Riddell, Deborah D'Agostino, Jerry Joseph. Leonard,
Incognito, and Emily Gongshu. Is Emily. Oh, here you come. Hi.
Go ahead. Good afternoon, Superintendent Taylor. President Rivera, who is not here but is probably watching virtually if I know her and members of the board. It's a
pleasure to be with you here today. My name is Kimber Kane, and I currently serve my colleagues as the MCE treasurer. More importantly, I'm proud eld teacher at James Hubert Blake High School. Today, I want to speak to you on behalf of the
English Language Development, or Eld educators that we work with every day and the students that we work with every day. You won't be surprised that I'm going to start with the need to increase educator voice and involvement. One of M.c.p.s. Eld goals is to increase the number of classes that are
co-taught, but these need to be supported by thoughtful schedules that work for both students and educators. The data supporting co-teaching as the preferred model of English Multilingual Learner Instruction is based on information gathered from Texas
and Florida. These are places where general education is. The inclusion is the norm for Eld students. We would be wise to look deeper at this elementary level. Data for structural supports in those states, such
as comprehensive, ongoing Eld training for educators. It should also be noted that these same jurisdictions do see a decreasing success rate at the secondary level, with the co-teaching model. Co-teaching and co-planning involve two educators jointly planning,
delivering and assessing lessons to meet diverse student needs. Leveraging shared expertise for differentiated instruction, reduced student teacher ratios, and creating a positive, supportive environment. Co-planning focuses on goal setting,
strategy development, role definition, and material prep before instruction. Successful Co-planning ensures all students receive tailored support for their English proficiency level, leading to greater engagement and academic success. Co-teaching schedules
simply must give educators the time to plan together so that we can teach together. I'm assuming that's my time signal. Thank you, thank you, Dana Riddell. Hi. Good afternoon
everybody. I am an 11 year M.c.p.s. Employee in the special Education department, a mother, a resident of the reserve at Crown Point, a future PTA member and a representative of the Gaithersburg community. I respectfully request that the
board adopt either option A, B, C, D, or amend option H to include Fields Road Elementary School. This is the most sensible and frankly, the only option that aligns with M.c.p.s. Internal policies outlined in the FAA. In the proposed
options E through G. The original purpose behind building a $1.8 million facility is lost. Gaithersburg students continue to be zoned to over utilized schools and remain underserved. Gaithersburg High School is operating at about 90% utilization, and under the
current proposals, adding even a modest number of higher support needs. Students from Fields Road Elementary to a school that's already full of them further dilutes resources. This is particularly true in the in special education. And let me tell you, we're already
spread really thin in that area. Meanwhile, the new high school will have that has more space, will experience far less pressure. In this way. This imbalance will impact not only students, but also the students already zoned for Gaithersburg High School. Gaithersburg was
ranked the most diverse city in the country in a 2025 survey to assign Crown High School to any group of students other than the community that it was originally built for, sends a clear message of inequity. Gaithersburg schools have long been overlooked in terms of academic resources compared to
other M.C.P.S. clusters. The new school finally offered our city recognition opportunity and alignment with the economic growth happening in the biotech corridor right down the street. Please do not allow the underserved to remain underserved. Please choose option A, B, C, D, or amend
option H to include Fields Road Elementary School in zoned our students to their neighborhood high school, one that was literally built along Field Road. Thank you. Thank you. Next up is Deborah D'Agostino.
Hi. I'm here to propose that you modify option H to include the entire Fields Road Elementary School community at Crown High School. Instead of rezoning us to Gaithersburg. My family lives in Washingtonian Woods, a tight knit neighborhood in Gaithersburg. We have a freshman at show and
a sixth grader at the Humanities program at MLK. While plenty of my neighbors will be at every show game in their Cougar gear, regardless of where M.C.P.S. draws the lines, options A through D rezoned us to Crown, and we all thought they were reasonable. In stark contrast, the response
to F and G was that use of Crown High School as a holding school is unacceptable. There are certainly better properties for this purpose than a newly built, state of the art high school meant to be a neighborhood school. As for option H, I'll be candid. Our knee jerk reaction was something like how dare
M.C.P.S. give over the new crown to Wooten? Yet we see that option H solves two problems and under capacity, Wooten and Crown, and the cost of yet another needed renovation. If Wooten stays in place by adding fields road option H also immediately diversifies Crown High School
Doctor Taylor we don't envy the budget mess you inherited, but option H is a solution. We also quickly realized that fields, Road, Crown and Wooten really are already one community. When you leave Washingtonian Woods, you immediately encounter the Welcome to Rockville sign. Downtown Crown is within
walking distance, and the neighborhoods adjacent to ours, the woods at Muddy Branch and Wesley are zoned to Wooten. I recently attended a community meeting where a parent from Damascus said, it feels like we're being pitted against each other. Honestly, that seemed inevitable. But the proposed modification to option H
prompted the fields, Road, Crown and Wooten communities to collaborate on a solution. I can't promise yet that we're fully aligned, but we have a common goal creating an outstanding high school that truly reflects the best of Montgomery County by including the Fields Road community and
option H, M.C.P.S. could ensure that Crown High School becomes not just a new building, but one of the best and most diverse high schools in the country. M.C.P.S. is true crown jewel school. Thank you. Next
is Jerry Joseph. Good evening. Good evening. My name is Jerry Joseph. I'm a patent lawyer and a Gaithersburg resident. My child is one of the future M.c.p.s. High school students whose life will be shaped by the decision you make. I'm
speaking alongside many Fields Road families who support a modified option H and options A, B, C, D, and G that keeps Fields Road in the Crown High School articulation. When our neighborhoods were approved and homes were sold, the 2006 Crown
Farm Annexation Agreement X 182 stated that the developer agreed to donate this exact land exclusively for the construction of a public high school for Gaithersburg, and M.C.P.S. accepted this commitment. M.c.p.s. Has even publicly advertised and promised Crown as a new
facility to relieve overcrowding in the Gaithersburg cluster, which includes Fields Road Elementary. Family families like mine purchased our homes relying on that promise, reasonably believing our children would attend the new local high school. A modified option, H,
that adds Fields Road to the local zone would be an equitable and practical solution that addresses every single policy. FAA factor fields road sits less than a mile from Crown, closer than almost every area currently proposed. Utilization. As option H stands, Gaithersburg
High would still be at or above 100% in 2027. Crown would open at about 90%. Adding Fields Road would improve Crown to the mid 1990s. This would give Gaithersburg High the breathing room it deserves. Gaithersburg high has served our community
well for decades. Fields road brings the economic diversity the board has said is a top priority. We have a higher percentage of families on farms than most of the areas currently in option H. Adding fields, road costs nothing extra and delivers a fair, balanced and fully utilized
Crown High School the board wants to see. Please advise Superintendent Taylor to include Fields Road in the permanent Crown High School zone and to keep M.c.p.s commitment. Thank you. Thank
you. Leonard incognito. Good evening. My name is incognito and I'm a member of the Crown community in Gaithersburg. I'm speaking tonight because the Board of Education is now relying on two fundamentally different sets of data for the
same school project. One used to approve Crown High School and another used to justify repurposing it. These two narratives cannot both be true, and it is this contradiction that now requires your immediate oversight. In 2021,
Crown High School was approved at the county and state levels using data that showed severe overcrowding in Gaithersburg and Quince orchard clusters. Standard F MP projection methodology. Pipeline development included in the analysis, and a permanent need
for a permanent high school. It was the basis for the CIP, the IAC approval, the funding commitments and the public trust. But in 2025, M.C.P.S. presented an entirely different picture to the IAC using a
different method, a different regional grouping, and different assumptions that have not been released to the public. Suddenly, we are told that crowns capacity is no longer needed and that Crown can serve as a temporary holding school. M.C.P.S. has not realized, has
not released the full 2025 data set M.c.p.s. Has not explained the methodology change. M.c.p.s. Has not shown how the new members, how the new numbers align with the CIP, the F, M, P or the city approved developments and the City of Gaithersburg population data
correcting m.c.p.s. Own down county and aggregate data. Yet this board is being asked to treat the new data as equally reliable and to change the purpose of a $200 million project based on information the public cannot see. If M.c.p.s can change a
methodology after approval, then every school in the CIP is vulnerable to the same kind of retroactive reinterpretation. This is not sustainable planning and it is not transparent governance. We are not asking for special treatment here. We are asking
for one set of facts, one standard of data and one transparent process. Crown High School was approved using one methodology. It cannot be repurposed using another. Thank you for your attention. Thank you, Emily Gongshu. Good
evening everyone. My name is Emily Gwangju and I'm a parent and former humanitarian program development manager for USAID Implementing Partner. I'm here as a parent and a community member at Gaithersburg. Transplant of the New Yorker Diaspora. From since 2020, I have grown to cherish the community and my neighborhood,
and I am proud to live in one of the most racially, religiously, and socioeconomically diverse cities in America. I'm here to unequivocally oppose holding school plans for Crown High School, and insist that the community be kept whole. Like many former New Yorkers, my family has experienced displacement. My great great grandparents were Jewish and
Irish immigrants, grocery store owners, and court clerks. Within three generations, my family was priced out of the boroughs completely. Displacement has generational and impacts on individual and community access to resources, networks, and educational and employment opportunities. So
let me rapid fire tell you about my children's hometown. Gaithersburg consistently ranks in the top 3 to 5 most diverse cities in America. Significant portions of the Fields Road community are part of the Equity Emphasis area, meaning we have high concentrations of low income households and traditionally disadvantaged
racial and ethnic population groups. According to 2022 census data, median household incomes in our neighborhoods range from $44,000 per year, $90,000 per year, $118,000 per year to over $200,000 per year. We are the most
socioeconomically diverse elementary school community in Gaithersburg and in both zones four and five. Between 2016 and 2022, Fields Road saw a 40 to 80% increase in rental units, with the majority of our neighborhoods at 50 to 61%. Rental units. Recent national data shows that families like
mine stay in rental units longer, far longer than before, with median stays of 5 to 8 years. As a humanitarian with experience in whole community approaches and a resident of Montgomery County, I do not understand why the purportedly FAA RA compliant data, methodologies and analysis have
not been made public, especially when our community so clearly includes the populations intended to be protected by those very policies. If the original A to D options are no longer on the table, please consider accepting a modified option that includes the entirety of the current Fields Road catchment area. Thank you for
your time. Thank you. Next, I want to call up Shruti and and Aaron Uüoa and Joseph Galbo. Is
Joseph Galbo in here? I'm sorry, I not here. All right, well, then, hold on. Let me see. Do we have Kim? My lance milanowski here. Come on up.
All right. Emily, go ahead. Yeah. No, you can go ahead. Aaron. Well. Aaron. Emily. No, no, no, I you know what? I have Emily's name on my list first. That's what it is, but it
doesn't. Okay, you can go ahead. Good evening, and thank you for the opportunity to speak. My name is Aaron Ojala, a proud Gaithersburg native and the PTA vice president at Fields Road. I'm here tonight to urge you to adopt a modified option H that includes and protects the Fields Road community at a
permanent Crown High School, not a temporary holding school. If equity, diversity and stability are truly guiding this process, then Fields Road is part of the solution. And I want to be clear our school cannot be split up. Fields road is a vibrant, unified community,
and our children deserve to stay together until options E through F are introduced were introduced. We were always a part of the sorry G were introduced. We were always part of the Crown plan. If Quince Orchard is no longer an option, then Fields Road must feed into Crown. Giving up the show
legacy has already been painful, but we embrace the opportunity for something new, new traditions, new friendships and a high school that reflects Gaithersburg future. Crown cannot be reduced to a holding school. It should grow and flourish as a permanent high school for Gaithersburg students, and Fields Road must
be a part of it, including Fields road strengthens every FAA factor, especially equity. Option H only reaches its full equity impact with our community. We bring the racial, cultural, and socioeconomic diversity that truly reflects Gaithersburg, not just its most advantaged pockets. And
geographically, the fit is undeniable. Crown High School is on Fields Road. We are the closest elementary school. Meanwhile, Gaithersburg High School requires that we cross 270 with no safe pedestrian access when it comes to safety, proximity, and community connection. Crown is our
natural home. Tonight, we also stand in solidarity with our Crown Community neighbors. If modified option H is going to be considered, we ask that it be formally added so our families can confidently support it. We cannot stand behind an option that doesn't include or protect us. Field road represents the heart and
diversity of Gaithersburg. Please keep us whole. Please keep us together and please include us in modified option H. Thank you, thank you. Shruti and good afternoon. My name is
Shruti. Anand and I have two children in Montgomery County Public Schools. I support the school boundary study options A, B, C and D. Like others who have spoken before me, the reason I'm reaching out is respectfully request that Fields Road Elementary be included in a modified option H
to ensure equitable and inclusive environment to kids who reside adjacent to Crown. As spoken before me, Fields Road Elementary is incredibly diverse community with highly supportive families located close proximity of 1.5 to less than a mile away from Crown
High School. We want to contribute to the strong foundation being built at Crown and help advance its core objectives, which is fostering lifelong learning, strengthening community connections and nurturing a deep sense of belonging for all students. Our schools events regularly draw hundreds of families demonstrating the
strength and unity of our community. We organize annual celebrations for Black History Month and National Hispanic Heritage Month, but our most popular event is Heritage Night, a celebration of our school's rich diversity. Last year's event featured a talent show and over 20 cultural tables with food, music and dance.
These events are more than celebrations. They are immersive, student centered experiences that teach cultural appreciation and pride. These are the values we hope every child will carry with them into middle school and beyond. I am deeply concerned that moving students to a farther away
school, requiring them to cross a major traffic artery, would break down the strong sense of community we have built for years to come. Many hard working parents in fields work multiple jobs and lack transportation. Increased distance would make it significantly harder for them to attend school events and
support their children. It is so heartbreaking to imagine parents having to tell their children they cannot participate in an important school moment, because a new school is too far away. Integrating our students who are already in close proximity will improve the student demographic metric that the boundary study is being
evaluated against, but also allowed the Gaithersburg community to continue to be active members. Please consider modifying option H to include Fields Road. Thank you. Kim.
Hello, my name is Kim and yes. Hello, my name is Kim, a member of the Fields Road community and a parent of two special ed kids. Doctor Taylor, we want to acknowledge you and say we see the impossible situation you are in. Many of us did read the
CIP and our jaws did drop. It's not good and we don't envy your position. It's very clear that many communities are going to need to make some sacrifices, and we do accept that. If that means eliminating options A through D that they're no
longer best financially for M.c.p.s. Okay, we understand, but that leaves us with no equitable option within the new options E through H, unless H is modified to include fields. Road to the board. Tonight we stand before you acutely aware that on the surface, we do
represent the more privileged members of our community. This observation isn't unfair. It is our our present reality. But this image does not show the history of the depths of our hearts. Most of us here tonight presenting and who've been
involved in the the strategy here, we grew up poor or working class at best. We're the immigrants or the children of immigrants. My own grandmother was that non-speaking English cleaning lady, and my grandmother worked three jobs. My dad was a 13 year old kid who showed up in school one day, not knowing a
word of English. We know that we are better off today because of the sacrifices our parents made in the name of getting a good education. We also know the barriers. We know how much harder and frankly, how much more unfair the path is for children who do not start off from a place of privilege. The
most vulnerable Fields Road community were not overlooked or forgotten in our proposal for a modified H, it was quite the opposite. We challenged each other hard during our meetings to make sure that we were honoring the needs of the families, not in the room they were with. They were us and our parents. The necessary sacrifices within M.c.p.s
shouldn't have an unfair burden on the most vulnerable kids, the farms, ML and special ed kids when there is a much more equitable solution right next door to them. Under the current option, H Gaithersburg High School would have a 49.5% farms and 28.5% ML, keeping them flat.
When the brand new shiny Crown High School would have only a 14.8% farms and 3.3% ML rates. Thank you. We have your we have your testimony. Thank you. At this. At this time we have. Six
video testimonies. M.C.P.S. Please play the first video. Thank you Doctor Taylor and members of the Board of Education. My name is Andrew M Snyder and I am a sophomore at Damascus High School. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to speak and for considering
Damascus for the renovation we urgently need. I want to share what daily life in our building actually looks like. First off, the temperature control is completely inconsistent. I walk into one classroom that feels humid and uncomfortable and the next feels freezing. Sometimes
like 30 degrees. Many thermostats don't work anymore, so teachers have no control. Even walking into the building in the morning, one vent blows hot air while the next blows cold. This has contributed to serious mold issues throughout the school. I see mold in corners, on ceiling tiles, and
even exposed when tiles are taken down. This is a health risk for every student, including young children, in our child development program and special needs students who spend nearly seven hours a day here. Our fire alarms are also unreliable. There have been
multiple drills where alarms didn't go off or malfunctioned. Mid drill. That is a major safety hazard. The water system is failing too. We can't use the second floor science lab sinks because they leak and flood to a classroom below. This makes it difficult to complete required labs in
biology and chemistry. Pest issues are constant. Roaches. Large ones are found in hallways, stairwells, and classrooms. One even fell from a ceiling tile in a biology classroom. Recently, other bugs have crawled on students without them noticing. The bathrooms are extremely old, often closed due to plumbing
problems, and frequently experience overflows. These conditions make students feel unsafe, uncomfortable, and forgotten. Damascus is a regularly described. Damascus is regularly described as old, crumbling and disgusting, and sadly, that description is
accurate. I care about my school. I want it to be a safe, healthy place for everyone here now and for all the students who will come after us. Thank you for listening with open minds and for considering the renovation Damascus High School desperately needs. Thank you.
Next up is other Bur Shaw. Please play the video. Hi, my name is Olivia Shaw and I am an 11 year old fifth grade student at Clearspring Elementary School in Damascus. Future Hornets class of 2033. Thank you for listening to me today.
I'm here because I'm really worried about going to a school that's old and unsafe for my health, and I'm worried that Damascus all the way at the top of the county keeps getting forgotten. I have severe allergies. For me, mold isn't
just something that smells bad. It can make it hard for me to breathe. Damascus High School already has water and moisture problems, which means mold, and the EPA says mold makes allergies and asthma worse and
can hurt kids lungs. But what scares me even more is the idea of going to school while the school is being rebuilt around us, the EPA says construction creates dust particles and chemical fumes that are unsafe
for kids. Our lungs are still developing, so these things can cause long term health problems. That's why Crown is so important. A holding school keeps students away from all that danger. If Damascus loses crown as a holding school, kids
like me will be stuck learning in hazardous environment and that just doesn't feel safe. Damascus is at the very top of Montgomery County. Sometimes it feels like we're out of sight and forgotten, but we deserve
the same safe schools at every other community that is demanding one. Our health shouldn't be an afterthought. So I'm asking you, please keep the Damascus High School rebuild on schedule, and please
keep the Crown as our holding school. We shouldn't have to risk our health just to go to class. Thank you for listening. This decision affects my health, my future, and my community. Next up is Ashley Vespoli.
Please play the video. Doctor Taylor and members of the board, thank you for the opportunity to speak on behalf of county students. Doctor Taylor, thank you for daring to be bold, for asking tough questions, and for trying to steer M.C.P.S. away from mistakes of the past. I'm Ashley Vespoli, a proud mother
of a second and fourth grader in Damascus. I've had the opportunity to attend many board meetings and community meetings, and I've learned a lot. Our schools are in rough shape, especially Damascus. People are jockeying to be first in line for limited resources to allow equitable, safe learning environments for
their kids. Construction spend has been flat for 17 years. Don't worry. I intend to advocate to the county council to increase the debt ceiling to try and stop the hemorrhaging for our crumbling school infrastructure. Doctor Taylor and his team have gathered real data and tried to make data
informed decisions. And I ask you to trust that data. That data says Rebuild Damascus. Now. Keep them in the CIP. Up county is only growing. People cannot afford to live down county, and many spend hours commuting to DC and Virginia like myself.
Doctor Taylor also made another logical recommendation use Crown as a holding school. With the data that we have today deteriorating and crumbling school conditions, declining school enrollment, and Crown's close proximity to other
schools in need, I ask you, would you make the decision to build Crown High School today? Would you make the decision to allocate scarce funding to a state of the art high school in Crown today? I think the data driven answer is no. And so I
ask you to make the tough decision. Many will not be happy, but make the tough decision to allow for more equitable allocation of those resources to allow us to timely and safely rebuild schools like Damascus and keep our kids out of an active construction
environment. I'm not asking for state of the art. I'm asking to send my kids to a school where they can breathe the air. Next up is Shayna moskowitz. Please play the video. Good evening. My name is Shayna moskowitz and I am the mother of a second
grader at Fields Road Elementary School. I am here to request that option H be modified to include the entire Fields Road community articulating us to Crown High School. This is the most equitable of the new options, as it reduces the already high farms rates at Gaithersburg
High School and adjusts the Low farms rates of the current version h upwards, more in line with the community that is intended to serve. I grew up in Brockton, Massachusetts, a city that was diverse in every way possible, and I was committed
to providing the same diverse experience to my child, but also to finding a place where she could have stronger educational opportunities than I did. That is why my husband and I decided to purchase our forever home in Washingtonian Woods. Fields road is
Gaithersburg. Our school reflects the full cultural, economic, and ethnic diversity of the city. We are proud of that diversity and we want our daughter to continue to grow in a high school environment that reflects that as well. The newly released options E through H would root our
neighborhood to a high school. That does not reflect the reasons we chose to live where we do. Community continuity and stability among them. It effectively isolates our neighborhood from the broader feeder community we expected, undermining the community based rationale for rezoning. And I
want to be clear, it is simply not fair for Fields Road students to be left out of Crown High School, a brand new school built to serve the very communities surrounding it. For these reasons, I urge the Board of Education and Superintendent
Taylor to consider a new option not yet formally under consideration. Specifically, if options A through D are no longer viable, I ask for you to support the plan that modifies option H to incorporate Fields Road Elementary School's feeder
path. Thank you for your time. Next up is Janet Reemsnyder. Please play the video. Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to speak to you this evening. My name is Janet Reemsnyder, a mom of four and deeply invested in all three schools that my children attend
within the county. I recognize the constraints and the demands within the CIP budget. My focus remains on changed. I want to see Damascus High School rebuilt and the needs of schools addressed across the county. I also support the use of Crown as a holding school.
I'm deeply troubled by the condition of our buildings and equally, if not more, troubled by the rhetoric that has emerged in the name of advocacy. I'm speaking to everyone when I say this. Can we please remember that we are talking about children when adults boo, or when words like privileged,
invading, stealing or entitled are hurled across communities, we lose sight of the students whom this process is supposed to serve. At this point, you don't need another recitation of statistics. My daughter's testimony reflects what it means to go to a high school that should have been renovated
a long time ago. Here's what I ask of the board. Do not cower under exterior pressure. Media narratives, GoFundMe campaigns, and news articles do what is fiscally responsible, safe, and genuinely in the best interest of the students you are sworn to represent. Of course, I want
to see the needs of my own community addressed, but even more than that, I want all MCPs students to learn and thrive in healthy environments. When the Damascus High School rebuild moves forward, I firmly believe a holding school is the best option. Not out of preference or privilege, but out of
concern for our students safety. Given the age of our building and the footprint it occupies. Demolition and construction with students on site pose real risks to their immediate and long term health. The scientific evidence and data is clear. Using a holding school
during a major renovation makes sense. The Damascus High School community is aligned with the board's recommendation to use Crown as that holding school. Thank you so much for your time and making decisions centered on student safety, equity, and responsible stewardship of public resources. Thank you so
much. Great. Okay. Our final testimony comes from Steve Brandon. Please play the video. My name is Steve Brandon, and I am writing to you as a parent of two special education students in the Fields Road community, I urge you to formally adopt a modified option H that includes fields
roads within its boundary within options E through H. This is the only fair and equitable scenario for special ed students who require stability and appropriate resources to access the curriculum. We have children with diverse needs. One is
severely dyslexic and currently attends the magnet program at Roberto Clemente, while the other child is autistic and attends the Ridgeview Connections program. We accept that social connections may shift due to pending magnet and program changes. Our primary
concern is ensuring consistent access to the curriculum and stable learning environment. The current alternative alternative alternative proposals E through H present significant challenges. The instability inherent to the holding school options, and
specifically the options that feed into Gaithersburg High School place unnecessary mental and academic stress on students with special needs, overcrowding and stretched resources within a school facility can create an environment where the students struggle to access the support they need to succeed
academically. Gaithersburg High School is already facing capacity and resource challenges, which would be further strained by adding the Fields Road community with its own significant resource needs. We believe that a modified option, H, offers a path towards a sustainable solution.
By including the Fields Road community in option H, we can better balance the enrollment and resources. It reduces the strain on the resources at Gaithersburg High School, and brings Crown High School up to a more fair resource. Responsibility a balanced high
school environment, free from overcrowding and resource constraints is crucial for all students, especially the most vulnerable. We support the adoption of a modified option H, to promote an equitable and stable future for all students in the community. Thank you for
your time. Okay. This concludes public comment. The board's next meeting to receive public comment is Thursday, January the 8th. Due to the winter holidays, online signups will
open on Monday, December 29th at 6 p.m. In addition to online signups, same day in-person signups are permitted when space allows, with unallocated slots filled on a first come,
first serve basis. In-person sign ups will close 15 minutes before the start of the open session. Additional information can be found on the board's website. At this time, I'm going to ask my fellow board members if they have any comments. If you do, please
turn on your light. I see Natalie. Go ahead. Thank you. I want to thank everyone for coming out today, making your public comments and being here and supporting. I also want to especially thank our students for coming up here and being
brave and speaking up and sharing your opinions. I would like to make a request of administration as well, and I would like to see our data tables with information like demographics and utilization for option H of the Crown
Damascus Boundary Study, where we include Fields Road Elementary School into Crown High School. Thank you. Miss Maloof. I also want to commend everyone for coming out today, and I want to especially
highlight the students testimony on snow days and closures. I want to clarify for students and community members that the Board of Education does not make decisions regarding snow closures or dela I dealt with a fair share of that over the weekend, so I just wanted to put that out there. Secondly, I would
also like to urge our superintendent, Doctor Taylor, to maintain transparency when addressing these concerns. Over the past week, hundreds of students shared thoughtful testimonies and photos with me, and it was incredibly valuable to see their lived experiences. These these decisions are never easy and I appreciate the care
that goes into them. I look forward to the many snow days ahead, and I hope to see them approached with both transparency and student well-being in mind. As always, thank you. Miss Montoya. Thank you so much. And thank you,
everyone for being here. Whether you testified sent in a video, we've gotten very a lot of messages about various items that are in front of the school board and the administration this past few weeks. So I just really appreciate everyone using your voice, whether you agree with each other, disagree or agree with us, disagree. The
point is that we can have these conversations and that is valuable. Just as a point of procedural clarification. And this is actually a question whether it's for my staff or the administration in terms of Miss Zimmerman's request, I believe in policy, FAA there's
actually language to that. And I just pulled it up. So I don't have the pinpoint citation in front of me, but about kind of the procedure for producing additional options. And so I think there is kind of a formalized procedure. And if you can give me one moment,
Doctor Taylor, before you respond. And so I'm not sure that that the request that the way it was made meets that yet. But again, there is a procedure. And I guess my question also in regards to that is are we do we
need to request a new one, given that what Miss Zimmerman requested was previously produced as an as an option? And we do have that information, though it wasn't produced as a public option, I just it
muddles the procedure a bit. So I might get some assistance from Miss Maguire to chime in to. But yes, you're right in terms of like the the procedure and whatnot and where we go from here, this is a process
that is done in chapters and we've introduced some options, we've introduced more options and we've even introduced options. On top of that, we can take the feedback that we're receiving today and that we've received via email and
incorporate that into final recommendations. And that's kind of where we are at this point, because we we are kind of rubbing up against that that timeline as well. And, and that that's very valid. So in terms of data and and presenting
information, what we have and what we base off of in terms of utilization is available online and available as part of our capital improvements program and boundary study options. So school utilization as well as
demographics by school is available and should be available, if I'm not mistaken. So I think I think that those things are already out there to that extent. But we can package that how the board wants to see it. Right. But I guess what I'm talking about is the actual
with Fields Road included into that. Right. So that may be incorporated into final recommendation, but probably not a new option where we would where we would go through a whole new process of of seeking another round of feedback,
because there could be endless suggestions for new options at this point. And I guess just because and I guess I just want to say because the community has brought this to me, then that puts them in a challenging space, because then when they try to give the survey feedback, they're asked to basically commit to an option, but
there's no option for them, that community to commit to because we don't have that. And given that, go ahead, go ahead. Mr. So I think a couple of things. One, as Doctor Taylor said, the next step really is to bring forward recommendations to the board. And of course, the board, keep
in mind, will have hearings and further work sessions on those options, so there will be continued public process. Also, the survey is one mechanism, but the survey there are also we have drop boxes where people can provide information. So we're receiving the
communication and feedback about the about other variables to the options in more ways than just voting for one of the options. People could say, I like this option, but have this other information. So there are multiple ways to provide more nuanced feedback. And we are
receiving those. And again, as Doctor Taylor said, absolutely can and are incorporating those into that final recommendation, at which point then the board will again have its own process to receive public feedback and make its own determinations.
But the policy does provide for the board to request an additional map option. That would typically be during the board's deliberation process following the superintendent's recommendation, so that so that request would then come in that
sequence of time. Typically. Thank you. Next up, Miss Yang. Thank you. Thank you everyone for coming in. We are dealing with complex issues and they are very important in impact our students. So I truly
appreciate you all coming in. Doctor Taylor, one of the things that we presented data to is with our new set of enrollment data and projection, can we make that accessible for
the public please. So it actually is accessible and it is public data. We actually get projections from our county planning department. We actually do not generate that information. We collect that from our county planning department. And actually we've
got members of our county planning who are clearly watching this meeting via text messages to to folks in the audience who are obviously also paying attention as well, to my knowledge. And again, I wasn't
here in 2021, but there isn't a change in methodology, there's a change in actual enrollment. And so when we projected enrollment and that enrollment is not what the the actual enrollment is not actually what is projected, there's a gap. Sometimes that gap shows that
we are actually growing faster than we project. And sometimes that gap shows that we are actually declining enrollment for a very long time. Montgomery County, 40 years, it seems, has been growing year over year over year. That growth appears to have stopped
in 2019 and started to go in a different direction. And so our actual enrollment has not matched our projected enrollment. As a matter of fact, in the last budget cycle, we projected an increased enrollment. We did not increase enrollment. As a matter of fact, we had an actual enrollment
that was much lower than our projected increase. So we'd love to get get that information right. We'd love to be in sync with that. But we're grateful to our county partners in planning that, that help us with that, because we are not
the experts, and we want to make sure that we get closer to that number in the future. If I'm a community member and sitting in front of a computer, where do I go to get to that data? So the our CIP is a
wealth of information and the the projections are there in a variety of different formats. They're there by school. They're also there for the six year aggregate, broken down by grade level and by grouping. So I would encourage people to look at appendix A in the CIP.
That will show again, this is part of the the evolution over time of our projections. The CIP that was just issued in the fall has that information for the current school year and the projections based on the current enrollment. If you go
to last year's book, you can see again what we were projecting last year, and that archive can be looked at for each subsequent year or previous, rather. Okay, I'm going to need to move on because just in the interest of time, can we make that a little
bit user friendly? We do get that appendix in the whole book. You know, I go through each clusters. Maybe they can be a data table to do the, the some, you know, and that you can be at a glance. That would be way
more helpful. We can look at pulling that information out. Thank you, Miss Silvestre. I'm going to use my my time just to have miss McGuire kind of reiterate what she answered in terms of Miss Montoya's
question. So the if the suggestion that's being proposed here of a modified option H, if you're listening to that input and then what might what might be the process going forward. So the process
is just this. When we issue options, it is not for a vote or a selection but to collect feedback. So the whole point of issuing options in the boundary process is not so that we can say, oh, I like this option, or
I like that option, but to identify features in each of those options that help us to build a map and help us to build a final recommendation, it's all part of a feedback process. So the next step in the process is that we will
build a map for the board as a recommendation, and that recommendation will bring forward, and the board will deliberate over that recommendation. And you may say, gosh, I really liked this one feature. And option B, can we please take a look at it? Or
gosh, I really liked this option in option three. Can you take a look at that and then find a way to incorporate that. And then we may have some back and forth during work sessions that the board is considering for. For boundary, what you may
want to change in the final version and what you may want to look like, what what you want the final map to look like. But it will come from a recommendation from here. And we're taking data from each of the options and from what people say in survey responses and things that they like to
build that final recommendation. So the input, it's really valuable. The feedback is really valuable because it does help us formulate yet another version of this that that will come before the board for deliberation and back and forth
and a lot of public comment to remind us when that comes before the board for believe it's the first part of February, if I'm not mistaken. Okay. Thank you, Miss Stewart. Thanks for all the advocacy out there.
We're listening and we will be evaluating the options. I would like to thank Lowell DeWitt for elevating the need for to build trust in our process, just in
general. And so I believe what he was asking for us was to kind of show our work a little bit and give explanations as to why we make some of our decisions. And I think it's always good to have that bit of
education as we go through our different decision making process. So thank you for elevating that. And I do think that is something we strive for. And sometimes maybe we can even do a little better describing, you know, why we come to a decision point. So I just
wanted to thank him for elevating that. And I do find that it builds more trust in the system. If we kind of explain the why just in general. And I also wanted to thank Kimber Cain for elevating some
strategies we can use for and ML teaching and learning. And I want to continue that conversation with our partners. So thank you very much. Thank you. I want to thank everybody
for coming today. And we do hear you. And we are going to be putting out more information. Be sure to look for our public meetings. It's great seeing you have a wonderful holiday season.
Thank you. Next up we're up to item number seven. Are there any consent items that board members would like to pull? Miss Silvestre 7.3, please.
7.33. That's what I thought you said. Any others? Seeing? No others. Can I get a motion and a second to approve? Item 7.1 through 7.2 and 7.4 through
7.32. Move to approve. Second. All in favor, raise your hand. And that is unanimous of those present. We are pulling item 7.3 for clarification. Go ahead, Miss Silvestri. Miss Wolff,
this item deals with higher education institutions and I just have to abstain for it because of my workplace. Okay. I'm trying to give them a minute or so to come to just
give them a minute. Well. Give them a minute.
Okay. Can I get a motion and a second to move? Item 7.3. Move to approve. Second. All in favor, raise your hand. That is Miss Stewart. Miss Yang, miss Montoya, miss
Montoya, Miss Zimmerman, Miss Malu and Miss Wolff. Any abstentions? Miss Silvestre. Okay. All right, madam President, before you move on to the next item, it is my
pleasure to make an announcement of some of the wonderful things that the board approved in its consent agenda. Recently, we've been making an effort to recognize more and celebrate more that is going on
in our school system. And so we'd like to elevate that. The board adopted several resolutions in its consent agenda tonight. The first one was a resolution recognizing January 2026 as Muslim American
Heritage Month, recognizing the rich cultural and historical contributions of Muslim Americans to our nation and community. So we'll be celebrating that in January. On January 24th, 2026 is the International Day of Education.
This observance is our shared belief that education is a fundamental human right and a public good one that builds peace, prosperity, and the opportunities for all. And then finally, we also just had the board adopt two resolutions
recognizing and honoring Dymond Elementary School and Wilson Williams Elementary School, earning the prestigious honor of being the first Montgomery County schools to be named Maryland Blue Ribbon Schools of Excellence. For those of you
who don't know, the Federal Blue Ribbon Program has been retired by the federal government, and so Maryland has done the right thing and stepped up and created their own blue ribbon program. And the first blue ribbon schools are Dymond Elementary School.
Diamond Elementary School and Wilson Williams. So let's give them a round of applause. So congratulations. So we will celebrate all three of these resolutions in person with individual recognitions and celebrations next month in
January. The board adopts them in advance so that we can have the celebration before the next board meeting. Thank you so much. Thank you. Next, we're up to item number eight. The next
item on this agenda is action to approve the 2627 school year. Initial information on the development of these calendars was presented to the Policy Management Committee on September 16th, and to the full
board on October 16th, following a public comment period. Draft options were then presented to the Policy Management Committee on November 17th and to the full board on November 20th. The committee and the board
expressed interest in preparing a final recommendation that considered the major elements of draft scenario C and the final drafts are included with today's materials. Are there any further comments the
administration would like to offer regarding this item? Thank you, Madam Vice President. We don't have any further comments to offer. We do have Miss Malchiodi if the board has questions, but we're also
delighted just to read the resolved for the board's consideration at this time. Resolved, that the Board of Education approved the proposed 2026 2027 traditional and innovative school calendars and contingency plan for Montgomery County Public Schools. Is there
a motion and a second motion? Second, is there any discussion? Seeing none. All in favor, raise your hand. And that is unanimous of those present. Thank you. Have a calendar.
Next up is item 8.2 resolution process. For consideration of the closure of Silver Spring International Middle School. Doctor Taylor. Thank you, Madam
Vice President. We have prepared a pretty aggressive engagement process for the board's consideration this evening. And, you know, we we don't really have a
presentation that aligns with this at this time, although I know that the board will likely want to ask some questions or or offer us something else instead. But we we certainly would like to offer this in
lieu of policy guidance at this time, which we we don't have. Could you read the resolves? Certainly. Resolved, that the Board of Education approves the condensed schedule and process developed by the Superintendent of Schools for making decisions on proposed closure of Silver
Spring International Middle School and will identify a minimum of two public hearing dates in January of 2026. Is there a motion and a second motion? Seeing no second the
resolution fails. So? So at this time, I'd like to say that we have a lot of important decisions in front of us this year. There are a number of structural and institutional adjustments we will be making. And because of that, we need to
be intentional about timing and communication. We don't have enough time for community engagement prior to our decision on boundaries. We understand that because words like closure and consolidation, they're not familiar to our
community and have not been for generations. They will need to be understood in the context of the realities we face. We acknowledge that perhaps the most consequential CIP decision for community is school closure. There's not a school community
in the country that welcomes the discussion about closure, but it's very likely that those are the conversations that we're going to have ahead of us by including the question of closing Silver Spring International Middle School into our upcoming elementary school boundary study, we will
have both a more holistic view of necessary school closures and the impact of elementary boundary changes. For these reasons, I believe that this first conversation about Silver Spring International Middle
School needs to have space for people to provide input, understand the needs of the system, and engages one community in this process. Therefore, I'd like to offer the following that the board directs the superintendent to
suspend the process of considering the recommended closure of Silver Spring International Middle School and incorporate any decision regarding its potential closure into the anticipated Elementary Boundary School study and any
resulting closure or consolidation process. Is there a second to this motion? Our second. Now it's time for discussion. Let's see. I will
start with Anova. I would just like to say obviously this is a very close to home issue attending Blair High School currently. So in addition to all of our local concerns, we know that the state intends to make significant changes next year to the middle school
schedule. Those changes will impact programing, having more specific information about those changes and their impact would allow for more fruitful, constructive and comprehensive conversation about school closures and consolidations that M.C.P.S. may need to consider. Thank you, Miss
Zimmermann. I see your light. Yes, as board members, ensuring strong fiscal stewardship and efficient use of community resources are two critically important responsibilities, and I believe the superintendent's recommendation is consistent
with those responsibilities. But that said, we must balance the need for authentic community engagement with our fiscal oversight role. The current time frame in which this decision would need to be made would not allow for the level of community engagement that our community expects and
deserves. We are lucky to have such an engaged community, which may mean that we need to create more space for their voice. Thank you. Thank you, Miss Yang. Thank you, Doctor Taylor. I think we understand a
lot of reasons behind the suggestions proposal, but both coma FFA require robust community engagement and but the proposed January schedule is very compressed. And also it's during a holiday period
and also lack time for stakeholders to understand the implications. And we do have an elementary school boundary study coming up. And so for meaningful engagement cannot be
rushed. And as we as a system do deal with declining enrollment, I do want us to really look at policy FAA and
then also look at metrics that as a system, we can we can develop and effectively communicate with our community, such as metrics on. Enrollment
projections and equity impact and metrics on transportation displacement and articulation models, so that when we suggest school closures, we kind of
have a very a disciplined process for our community. Thank you for dealing with this changing time in our school system. Miss Silvestre. Yes.
Thank you. I, I'm in support of this resolution. Miss Wolff, I think that. You know, we have a lot of work to do in the coming years if in fact, our enrollment continues to decrease, which is the trend. Since the pandemic, our
enrollment has been flat. I've said it many times that it has been largely kept up by international admissions. But now that international admissions has declined, we're starting to see a more obvious decline, which again was held up by international admissions.
So people think the trend is new, like this year is the first time. But actually if you don't, if you don't take into consideration international admissions, the trend has been going down for since the the pandemic. The schools reopened. So this will give us more time
to, you know, to continue to monitor those trends. And also in the context of our elementary boundary study, if the trend continues, there will be more consolidation of schools and more closure of schools. And so I think it makes sense to give our
community more time to look at the data and have these difficult conversations, prepare a process that will be fair and will engage everyone involved, and then do it all together with the elementary boundary analysis and and
subsequent consolidations and closures, if that is necessary. And yes, so there is just simply not enough time for us to have a good community engaged process. I think the board is committed to having a good community engagement process. And this time, the the
expedited timeline would not have allowed us to do that. So echo my colleagues comments and just wanted to say those things. Thank you. Thank you, Miss Stewart. I associate myself with my colleague's remarks. I
in the original resolution, we talked about having to have a condensed period of time to have this conversation. And I think that if we have an opportunity to have a more robust engagement effort, I would like to take advantage of
that opportunity. And I do believe the elementary school boundary study will give us a chance to look at our enrollment, our trends as a whole and make those hard
decisions. I also wanted to make sure that through the process, there was an opportunity for our very creative community to bring in other ideas. And ultimately, maybe this was the best option
and we will have to come and revisit that. But I don't think we have all the ideas on the table for us to at least take a look. And I wanted to have that opportunity. And I think a a
longer time for that engagement will give us more of that opportunity. And I just want to appreciate I do appreciate the the amount of work that this took, because actually caused us to have a bunch of other maps, and I do appreciate having that look. So thank you
for starting the conversation, and I'm sure that we will actually finish that conversation just a little bit longer. Lead time to have the final decision. So thank you. Thank you. Seeing no other
lights we have a motion and a second on the floor. All in favor raise your hand. And that is unanimous of everyone present. Thank you. Next up is item 8.3 Technical Amendments
policy E a. Julie. Thank you. I'm going to turn this over to you because these are technical amendments that were developed in the policy committee. Thank you. Vice president Wolff. On
November 17th, 2025, the Policy Management Committee reviewed a set of recommended technical amendments to policy E. These updates are straightforward but important. They ensure that our sustainability policy remains
fully aligned with current Maryland law. I want to thank staff for their careful work in keeping our policy accurate and compliant. I will now ask staff to briefly highlight these
technical amendments. Thank you. First introduce yourself. My name is Sally Davis. I am the Supervisor of Policy and Regulations in the Division of Legal Services. So starting with policy E. The Maryland law
that required us to update the policy in 2022 also required that we update specific data in the policy every three years. That is a little unusual for our policies. It is in a
footnote on page two. So let me take you to that. I beg your pardon. Page three. So. We needed to update the. The
language on. The inclusion of current and historical data on the schools districts energy use by square foot. That is why you see updates about energy use intensity that has had a
decline over those years. We had to make a note about those years during Covid, when there were significant facility shutdowns. So that did impact the trend line. So if there are no further questions, I'm ready
for your discussion. Seeing none. So Vice President Wolff, because these are technical amendments, the proposed changes are not sent for public comment and can can be adopted
by the board today. So as the Policy Management Committee chair, I move that the board approved the technical amendments to policy E. All right. Do I? I don't need a
second. I don't need a second. All in favor, raise your hand. And that is everyone that is present. Thank you. Next up we have policy IEA, Miss Yang. Yes.
Thank you. At the same meeting on November 17th, 2025, the committee reviewed technical amendments to policy IEA. These updates help bring the policy into alignment with several more recently adopted board policies, ensuring ensuring
that our foundational early childhood and elementary framework stays consistent, clear and cohesive. I appreciate staff's diligence in helping us maintain a clean and up to date policy portfolio. Now, I'll ask Sally once again
to highlight the proposed technical amendments. Thank you, Miss Yang. So I want to draw your attention to four policies that have been updated in recent years. Let me just give you a little context for IEA.
It was substantially redeveloped in 2007 and then updated again in 2018. And you will recall that proposed amendments can be proposed when it is needed to bring a policy into alignment with more
recently enacted policies. And that's what we're doing today. You will notice updates on page four to reference policy j g a, which was updated by the board in 2022. Again on that same
page policy I o d which was updated by the board in 2024. Policy a B on page nine was amended by the board in 2023, and policy A B on page nine was
updated by the board in 2023. If you would like me to spell out the the topics of all those regulations, I'm happy to do that. Otherwise, I am ready for your discussion. Vice president Wolff, because these are
technical amendments. The proposed changes are not sent for public comment and can be adopted by the board today. So, as the chair of the Policy Management Committee, I move that the board approve the technical amendment to policy.
IEA with the motion of the chair on the committee's recommendation, no second is required. Is is there any further discussion? All in favor, raise your hand. And that is unanimous of those present. Thank you. Next up we have item 8.5 board Committee
assignments. I don't know that I have to read them all because I think we've shared them with you, but I can say that Miss Montoya will become the chair of the Committee on Special
Populations. Miss Rivera-Oven and Miss Stewart will also join her on that committee. Fiscal management. Miss Silvestre will be the chair. Miss Yang and Miss Zimmerman will be on that committee. Policy management.
The chair will be myself, and I'll be joined by Miss Yang, Miss Zimmerman and Miss Malu. Strategic planning. The chair will be Miss Stewart and she will be joined by Miss Montoya and myself and the Advisory Committee on Communication and
Community Engagement will be headed. The board's representation will be. Miss Zimmerman. Thank you. I think we need a motion and a second on that move to approve. Second, any discussion? All in favor,
raise your hand. And that is unanimous of those present. Thank you. Next up. Yeah. 8.6 Calendar of Major events for the election of the 49th
student member of the Board of Education. We've grown rather fond of this one. She's pretty great, but tis the season for us to start looking at a calendar of events for trying
to fill her empty seat on July 1st of 2026. So I'm happy to bring forward this memo for the board's consideration. Resolved, that the Board of Education approve the calendar of major events for the election of the 49th student member of the Board of Education, as proposed
by the Montgomery County region of the Maryland Association of Student Councils. Thank you, Doctor Taylor. Miss Maloo, each year, the Montgomery County Special Elections Committee manages and oversees the election process, and our approval of the calendar
ensures a fair, transparent, and well-organized election process. Approving this calendar would support strong student engagement, provide consistency across schools, continues our long standing partnership with student leaders that I am incredibly fond of, and ensures the
election process is clear and transparent. So even though you're so quick to see me go. Do I have a son? I want to move to approve this. Okay, do I
have a second? Do we have to? Okay. Second. Reluctantly. Is there any discussion? Okay, we have a motion. And a second. All in favor, raise your hand. And that is unanimous of those present. Thank you. Next up we
have item 9.1 overview of student attendance. I'm going to turn it over to Doctor Taylor. Thank you, Madam Vice President. Today we present an overvi of student attendance, reinforcing that attendance is essential for student learning
and our system wide recovery. While overall attenda remains strong, quarter one data shows that chronic absenteeism remains a significant barrier to student learning and post-pandemic recovery. The report highlights areas of concern that that are
persistent disparities in targeted high schools and clusters, and specific demographic groups that we're going to highlight for you today. Our next steps include the immediate implementation of a coordinated early intervention and support strategies to address barriers
to attendance and to remove student engagement. We have a team that is here today, Mr. Steven Neff, who is our Director of Pupil Personnel Services and Attendance Services, as well as Doctor Margaret Cage, who is our chief of Specialized Student Support
Services. Doctor Peter Moran, our chief of schools are here today to walk you through some interesting information and to point out some holes that we have that will be bringing forward for some larger community discussions this year on how we might improve our
attendance regulations and policies. Thank you, Doctor Moran. All right. Good evening. I'm going to turn it over to Mr. Neff to get us get us going. Doctor cage. I'm sorry. Pass. Pass it around. That's okay.
Good afternoon everyone. Madam Vice president, members of the board, Doctor Taylor and staff, we truly appreciate this opportunity to provide an update on our student attendance through the first quarter of this year. You will
hear, as Doctor Taylor has said, and what has been in place and what continues to be in place, what our data tells us about how we're doing and where there is room for growth. Also, you will hear our plans to continue
how we're going to address these dynamic challenges. So without further ado, I will hand it over to Mr. Steve Neff. Thank you very much. Right at the last minute, Doctor Kesha
Addison is joining us, and she is going to go on with the next slide. Good afternoon. My apologies. So we want to start by framing the change. Clearly, chronic absenteeism remains one of the most significant hurdles in our post-pandemic recovery
efforts. And this is not just an M.C.P.S. issue but a national challenge. And so if students aren't in the building, we know that even the best instruction is ineffective. And so the most recent data from the first quarter of this school year are showing
elevated levels of concerns in some areas, and this is particularly pronounced in some of our high school clusters. And the data that we share with you, and among certain demographic characteristics, which we will detail later in this presentation. But the good news is we are not waiting. As
a district, we have implemented, we have implemented coordinated early intervention strategies. And this is not new work to us. Our focus is on and has been on identifying the specific barriers, whether they are health, transportation, mental
wellness or lack of engagement and delivering targeted supports. Next slide please. So before we get into the detail for this presentation, we want to start with this slide that allows for clarifying this important distinction between
attendance and chronic absenteeism, as these metrics can sometimes be a bit confusing. So our long standing goal for optimal student success is greater than 95%. Student attendance. This metric is calculated by dividing total
days attended by total days enrolled, and so it gives a snapshot of average daily attendance. And so if I were enrolled 100 days and attended 95 days, my attendance rate would be 95%. Chronic absenteeism, on the other hand,
is the more critical metric for identifying students at risk for not being successful academically. And so it is defined as a student missing 10% or more of school days. So for a full academic 180 school,
180 day school year, this equates to about 18 or more days missed. And so using my previous example, if I if I was enrolled 100 days and attended 80 days, I would be identified as chronically absent as I missed 20% of the school days.
So chronic absenteeism is a student level metric that pinpoints which students are missing school, regardless of whether their absences are excused or unexcused. This is where our intervention efforts are focused. Our focus is on chronic absenteeism because it
pinpoints the students who are missing instruction and impacts their academic success. Next slide please. To intervene effectively, we must first understand the why chronic absenteeism is highly complex
and rarely due to a single cause. We see significant drivers and physical health, such as managing chronic conditions or acute illness, and increasingly mental health issues such as anxiety and school avoidance. There are
also factors like engagement and school climate that may impact student attendance. If a student does not feel safe, seen or engaged, they are less likely to attend. This points to the need for positive, welcoming school environment, which we'll hear a little bit
more about later in our next presentation. Spoiler alert. And so family circumstances are often the most challenging to address for us, including things such as housing instability, transportation issues, caregiver health, or economic pressures that require older students to work. The
complexity necessitates a personalized, multi-tiered approach, matching the intervention to the specific root cause. Next slide. So before we detail our intervention strategies and approaches, it is crucial to clarify the legal landscape and
the limitations we face in enforcing attendance. Maryland law places the responsibility for ensuring student attendance squarely on the parents or guardians, and allows for legal enforcement if necessary. However, we must acknowledge
the limitations of this legal framework using an approach that is not supportive and understanding of the drivers and accounting that are contributing factors shared on the previous slide rarely results in improved attendance
outcomes. It is generally ineffective to focus on legal enforcement approach as a primary tool. Therefore, our strategy is rooted not in enforcement but in support and partnership. We focus our efforts on removing barriers and building stronger home
school connections, as this has proven to be the most effective intervention. Given the urgency and the complex nature of attendance, we have made significant changes as a district to how we monitor and report this data to you as the
Board of Education. Our goal with this provision of monthly reporting is to ensure you have transparent, timely, and actionable data for understanding student well-being and academic attendance. And our monthly memo. We are committed to providing disaggregated data by
student group so that you, as the board, can clearly see where our gaps exist and monitor to monitor the impact of targeted resource allocation. Next slide please. And now that we've set the context with our
legal limitations and reporting enhancements, let's drill down into the data and clarify the distinction between our overall attendance rate and absences. And we want to emphasize that the vast majority of our students attend school regularly, keeping our overall
average daily attendance rate pretty strong. However, the number of absent students is sometimes masked by that high average, and there are students who are most vulnerable to falling behind. Our instructional programs and investments cannot impact a
student who is not in the classroom, and so therefore, focusing resources on decreasing chronic absenteeism is the most critical way to improve our academic achievement and graduation rates. Next slide please. Okay.
And now I will turn it over to Doctor Moran. That's all right. Good evening everyone. Peter Moran chief of schools. So as we look at quarter one attendance, the overall message that we want to deliver is stability. District wide
M.c.p.s. Is holding steady, as Doctor Addison said at a attendance rate of approximately 990 4.7, which is just a couple of tenths below what our goal is of 95% and also aligns to where we were
last year. However, as she shared, we are seeing emerging trends that require urgent, targeted support. We're seeing declines in some specific high school clusters, particularly Einstein and Gaithersburg, where patterns of chronic absenteeism are beginning to
concentrate proactively in the summer and responsively during the school year. Our central office and school teams have collaborated to focus supports on our students that are on the cusp of chronic absenteeism. We found that home visits can be a very impactful intervention,
and have really worked hard to align our supports and ensure that they're not duplicative between our peoples, our family engagement specialists, our social workers, and ensuring that our wraparound services are targeted and aligned. The patterns we're seeing with
disparities by student groups signal the need for for those differentiated, cluster based interventions and not a one size fits all approach, which we are committed to. As you can see in this more detailed breakdown of attendance across the district, you will notice that our elementary and middle schools are meeting or
exceeding the 95% benchmark, which is consistent with our goals. Where we see the greatest challenge is at the high school level, where attendance is currently at 93%. While this may appear to be a small numerical difference, the impact is significant as high school absenteeism is strongly
correlated with course failure and reduced post-secondary success. These trends affirm why our work is focused not only on reporting attendance, but on aligning tiered support to ensure that students remain engaged and connected. And I do want to note that as of quarter
one, our attendance is 1.87% better than it was at this time last year. So overall, we are in a in a better spot. If we go to the next slide, please. Thank you, Mr. Neff. All right. So as we monitor quarter one data, we continue to see the
disparities with student groups. Hispanic and Latino students are currently at 93%. And we are seeing patterns among multilingual learners, students receiving farms and students receiving special education services. This data point underscores why universal
approach will not be sufficient. Each of these groups experience different barriers, as cited by Doctor Addison, whether related to language, transportation, family responsibilities, academic recovery, or access to services. We need to know what this barrier is through the
relationships and connections that we have with our students and with our families. We also know from research in our own climate data that students attend school when they feel welcomed, connected, and that they truly belong in their school community. Strengthening
belonging is a core attendance strategy. This is why our work around goal three of our strategic plan is centered on explicit efforts to build positive school climate, ensuring students have trusting relationships with adults, access to supportive peers, and culturally responsive
environments where their identities are valued. Before I hand the rest of the presentation over to Mr. Neff, our Director of Student Support and Attendance Services, I want to note that the next presentation this evening, our strategic plan in quarter one progress update, directly builds on the themes we
discussed. Attendance, engagement and belonging are central drivers of our system's progress, and you'll see these connections carried forward in the strategic plan metrics. Hand it over to you, Mr. Neff. Thank you, Doctor Moran. As this slide indicates, there is no single strategy that will move our student attendance in
the right direction. It must include a full continuum which includes attendance, promotion and awareness campaigns, positive school climate and attendance incentives, real time parent notifications, early intervention data monitoring and data driven
approaches, attendance teams, robust community partnerships, root cause analysis, and individualized support plans which could include home visits and other forms of family outreach. In addition to
outreach and interventions, it's important to think about the structures and supports that set the conditions for improved student attendance. I will not read these to you, but the more of these that are effectively in place in schools and in classrooms, the more
likely parents are to send their children to school regularly, and the more likely that older students will choose to attend school and all of their classes. Our chronic absenteeism data dashboard has been a game changer because it
continues to allow schools and central offices to see a real time data and trends. Cross-functional team members, including pupil personnel workers, have taken leadership roles in all schools to make sure that attendance data monitoring process is
implemented on an at least a monthly basis. Student well-being teams continue to be in place in schools to determine the root causes of the most stubborn attendance cases, because we know that interventions have the best opportunity to yield results if
they are matched with a identified root. Causes. All hands on deck are needed within M.c.p.s and with our community partners to remove barriers that families face for attendance. Now, I'll turn it over to the board and Doctor
Taylor for discussion. Thank you. At this time, I'll start with Miss Stewart. Thank you. You mentioned a couple clusters that are hotspots, and we have been received a couple of the
monthly reports for attendance, and I spent some time reviewing the last one. And it's it's a lot of data here. And it's not organized in a way that's really easy for me to see the
clusters. Sure it is. The from November 20th board meeting, the end of October, attendance data, and I just, you know, quickly look through here and could see that there's some
outliers at the high school level. There's some areas where we have especially multilingual learners that aren't meeting the goals that we want to see. I guess my my question is, what can you describe some of the
specific interventions you're doing using this data? And is there a way that maybe we could see some of this in particular so we can see those trends? I know you mentioned them, but we we actually don't see the
numbers in front of us. I guess it's two different questions. No, I mean, those are great questions. So I mentioned the chronic absenteeism data dashboard. And what that allows schools to do is what you're not able to do in the report
you have, which is really kind of dig in and dig deep. So if I am a high school that is looking at their attendance data, they can look at each of their four grade levels to see if there is a grade level. That is perhaps dragging the numbers down and in need of intervention. They can look at
their ethnic groups and they can look at their service groups. So they have an opportunity to look at the groups. And then within the groups they have a chance, an opportunity to look at the individual student names who make up those groups. I would say one of the strategies that
schools are probably using more so this year than they have in the past, is they're looking at students on the cusp of chronic absenteeism. So students who may be just at 10%, just over 10%, or just under 10%, and they're looking at ways to
conduct outreach to the students at the high school level and their parents, and then with the parents, at students at the younger levels. And a lot of it is it is just awareness. Did you know? Because sometimes the number of days their child is absent can
get away from parents. So and research shows that if you ask a parent, how many days has your child missed this school year, their answer will be wrong by about 50%. So if I said that to a parent and they said to me, I think they've missed about six days this
school year, chances are it's more around 10 or 12. And so one of the things that we are trying to do as a strategy is just to build early, positive and encouraging awareness, doctor Addison mentioned. We're we're staying away from anything sort of threatening or punitive, and we're really just
trying to raise awareness of are you aware? And then if you have barriers, please communicate them to us and see what we can do to try to address them. One issue that has come up is the the actions
by our federal government making certain communities afraid, afraid to bring their kids to school if they hear that there are certain federal agencies in the community, they
might not come in or. Yeah, it's just it's it seems to be a barrier. I've seen some communities step up and actually welcome students. We have a couple schools that that
has been happening. I would you know, we should probably look to see if we have some better attendance rates at this schools where families feel very supported. So I would like to see if we could learn anything from that. How are we supporting our our
international families so they feel okay making sure that their kids are coming to a safe space? Thank you. Could I add to that real quick, Miss Wolff? Yeah, sure. So so just two things, Miss Stewart, that I
wanted to share. I think that the the data and not seeing a significant drop in attendance speaks to our schools being safe havens for children, and that our parents trust our ols and are getting their children to school. So I think there's there's been a lot of
collaboration between some, you know, some school communities, as you pointed out, but really all school communities in general. So I take that as a really positive sign about that, that partnership between our communities and the school. And then the second part, I just wanted to share with you around
the the strategies is, is there's the first is that I mean, Doctor Taylor has made it very clear for us that we need to know our data. Right. So we're monitoring data in a much more strategic and intense way than we have in previous years. And that's not only reporting
out to the board, but that data we receive weekly. Mr. Neff is is a fantastic partner because he highlights changes in attendance that take place week to week for directors to get out and really investigate and determine what what the cause of attendance change is. The second piece is, and I'll use
Gaithersburg as an example, is we've brought clusters together because attendance, what you'll notice with attendance is it's really a comprehensive K through 12 issue. We focus on high school with the data. But what you find out when you look at a, at a, at a, let's say a
sibling is if a student at Gaithersburg High School is chronically absent, it is common that their brother or sister at Forest Oak is chronically absent. So what we've done in that particular situation, and I kind of alluded to this in my comments, is we brought everyone together. Mr. Neff, of course, included
the people that work with that cluster, the community school liaisons that work with that cluster, the family engagement specialist with that cluster, and created an action plan so that we're not duplicating services and stepping all over each other, but really targeting on specific families,
having a relationship with one person, as opposed to five different people coming at you talking about the issues that you're having with with getting your child to school or and we've also, you know, we put out letters this year to as a strategy, of course, which is a traditional strategy, but
picking up the phone or doing a home visit or going out to a community and being present really is a is the strategy in terms of relationships that changes, right? The written word and sending a letter to someone is not going to motivate them, or they're not
going to be responsive to a very formal letter in terms of a strategy. So I just I just wanted to highlight a couple of, of those things. Thank you. And I look forward to having this conversation later to see what strategies really worked. And so we can learn from that. Thank you. Thank you, Miss Yang.
Yes. Thank you. So I am very interested in learning the year over year trend for special education, multilingual learners and our farms students,
their attendance. And as I'm looking at the data now, I believe we received the data from last year. But if you can put them side by side, it's always very helpful. So for us to see the trend and if I
remember correctly, at the end of the last year, our multilingual learners attendance rate is in the higher 70s. It's in the 70s right now. The first quarter is showing that 88.9%. So is it is
higher for us so far quarter one. So let's keep it this way. Keep it this way okay. And but I want to know for your tier two, tier three support. How do
you know it's working or if it's not working. And do you know why. You know I you know you mentioned about breaking the silo, have one point of contact to working with the family. Do we have a system
understanding whether these strategies are working and if it is not working in particular school or cluster? Do we know why? So the way we know it's working is when individual
families that we intervene with the children in those families improve their attendance rate. That's that's a pretty obvious answer so far. Right, exactly. And then then it's a matter of sustaining that, I think where those successes are made is
when we've built relationship enough, someone on the school staff has built relationship enough with the parents where they can just honestly tell us what the barriers are, because when we sort of throw an attendance intervention at a
situation and it's not based on what we know, or at least we think we know about the reason behind it, it's much less likely to work. So I mentioned like root cause analysis, every every student and family that has an attendance issue has a
story, and it's usually unique from any other family. And our hope, our aim is that there's at least one staff member in the building that knows that story and can communicate that to the well-being team and the rest of the school staff. And so if it is a food insecurity
issue or if it is a, you know, safety in the community issue, or if it's something academic related or any number of things, a specific intervention and outreach can be done to try to address that, to improve things. So so we really know that our
that our strategies are working at the tier two, two and three level. If students, individual students improve our attendance and overall if our chronic absenteeism is moving in the right direction, then we can think about that more globally. I appreciate that, I'm just
wondering, you know, for, for for the cases that are not working right. I would like us to keep thinking about what other things we can do. And,
and so that we, we, we because we can celebrate a lot of successes. But then and we should, we should. And I'm very pleased to see these numbers and hope this trend continues. But if there are cases that are
not working, then we need to understand is the support we deploy sufficient and how do we know or what else can we do now? On another note, we track student attendance. Do we track
adult attendance? Course. So I can I can speak to that. So and I know that's that's been an interest. So currently right now our staff attendance across the system is at about 94%. So we are tracking that. We are
also correlating that with student attendance and with, of course, academic achievement and its impact on school culture and climate. So that is a data point that we this year have have really started to to dig into. So but great question.
Yeah. And there is a lot of things to correlate in terms of and I think going back to Mr. Neff's point, I mean, one of the things that gets a student to school is they want to see a person, right? I mean, that's at the end of the day, it's about the relationship that you
have with an adult. Yes, they come to see their friends. But one of the things that we've also learned by looking at high school attendance is you'll often see students that come for first and second period. They might leave for three periods, but then they'll end up coming back for fifth or sixth period. So trying to uncover exactly what the
rationale for that is on a case by case basis. And lo and behold, what it is, is they have a relationship with that fifth or sixth period teacher that makes them want to come back to school and see them. So that person being there, right, and being in attendance and not
chronically absent themselves is so critical to the students attendance. I'm not surprised. Right. We know that the student attendance correlate with their academic understanding and sometimes achievement level, and then the adults attendance
will impact relationships in the classroom. But I also say when we deploy tier one, tier two, tier three support to the students, we also need to think about our staffs. So what what are some supports we can deploy
for our staff so that we can boost their attendance in in our buildings. So thank you. I just want to follow up on Miss Yang's question, and I think we're probably asking the same
thing, but I want to know what kind of training and support we provide to our school based staff. I mean, on slide 12, you talk about them having the data dashboard. I mean, it's one thing to have the data, but you have to know what to do with
the data and how to to deal with the students. So what kind of training and support are we providing? We we don't. And that's actually a huge role that a hole that we need to fill. Is that the operational knowledge of the the teacher
and the staff members in the school, even our security assistants, needs to be enhanced significantly beyond the principal's office and the assistant principal and maybe a few members of the the instructional leadership team. There's there's a gap in
general knowledge beyond that. Okay. Thank you, Miss Silvestre. Thank you. I wanted to ask. Any intersect between grading
policy and attendance that may be helping. First of all, congratulations that the number attendance is up this quarter is a good, good thing. We can't do our work, our magic. If you can't work your magic, if we don't have the students in the building. So attend. The
grading policy said that I guess quarter two was more important than in previous years, so you had to be there to get a good grade. So I guess we don't we don't we're not really seeing that yet. I mean, you know, I think there's definitely a correlation
between the new grading policy and increased attendance because we've increased the rigor. And if you're not present in class, you know, it's going to be more difficult for you to to pass the course. Whereas in previous school years, you could m the class
multiple times as much and then submit the work at the end of the quarter and the teacher would essentially accept it. And that's not the way that we're operating any further. But I would love to come back and take a look at the the quarter two data with you and see what the implications have
been on the grading policy in regards to that report last year. Great. And I know that I've always advocated for our community schools. They provide so many wraparound supports. So I hope they're part of the equation, because one of the outcomes that I want to see out
of community schools is that they're helping with attendance, because all these wraparound supports should help the family and the student get there so that they can be in school and learning. Yeah. And I think the essential piece of that is what I, what I shared earlier, right, is that you have overlying
responsibilities in some positions. And what can happen sometimes is, is an adverse impact. If you have multiple people that are reaching out to families in different ways, or possibly providing mixed communication on some things. So really ensuring that people know their role and
responsibility in that area, from community school liaison, PA, you know, family engagement specialists, whoever reached out to the family and making sure that we're very aligned and clear on responsibilities. And I know that we started the school year with kind of
setting high expectations for our students, right? Making clear the code of conduct and what is expected. But how do families know that, y know that your child childt I shouldo
school, and that's what I followed. So, you know, high expectations. So just wondering how parents are informed of what is expected in terms of sending kids to school. So we kind of ruined that in the pandemic. And I'm going to
start a sentence and I'm going to let you finish it when you're sick. Stay home. We told children and families that that when you're sick, stay home. And before that it was, are you throwing up? Do you have a
fever? How high is your fever? And we we are now in that in-between gray zone of am I ultra sensitive to every health ailment, or are we sending children to school that that
may have a headache or, you know, minor health ailments? And so I don't think we have a clear message in terms of communication of what our value proposition is for, you know, when your kid is not feeling
100%, you know, are they feeling 80% or are they feeling 20%? You know, there's a big difference. And I think that there's work for us to do in doing a better job of communication. You asked a really, really important question, and I think it's going to drive a lot of
conversation as we go into the spring. We had really rich and robust conversation about the code of conduct last year, about grading regulations and changes that might occur. And about two years ago, the board started talking about its attendance policy and
attendance regulations. And then it kind of died down. And this might be a good time to resurrect that conversation and to to say, you know, what is our message to parents? And,
you know, what are the the, for lack of a better term, consequences, whether they be positive or negative for attending school? And how do we communicate that better than how we've done that in the past? Because I think we've, if anything, sent some mixed messages and we probably need
to be crystal clear about what the expectations are, why the expectations are in place, and what the value is in following through with those expectations. So for us, I think I see that as the really significant work
ahead. Thank you, Miss Montoya. Thank you. I just wanted to make a couple of quick points and then ask about something. I know sometimes when we get data presentations, whatever the topics are, sometimes it will say farms, which for the
community is free and reduced meals. Sometimes it will say economically disadvantaged. I know those are two different things in terms of the methodology and the computation. And so I'm just wondering, is it possible for us to pick one or because it just gets really confusing when we're trying to
look at trends for certain populations or designations. And it just it creates challenges to really understand what's going on sometimes. So maybe it's not and that's okay. But maybe we can kind of note like the difference or something so that the community is just aware of exactly what population are we talking about
here. Yes, I appreciate that recommendation. The main time that we present economically disadvantaged is through the state presentation of data, particularly for our Maryland report card, because that's the
way they give it to us. So we do not have the indicator of farms there. But typically in traditionally as a district, we will produce produce free and reduced price meals system services. So we can definitely make a point to. And I guess I'm just wondering if the state
requires us to report in certain ways. And this is probably a bigger conversation. We can have another day, but maybe it doesn't make sense to try to get an alignment so that when we're looking at the whole picture for a certain population, whether we're talking about attendance, academics, disciplinary support
services, whatnot, we have no real way to do that. If sometimes a student might be in this group, sometimes they might be called this or that, but then maybe this. They meet farms, but not economically disadvantaged, etc. and I can't even imagine. For the community, this all just probably sounds like a bunch of garbled
information, right? So just, you know, the point being that if we're required to do it a certain way in some spaces, you know, maybe we can at least explore whether it makes sense to keep that consistency. That's all. And then for regarding slide four, you have drivers and contributing
factors. And I know we talk a lot about in a lot of our topics engaging with the family, finding supports and things like that. But I want to know why we are not talking more about children who are afraid to go to school because they
are being bullied, or they don't feel safe, whether it's emotionally, physically, I think especially when we're talking about sometimes in our elementary and middle school levels. And perhaps this is a topic to be talked to, look into and then to talk about another day. But I don't feel
like we pay enough attention to that as a driving factor, and especially for some children who may have sustained a lot of that in elementary school, the way that that then shows up in high school when maybe mom's not dropping you off at school anymore, you have to get there yourself. And if you can get
there yourself and you've had such a bad experience, what is the motivating factor to get there? Right. So I just I, you know, when we talk about school safety and Doctor Taylor unfortunately had to step out. I just want us to start really thinking about the ways that families and children don't feel safe in their school
spaces, and how that contributes to things like chronic absenteeism, health and wellness, grades, mental health, all of that. And then my question is in all of this wonderful information, because it is and I really appreciate it. One thing that I don't see
here, which I was a little surprised, is any reference to the State's Attorney's Office for Montgomery County's truancy prevention program. Now, I was fortunate enough to go to their graduation last year. It's an amazing program. There were so many children and families. The
parents were just so proud of their kids. The kids were so proud of themselves. I know that they have about 20 something middle schools. There was even high schools that heard the program did so well that they reached out to say, hey, can we participate? We have lots of mentors in the community, including former
board member Mike Durso. Lots. There was lots of M.C.P.S. staff there. It was just such a wonderful environment and they can see the progress that the kids are making and what an impact it is, and also what a great connection to have with the State's Attorney's office in a way that is not punitive.
It is not scary, it is not intimidating, but it's a way to provide support for the community. So I'm just wondering that plays in and if we need to increase, perhaps to our high schools, because that's where we're seeing some of the trouble spots. So you're correct, it was not
specifically listed out, but it was, I guess, implied in a couple of different slides where I mentioned they are one of our strong, strong community partners that support our attendance efforts. And State's attorney, state's Attorney John McCarthy, has been at the
program with the truancy prevention program from from the beginning as of I. And we've really seen it grow into many schools. And you're right that that graduation event is wonderful. There are so many there are so many students and families that that event that
probably don't have as many opportunities to have their children be celebrated and recognized. So it really is pretty special. So know we we work very closely with the State's Attorney's office to continue to identify schools that have an interest in that
program. You're right. You know, Northwood was the first high school early adopter. And then Seneca Valley picked up last school year. The and I'm sure there is a capacity issue with the model, you know, in terms of who they have to provide
support in schools. But the model in and of itself is one that that can be replicated in some ways, because it really is about regular check ins with positive encouragement and just lower level incentives. You know, it's not anything earth
shattering, but it's just recognizing improvement. You know, knowing that there's someone you're going to be accountable to, not in a negative way, but accountable to week to week. So those are things that, you know, even if even if we can't have the truancy prevention program in every single secondary school
or every single school, there are things that we can think about. How do we reproduce that in our schools? Right, exactly. Just to replicate some of those practices. And to your point, Mr. Neff, I know that they are always eager for mentors and volunteers. So if anyone in the community is interested, please do contact the State's Attorney's office. Rebecca
marcolini is the contact. Thank you. Mr. Zimmerman. Thank you. And I wanted to first commend the families of our elementary and middle school students. They are often getting themselves to school, not able
to do that independently. So great to see that they are, you know, meeting our our metrics. I also had a similar question to Miss Silvestris about how we're communicating which absences are excused and not excused. Definitely. Seeing that in the classroom, I'd love
to see some greater communication on that subject with our community. I also want to talk about student well-being teams. They're a key element in that individualized approach that you were talking about to absenteeism. And as someone that has been in a
school and had their kids brought up at those meetings, I wasn't able to join those meetings and attend those meetings, helped talk about my students, helped talk about the approaches that we could take, because I was teaching my whole classroom full of kids, my
encouragement is to think about how we could include our homeroom teachers in these and include them more, because I think that could be a really key element in helping to understand our students. Oftentimes, that's who spends the majority of the day with them. So for them to be able to continue that connection could
be really helpful. I also have a more general question because I, I didn't really see it yet. Can you talk about how tardies fit into chronic absenteeism? So from a data standpoint, they literally don't factor in. So
in the past. Many years ago, three tardies would equal an absence, but that's been gone for a while. So in terms of the chronic absenteeism or the daily attendance rate data, tardies are not factored in, it doesn't mean that they're not,
you know, looked at at the school level and addressed with parents again, in an encouraging way, because the bottom line is that is also missed instruction and missed opportunities for for social engagement. So you don't see it in the data, but you do. You
would see it in the discussion about student needs and interventions and outreach. Yeah, I think it could be also a data point to dig in deeper on as we talked about like morning meetings being a strategy and what's used. And if that students consistently late to school, then they are going to miss that connection
point. And we're then they're continuing to be absent. I just think it might be something worth digging into deeper. Thank you, Miss Malu. Oh, go ahead, respond. You want to respond? Do you want to respond at all? I was going to say I agree, okay? I didn't think it
really required anything. Thank you, Miss Malu. I also wanted to say thank you for all of your work. I most of my questions got answered, so I just have a comment which might help. So for the tier one whole school supports that encourage student engagement. From my own experience being in Student
Government Association, we ran into a lot of issues with student spirit at my own schools throughout the last 12 years, and a big thing that we did was we encouraged class competitions and celebrations, creating that tradition in a positive environment. If I could just recommend in the
future, maybe offering up to schools to celebrate a class with high attendance that may help with the students wanting to go to that school more often. I agree, and I just wanted to say one thing, because you all approved the comprehensive calendar for next school year.
That's especially important in the two days before Thanksgiving. I've seen a lot of schools create strategy where they'll have like a raffle throughout the day, pulling students names who are there, or grade level competitions because those are some of our more challenging
attendance days. It is going to be one because we're going to move on. Go ahead. I just have a data request that in our effort to monitor student attendance, can the board get
subgroup attendance, maybe at a more frequent like a monthly kind of or we do have a it is it is attendance report. There is a monthly attendance report. And by subgroup I miss it this
time. Yeah. Thank you I appreciate that. But I just want to tack on to what Miss Yang was saying. The monthly attendance report doesn't include chronic absenteeism, right? No it doesn't. I was wondering if we could get chronic absenteeism reported
also in disaggregated the same way. Thank you, Miss Wolff. It might make sense to start calculating that after the first nine weeks. So this is actually a really good time for that, because the chronic absenteeism is almost nothing in the first two months of
school, but then starts to grow so that that that's a great flag for us. Thank you. Yeah, that's what I wanted. So I didn't see that. I said, oh, you all see it. Why don't I see it? Thank you. Thank you for your presentation. It's really
great. Next we're going to move on to 9.2 strategic plan baseline and quarter one progress monitoring. Doctor Taylor thank you Vice President Wolff. And I've got a question for those who are watching our
presentation both in the audience and online. How many of you all know that we produce an annual report? Well, we do we produce the board members. You guys know that we do an annual report. Doctor Addison, who's about to present, definitely knows we do an
annual report. Well, we do, and we have a website dedicated to this annual report. We are releasing this annual report this week. Today is the day. And even though this presentation is not about that annual report, the annual
report does look different. And the reason that the annual report looks different is that it mirrors the report card that the board adopted as part of its strategic plan, goals and objectives. And so we are coming to the board today
presenting on the first quarter findings of the strategic plan and baseline data as collected in the annual report. So this is very exciting for us because this is a brand new set of goals and objectives. There's been a lot of work that is put
into this and also some stuff that's still in development. So we're excited to talk about that too. The date these data will highlight areas of strength and urgent challenges, particularly in mathematics, which will guide our midyear actions. So this is critically
important. Our next steps include quarter two and quarter three reporting improved data systems and ongoing accountability, ensuring equity focused decisions and better outcomes for all of our students. You have a panel of
experts in front of you, and I'm delighted to introduce Doctor Nia Hamlet, who is our Chief of Equity and organizational development. The chief of schools hasn't moved an inch since his last presentation, and Mrs. Nikki
Porter, our chief academic officer, as well as Doctor Addison, who is our Director of Shared Accountability, who are here to guide you through our quarter one progress monitoring. Take it away. All right. Good evening, board members. Doctor Taylor. So first of all, thank
you for the opportunity for us to bring forward our first comprehensive look at the future ready M.C.P.S. strategic plan. This is anchored in both the 2425 baseline data, as Doctor Taylor mentioned. And our quarter one progress for this school year. And while
M.c.p.s. Has shared data in various ways under previous strategic plans, we're asking the board and the public to view this new structure as the M.C.P.S. Report Card or our Unified Progress Report. This shift reflects a deliberate
redesign of our reporting systems to align with the new strategic plan metrics, and to create a clearer through line between quarterly monitoring and our annual report. As Doctor Taylor just mentioned, as well, establishing this baseline provides a shared,
system wide starting point that allows us to measure progress consistently, identify gaps early, and ensure our daily work across classrooms, schools and central offices aligns with the commitments we've made to our students, to our families, and to our staff. And what
you'll see today reflects stronger organizational coherence across division collaboration, connecting our operational work with our core business of teaching and learning. This reporting structure also ensures quarterly monitoring, informs
real time adjustments, executive leadership decisions, and the quality and transparency of the annual report. And it also offers data driven, clearer, data driven picture of where we are and what will be required as we move into the mid year and
beyond. Next slide please. So this report is being presented for your information and discussion this evening. And it represents an important accountability moment for our system. We're sharing where we started, what we've seen so far and what the early indicators
tell us about the actions we must make. Next, you'll notice areas of strength, and you'll also see challenges that require urgent attention. As mentioned, particularly in math performance and student attendance. And this level of transparency is core to our strategic plan, which includes
key strategic actions so that the data is not just reporting or not just for reporting. It's actually intended to inform mid-year actions that will take to improve outcomes, to ensure equitable access to high quality, affirming learning environments for all of our
students. Next slide. So at this time, I'll pass it over to Doctor Addison to get us started with goal one. Thank you very much. So this slide here shows where our baseline data is now publicly available on the M.C.P.S. Strategic
Planning website, making this information accessible to our community is a core component. As you heard from both Doctor Hamlet and Doctor Taylor of our transparency commitment, our baseline data represents where we ended the 2024 2025 school year. It is important to
emphasize that baseline data serves as the foundation of any meaningful strategic plan. Without a clear understanding of where we are beginning, we cannot set realistic targets, accurately measure progress, or identify whether our strategies are having the intended impact.
Baseline data gives us a consistent starting point against which we can monitor growth, evaluate implementation, and make mid-course adjustments aligned to our goals. You will see some of the metrics are labeled as in development. These represent areas where new
systems or processes are being built to support reliable measurement. The website will continue to be updated throughout the year as additional metrics become available. And on the slide in the purple rectangle is where the baseline data is, and then
the intentionality around the last column, which is the reporting frequency, which impacts what you see in terms of some of our progress monitoring data. Next slide please. Beginning with this slide we move into quarter one
performance data organized by each strategic goal. For each goal, we will share some of the available metrics and then detail key actions and next steps we will take in response to the early year data. As you review the upcoming slides, you will see progress monitoring data presented alongside last
year's baseline data. It is important to note that measures are not always apples to apples comparisons. Baseline data often reflects end of year performance, while quarter one results represent early in the year. Checkpoints, seasonal patterns, pacing of curriculum,
and timing of assessments all influence quarter one data. Still progress. Monitoring data is incredibly valuable. It allows us to identify emerging trends early, intervene before gaps, widen, and adjust supports in real time. These early indicators guide our
system in making timely, informed decisions and help ensure we are on track toward meeting our multi-year strategic plan goals. Next slide please, for goal one, our focus is on academic excellence. The data displayed here
represents our early, early progress monitoring results for quarter one. In early literacy, 57.8% of kindergarten through grade two students met the fall Dibels benchmark. This is a typical early year measure and
reflects where students are starting. As we enter the school year. It provides us with information, important information to ensure supports are aligned to student needs in reading and mathematics. The fall map results show us how students are performing at the beginning of the year, across
grades three through eight for reading and kindergarten through eight for mathematics. These early indicators are essential because they help us gauge where additional instruction attention is needed. Intervention or resources may be needed. Additionally, we have our district research that
supports with using fall performance to identify the likelihood of students meeting the three or higher on the state assessment. You will notice that math performance in particular, signals the need for continued and targeted support across grade levels. While these fall results are
not intended to directly be compared to end of year data, they do serve as critical baseline for in year decision making. They tell us where to focus our energy right now, and allow us to monitor whether the strategies we implement mid-year are making a difference. Similarly, the
required district mathematics assessments provide a more nuanced look by level elementary, middle, and high school and help us identify where early strengths and emerging gaps exist. Overall, these early progress monitoring measures ensure we stay responsive, adaptive, and
student centered as we work toward our long term academic goals. I will now turn it over to Doctor Moran, who will share some of our key actions connected to this goal. Oh, sorry. Next slide. I have one more slide. Sorry to give more
a more complete picture of student performance. We are also sharing supplementary measures not directly tied to a strategic plan objective, but essential for monitoring progress. For elementary, the majority of students earning a B or higher in their core academic subjects during
marking period one is presented all the middle and high school levels. Most students earned a C or higher, and that's our metric that we used in our core course presentation. That's on this slide. However, in mathematics, marking period data shows somewhat higher success rates compared to map
and district assessments. And this is an area where we continue to recognize our need to strengthen alignment between coursework and external measures to ensure grades reflect mastery. And now I'll turn it over to Doctor Moran. Thank you, Doctor Addison, and
good evening again. If we could go to the next slide, please. There we go. All right, so this visual illustrates instructional priority and accountability framework. And I
just just to be clear, this is not just relevant to quarter one. It is the framework that we're using to prioritize our high leverage instructional practices. At the center of our work is our MCPs Strategic Plan instructional Materials, Equitable Teaching and Learning, the Science of Learning, which
is professional learning that teachers and leaders have received to support their understanding of how every student learns. What you see here are the use of classroom observations, student data monitoring, and cross-functional teams to support based on needs and curriculum based professional learning. It is essential that
we continue to strengthen our collection of observational data to assess the application of professional learning, and provide coaching and feedback to support teacher practice to get the results students need and deserve. Observations alone will not change practice and thus results. We have spent
intentional time on providing professional learning that is aligned with the science of learning research, which shows that bite-size feedback is more timely and results in immediate action due to it being more consumable. What we know is that when we observe instruction bite-size,
actionable feedback and coaching significantly boosts teacher growth to improve student learning and create positive classroom environments. The idea here is to support continuous improvement by pinpointing exactly when and how to give feedback on instruction for impact on student learning and therefore
increased academic progress. I'm now going to turn it over to Mrs. Porter, who's going to talk a little bit more about our academic achievement. Thank you. Next slide please. And good afternoon. I am going to just talk about some of the
actions and next, next steps that we are taking as we take a look at our data. I do want to underscore that when we looked at the data today, it was shared in grade level bands. And so that is important for us
to look at as we look at our report card. However, as schools are doing this work, they really are drilling down at the individual grade level subgroup or service group level to really determine what is needed for their students. So
we are taking several actions this school year. Many of them are new actions, and I just want to go through a few of them first as we take a look at curriculum, you know that we started new curriculum last year for literacy at the
elementary level, and we are implementing new literacy curriculum for middle school this year. And our cross-functional teams that are in all of our offices are working very closely with our teachers to ensure that the instruction reflects the
curriculum that is written and designed, and that they are doing it without significant adjustments. That unintentionally lower rigor or move instruction below grade level. And so that is our focus as the cross-functional team members are working with our
teachers to make sure that they are teaching two grade level standards, and our teams are supporting schools through planning, coaching, observing walkthroughs and providing feedback. And this is happening at at all levels. We also want
to just share the intervention work that is taking place this year that is new. We have at the elementary level a 30 minutes of what we call fit time, flexible instructional time where we are dedicating
specific time for students to either have interventions, enrichment or acceleration depending on what they need. And coupled with that, you know that we have been working with the reading policy, and for this school year, we've been implementing student reading
improvement plans for our students who are not meeting grade level in reading and those reading improvement plans. You don't need to have an IEP or anything of that nature, but if you are not on level, we expect that there to be some type of plan in place and
evidence based interventions used to support students. Schools need to really follow up with the duration of that plan, how they're going to progress, monitor and communication expectations with families are also outlined. So
we have been working through that within our cross-functional team. Members have been supporting our schools with those plans and multi-tiered systems of support and doing that monitoring as it relates to assessments and
grading and reporting. Today, you saw on a previous slide district assessments. And as Doctor Addison said, they're not always apples to apples, but it does give us just a quick snapshot into how our students are doing with either
a particular unit or certain standards or skills. But we also, because of the grading and reporting, implemented cumulative semester assessments that we will be implementing for the first time at the end of this marking period. So
that's going to give us a better understanding of growth over time for our students. We also, you know, that we've we've made some changes to our grading and reporting. And so as you can see, the first marking period grades were fairly similar to last school
year's first marking period grades. However, we do anticipate there to be in marking period two with the increased expectations for the grading, there may be a greater impact on the grades and at
that final semester. So in response, we are expanding some of our supports. We are moving in a little faster with the credit recovery and also communicating regularly with our families. And then finally,
we are monitoring closely with the Division of School Leadership and Improvement, mid-year monitoring tools to support our schools, particularly in mathematics. We know that that's an area of major concern. So we are
looking at tools to track the progress and looking at how we are tracking, how students are doing with quarter one data and those particular standards in mathematics. So I'll stop there and turn it over to the next
slide, please. Thank you. We now transition to goal two. So for goal two future ready graduates we are monitoring indicators that help us understand how well our students are positioned for meaningful post-secondary
outcomes. These quarter one measures offer an early look at how our seniors are engaging with the transition beyond high school, and also how attendance patterns may impact long term readiness. One of the things I want to point out with our objective, one is that college application is just the first
foray into this. It's the first step as we continue to develop additional systems and structures to fully measure all aspects of this, this objective. So first, looking at post-secondary planning, as of early November, 63.2% of the
class of 2026 had applied to at least one college. This is a strong early momentum and reflects the work happening in our high schools. To ensure students are exploring and acting on post-secondary options, early engagement and the college application process
is an important predictor of successful transitions after high school, because it signals that students are receiving timely advising, completing necessary requirements, and taking steps toward employment, enlistment, or enrollment. We pair this with chronic
absenteeism because, again, attendance is foundational to every future readiness outcome. Students cannot fully engage in rigorous coursework, college and career advising, or pathway opportunities such as CTE, dual enrollment or AP IB if they are not in school consistently. As
we talked about in our previous presentation, chronic absenteeism disrupts learning. It can weaken academic confidence, and it is strongly correlated with lower graduation rates and reduced post-secondary enrollment. Quarter one data. Attendance
data shows 14.8% of students are chronically absent. While this is lower than last year's baseline, it remains an area where we continue to focus on even in the early, even early in the school year. Chronic absenteeism can set a
trajectory that undermines readiness for life after graduation. As we look at these two indicators, it gives us a powerful picture on of how prepared our students are to graduate. Future ready, high rates of participation in the college application process
reflect momentum, while absenteeism reminds us where immediate intervention is necessary to ensure all students have full access to opportunities that prepare them for success. I will now turn it back over to Mrs. Porter to share some key actions. Thank you. Yes. So if you can go to
the next slide, we have really intensified our post-secondary advising and we are including career advising. Our counselors are doing a lot of work with college and career advising and proactively reaching out, particularly to our seniors.
But we've we've started working with our students and informing them all the way from sixth grade, all the way up. But our seniors, we're really doing a push to make sure that they are aware of the college application process. Many schools are doing college fairs.
We've done them at the district level and individual school level. We've expanded our family communication around college deadlines and expectations, and we are also doing a lot of promotion of our CTE and dual enrollment. That
is significantly increasing. And families are understanding their post-secondary options. Next slide please. All right. So goal three focuses on healthy school climates and
safe learning environments. As we monitor objective three we are looking at reducing disproportionate suspension rates for Black or African American students and students receiving special education services. As we compare quarter one data to last year's full year totals, we're noting that
for our Black or African American students in school suspensions, we have 23 this year versus a total of 54 in school suspensions last year. In regards to reporting in school suspensions, we are ensuring accuracy by distinguishing that if a student is provided work or
support from a staff member and receives accommodations if they have an IEP, it should be considered an in-school intervention and not an in-school suspension. For out-of-school suspensions. We are at about 29% of last year's
total, 264 of 869 for quarter one. As we look at this objective, it is also important to note that students receiving special education services are essential for gathering representative. They're also
are also essential for I'm sorry. Are also essential for gathering adequate data for suspension rates. If we could
go to the next slide please. Thanks. This quarter, one progress right here for and I'm sorry I missed a part that for relative to the climate data. So in regards to the I apologize in regards to the
climate data. We saw a substantial increase in respondent rates for both staff and students. We went from 44% to 67% for staff, we went from
51.1% to 57.3% for for our for our staff and for our families. We saw a slight increase and want to acknowledge that that is still under 10%. We have a lot of work we need to do to get a representative sample size to ensure that we are
collecting information from all of our families, but also ensuring that it's a sample size where we can make decisions that are that are, you know, are suitable to support our, our, our schools and school environments. If we go to the next slide, please.
So this quarter, one progress provides actionable insights and demonstrates that our shared efforts are moving us in the right direction. The Office of Shared Accountability, led by Doctor Addison, has provided weekly data for directors to address low return rates and support the implementation of
best practices to increase these return rates. We heard from many of our school leaders and use this feedback to provide them with resources such as multilingual communication templates, QR codes to simplify access, strategies to focus on supporting services, staff to complete surveys, and utilizing
staff meetings to provide time for survey completion. One thing we know is a survey alone is not a culturally responsive way to hear from our community members. Our schools have therefore used methods to personally connect with parents and caregivers, such as coffee and conversations and school
wide events. Examples of using the bus loop, time to connect with families and share a quick QR code to log in and support them with survey completion. We know that this goal is not just for a higher number, but ensuring that data reflects the voices of all communities,
particularly those historically underrepresented in schools. Feedback processes, which we know is a shared commitment with our board. If we go to the next slide, please. So the key here is progress monitoring. So we are equipping schools with more frequent and detailed
climate and culture data so they can identify emerging concerns. The School Improvement Plan is part of this monitoring process. Each school uses the M.C.P.S. Climate data and the Maryland Report Card data to create a school climate goal. These goals are available on the school website and are
currently being shared during Community Quarter one. Required CIP reviews with staff and families. Directors embed climate monitoring into the ongoing goal setting by reviewing the culture and climate data, alongside the instructional and achievement indicators to determine school
needs. It is important that directors, coach and have leaders reflect on the correlation between student achievement and school climate and culture. In addition, we study the connection of climate indicators with attendance, suspensions and restorative practices with principals within the School Improvement
Plan, directors and associates work with principals and leadership teams strategically aligning these. While there are many schools that exhibit positive school climate, we must also use this data to drill down to specific schools. Schools with low climate that correlates with low teacher
retention have completed intensive action plans with the support of their director. Schools are focusing on actions such as streamlining communication, monthly triad meetings with employee organization leaders to collaboratively solve current school issues and communicate resolutions with staff.
Utilizing staff feedback surveys to collect ongoing internal considerations and challenges that may arise, and most importantly, celebrating and acknowledging staff members to learn from each other. And if we go to the next slide, please, I believe this. All
right. And we transition now to goal for high quality diverse workforce. Now for this goal, we do not yet have quarter one progress monitoring metrics for the identified measures as many are collected annually. However we are sharing on this slide
some baseline data. And in the annual report that Doctor Taylor queued up before we started, as well as on our strategic plan web page, you will see more baseline data for a number of the objectives under this goal. On this slide, what you see is about 51% of
our nationally board certified teachers are working in schools rated with three stars or lower. That is measured by the Maryland School Report Card. Additionally, as you look at our diversity data, when we
think about our educator diversity, diversity across all staff and teachers shows ongoing gaps between the workforce and the student population and our opportunity to continue to improve in that area. Additionally, 64% of principals hired last year were
diverse. These baseline indicators, as well as those on our Strategic Plan web page, will guide our quarter two and quarter three updates as additional data becomes available. I will now turn it to Doctor Hamlett, who will share more on our district actions related to this goal.
So some of our actions and next steps related to goal four. Number one, we're expanding and strengthening how we track professional learning across the system, similar to what we would expect to happen in the classroom. So we're tracking who's participating, the
quality and impact of what they receive, and where inequities in access persist. In quarter two, you will also see additional workforce related metrics, including participation in leadership development programs, access to professional learning pathways,
and early indicators related to retention and advancement. A stronger workforce data infrastructure will allow us to better understand our patterns in hiring, retention, and promotion, and identify where we need to adjust to support a diverse, thriving workforce in
which students can see themselves reflected. Our mid-year reporting framework will also help ensure every workforce development effort has clear expectations, consistent checkpoints and opportunities for reflection and recalibration. Next slide
please. Also, our quarterly reporting cycle reinforces our commitment to transparency and ongoing accountability. Next week, our divisions will resume cross departmental and cross division progress monitoring
sessions to review the baseline data, align on our performance metrics, and identify measures to elevate in the quarter two board update that you will receive. These sessions will also inform refinements to our strategies and tactics, supported by staff who prepare
and analyze our data. Next fall, we plan to bring forward our fiscal year actuals, aligning financial transparency with academic and operational outcomes. Our public facing scorecard will continue to provide clear, real time
insight into our progress for families, staff and the community. This reflects our shift toward continuous improvement, where accessible data drives informed decisions and better outcomes for students and staff. Next slide. So as we conclude this overview,
we hope that the baseline data in quarter one update offer a clearer picture of our current landscape, highlighting both strengths and areas requiring urgent, targeted action. Math performance and attendance will remain major areas of focus in our mid-year planning, and we
remain committed to transparent reporting, honest reflection and strategic action that drives better outcomes for our students and staff at this time. We will turn it back over to Doctor Taylor and for the board discussion. Thank you, thank
you. Please turn your light on. If you have any questions, I'm going to ask you to keep your questions to no more than two. In the interest of time. And I'm going to start with Miss Zimmerman. Thank you. And this
is perfect because I have exactly two questions. How did you know? Me to. So we thank you for putting all this together. And I know it's it's a lot of data points to put
into one area and show us all. I we're still seeing that more students are earning passing grades than students that are showing proficiency on our standardized tests. And since we just updated our grading policy, you explain to us a little more what exactly is
the disconnect going on here? Why aren't they a closer match? That's a great question. Thank you. So the the disconnect I think when we look at report card grades, we are looking at
a larger body of work. We are looking at assignments could be group projects. It is assessments. It could be larger district assessments. It could be smaller informal assessments.
Students have opportunities to learn from the areas maybe that where they were not demonstrating mastery to retake an assessment, to demonstrate mastery. Whereas when you are looking at a state assessment or a map assessment, that is a
one time opportunity. And so that that is oftentimes why you may see a disconnect in terms of why the grades are are different. We don't expect to see them to be so different though. I mean, we we would
like them to be much closer because report card grades are supposed to be a communication tool to students and families about how their students are performing and how they're doing. So we do expect them to to be closer. So as we're working with our schools around
grading, standards based grading and things of that nature, we want to make sure and this is why we keep hitting home the importance of teaching to grade level standards, that the expectation is that if we're teaching to grade level standards, we're grading, we're
giving grades at that same level. That is why it's so important. But sometimes the disconnect might be that we're not always teaching to grade level, and we're giving kids grades, letter grades at the the level that we're teaching.
And so we just need to make sure as we're working with our teachers, that that grade level expectation is there as well, for sure. And I think in one sense, I agree with you, with them being different types of data, but certainly we would expect them to be much closer
than what we're seeing. My my other question really gets at the very low proficiency that we're seeing for our ML students, especially when we are looking at like one example in the data with the the
elementary school data. Yes, we have shifted curriculums, but our K through two students like our current third graders, K through two had science of reading like the best options that they could have had for learning to read. And I
understand that we are gaining our ML students at different points in their academic career, even K to two that they're joining at different points. But to see 7.5% of them proficient on map R is alarming. And it really speaks to how
essential not only our Eld teachers are, but our Eld teachers can only be at one place at one time. They're one person, and sometimes they have many students on their caseload. My point to this is that our classroom teachers are also
asking for that help, that they want to be able to meet the needs of our students. All of us here on both sides of the dais want the best for these students. And my my ask is that, yes, this is like kind of our first dip stick into this and kind of pulling this apart, but
it's not something new and it's something that's going to continue to be alarming to us. And I am very fearful of where this data could trend. And I'm imploring all of us to continue to see our students improve there. So I've got a new
category that we may start reporting back to the board, and it is our students who were previously receiving ML services that have exited because our exited students that have received ML
instruction are doing much, much better. And I think that there's actually a point of pride and a celebration that's tied to that, that that we could elevate probably a little bit more. But I think it it drives home your point even
more of when a student is receiving ML services, and particularly when they are level one or level two, their proficiency isn't a surprise per se because of the of the barrier, but it it drives home
the need for the support all the more of how we how we get them from level one to level two to level three to level four, and the speed in which we're matriculating ML students to the next level. Absolutely. And I happen to have my Eld
certification. So this is really familiar to me. But if it's amenable to, of course, the president if she decides to do so, I think it might be helpful for the board to gain some greater education on how we are educating our ML students, what processes we're
using, and what dangers they could lead into with being becoming long term English learners. Thank you. Thank you, Miss Yang. Yes, thank you so much. I first have a data request. I noticed that when we talk about leadership under
that pillar, that the data is not disaggregated into groups. So when we talk about the teachers, we we put down ethnic groups, racial groups. But when when it comes to leadership
principles or whatever, we just have one lump. So please, can we have that into subgroups, follow up with us with that. And the next time when we have this presentation, I would like
to see subgroups. Second data request is last year. I really appreciate when we get the map data and we actually get school data too. And the school is also have subgroup. And that is
also shared with the community in broad dogs. I can't say I can't speak already. Is it already 7:00? Okay. I can't speak anymore. So can we still continue to do that? I think having that kind of level of transparency really inform our
community and also for us to mindful to be work. Okay. Follow Miss Wolf's instruction. Two questions. Okay. Question number one, as we look at quarter one results. Which
quarter one results tell us that we are off track from the strategic plan and what mid-year actions begin immediately in January. I can
start certainly the the mathematics tell us that we are we're not headed in the right direction. I know that as we are working with the cross-functional team members and working with schools, they really are digging into the
standards specific standards that their particular students at different grade levels are not demonstrating mastery with. Also looking at the state assessment data and doing some some level of comparison. And
so they are doing the work to really dig into understanding those standards, and then how to teach those to the students who may not be at grade level. So then what is it that we need to be doing with our vocabulary, with our background information, with our scaffolds to get
students to to be learning at the grade level standard? And so that is some of the work that is happening. Mr. Moran. Doctor Moran, do you want to. Yeah, I would appreciate the question. I would concur with Mrs. Porter around the math
data. And I think that specifically at the middle school math data, one of the things that we are currently engaged in is cross-functional teams with instructional leadership teams engaged in math focused walkthroughs. One of the things that we're
finding through those is one is the the ongoing assessment to determine student progress and to determine the need for reteaching. As Mrs. Porter said, the standard is is a component
to that. We're seeing some variance in in terms of teaching to the standard or kind of lowering expectations in some cases. I think one of the things that we need to do immediately in January that we are talking about right now is standardizing what our
instructional look fours are in math across the entire system. There's variance in that. And we need to get back to kind of our bread and butter and some just the fundamental best teaching practices for math. And make sure that those are
universally sound in all of our schools. So front loading those with not only these are the expectations, but just ongoing monitoring and collection of observational data and those and then correlating those with the student achievement data. There is variance in how we're monitoring teacher practice in those math classrooms. And
there can't be. And so that's been something that we've we've surfaced through these instructional walkthroughs that we did and are doing right now as part of our quarter one school improvement Plan reviews. So I think that is a like, you know, coming right out of the break, something that needs to
occur. What about. ML? Right. That is another area we have. We really the achievement level is low. I know this is the whole state is struggling with this. Are we having any
strategy coming that can help move the needle a bit? One of the things that we've been talking about is we've been observing is there is a disconnect in some schools, not all with English language development instruction that
comes from a certified ELT teacher and interventions. And we cannot confuse the two. They are two very different things. Every ML student needs to have targeted Eld instruction from
their their Eld teacher that is focused on academic language, vocabulary, and all of those things that build their understanding to help them access the curriculum. And so we are we are doing that work
with schools to make sure that that is happening and finding the appropriate place within the instructional block to provide that instruction for students. We expect our our ML students to take part in first
instruction, meaning on grade level instruction in the classroom. So we need to then figure out when it's appropriate for them to be pulled to the side within the classroom, or even removed from the classroom to get their instruction. So that is a conversation that we are
working with schools on and looking at their schedules and helping them with that, and then determining whether or not it's appropriate for intervention. That is something actually that is very different. Not all ML students need an intervention if they are making adequate progress, but some
will need intervention. And so we need to help distinguish the difference for our students. And so those are things we're working on. We heard somebody testify earlier around co-teaching. We know that that is not a model that is possible
in all all of our schools. But the co-planning with our general education teachers is actually very critical so that they can understand what language and vocabulary is going to be needed to front load for, for our ML students.
And so there are a lot of strategies that we need to make sure that we are building upon as we're doing this work, and as we're providing more professional learning for our schools, we have to embed those ML strategies within our
training as well. Thank you for that. My second question will be second, I thought you had a following up. Wait, this is a quick one. Parent completion is still only 7%. Do we have any
specific strategy? I think you recognized it. And do we have any strategy to I do and I want to I want to also, one of the things that we were in a conversation as a team about was the fact that in some schools we have a much higher percentage rate, one of them being like New Hampshire
Estates, which you would think would be a very it would be difficult, right, to get that kind of return rate. They had close to 20%. So we have schools that are close that are at like 25%. I think we have to universally get away from the idea that sending out a survey
is going to result in a family completing it, and we need to start having side by side conversations with families, meet them where they are to complete the survey, administer the survey and talk through the survey with them. Ensure that
there's language. But but most of it has been done around relationships and connections. And I'm sure you know Bob Geiger, who's at New Hampshire State's and others, they bring the community together around a celebratory event, right, that recognizes their students. And,
oh, by the way, can I have you complete this survey? And they have, you know, resources that they take, you know, centrally and school based to walk families through the survey to get a higher completion rate. So I think we just we just need to be more innovative and recognize that surveys are not
a culturally responsive way alone to to get the, the the data point that you need. Thank you, Miss Silvestre. Thank you for the presentation. Strategic plan reporting is one of my
favorite presentations all year long, but it is very sobering because I've been on the board for seven years. I have one more year left and the stories repeat themselves. Seven years
ago I asked, what's it going to take to get those reds to become yellow and green? On the evidence of learning, we must teach to the grade level standards. Fidelity, implementation of the
curriculum, English language instruction. We've had English language learners in this county for as long as there's been a county. So for us to hear, well, you know, we should be doing this instead of this, I think that, you know, there's
a new day in M.C.P.S. and I just want to remind us as the board that this is why we're here and we have to stay on this like white on rice, because we've been through a
lot. But now is the time to get to teaching, to grade level standards across the system, to get to implementation of the curriculum, to get to figuring out what we're doing, how we can do better for our ML students. So we're with you. We
want to see progress. We want to see more progress, and we want to have a consistent implementation so that we're not here again, the new new board in five years, hearing the same things over and over again, I know I've been here. We've been through a lot. But, you know, now is the time to
move the needle, to have consistency. So I'll stop there. Thank you, Miss Stewart, I have a question about page five in
the deck. So I see these numbers and I want to know is there is there any story to be told? There we go. Thank you.
So it is distressing to see our map scores. You know, starting off at 43.8%, meeting the district grade level expected
score. Hopefully we'll move up as the year goes on. But is there a story to be told about that required district mathematics assessment? Because
the last data point there says we had 62.3% of grades nine through 12 students that met the district grade level expected score at quarter one. But then last year we ended up
at 38.9. So, I mean, this seems this is a different story. I don't I don't know if I understand it. So could you maybe tell me that story? Is this a bright spot or not? So this is an example of district
assessments. Are unit assessments. So what is being assessed in one marking period for district assessment is not the same thing as another. So you're not looking at growth. You're looking at a snapshot in time of what students are
learning. I also have a lot of questions about this, but particularly and this is grades nine through 12. So you're looking at all math courses. And you are looking at different levels of participation at different
grade levels. So that's the other thing that I think is the story that's not quite clear here. When we're looking at this, I do want to dig in to see what numbers of students took the assessment, like how
many 12th graders took it at that at the end of last school year versus this beginning of this school year. So we need to take a look at the numbers of students to see if it's the same number of students that took the assessments approximately. And we also need
to look at the assessments themselves to see if there are some issues with the with the assessments. And we also just need to look at the particular courses. So you're talking about algebra one, algebra two, geometry Pre-calc. You're looking at all all different
courses mixed in together. So it is a little bit difficult to tell if it's a particular course or a grade level. And so we need to drill down to, to look at it when we're comparing it this way. So as we're moving forward using this model, maybe
we need to have some of this drilled down into. So it's actually telling a story because really this isn't and that was my fear. Like it's not really telling me very much except I see a number and it means something totally
different. And we're we're not peeling back what that number actually means. And so I don't want it. It looks pretty right. But I actually want this to like, tell the right story. And so I don't know if that's
something we can just tweak as we go. Thank you. I want to follow up on Miss Stewart's question. It's interesting because Laura said she doesn't know if she understood the
story, and I'm not sure whether it was Carla or Laura. That said, it's difficult to tell exactly what this is showing. I'm wondering how we can present more visually appealing and user friendly data when reporting on the strategic plan
programs. You may not have an answer today. I understand that strategic planning meets on Tuesday. You'll have an answer by then, but I asked this because it's important. It's important for our constituents
who are not educators. And, you know, if these people can't understand exactly what is being shown here, our parents can't understand it either. So I just want to illuminate the first part of Miss Stewart's
question. She asked about not just the district required assessments, but also the measures of academic progress. And I got to tell you, I'm not thrilled at how we present this because it's a growth assessment, not an achievement assessment, but we we tag a
benchmark to it, and we probably don't use it for the way that it's intended. But I would I would take some encouraging signs from this. And I'm going to give you a second to, to process. What I mean by this is that this is a
fall measure that should be compared against a spring measure, and of course, measure later on in the year. And there is something associated with the summer slide, and that when kids take a break and they get
out of the habit of school and then they come right back and immediately they take this assessment, they're maybe not as sharp on some of their skills as they were when they left us at the end of the year. But this this positions us as a good starting place for the
year, but we should expect this to go up and we should expect this to to effectively create a line of best fit in terms of statistics for projecting where a student might go. It's still very, very low. And in terms of
proficiency, we should be much, much higher than this. But it it is pointing in a in a positive direction for quarter one results. And so that that I think is as we as we see this same report presented multiple
times throughout the year and that this is the focus of the board's work is academic monitoring. And and really interrogating this data and making sure these data reflect true performance, and asking
the staff to provide strategies that align to correcting that. That really is going to be very important. But I would take this as an encouraging start. So I just end my comment. So, you know, like I said, that
last one district grade level expected score, end of year 38.9% and then progress monitoring says 62.3. So I just I'm used to seeing, you know,
kids who took a math class and how they did, you know, the next year and seeing how they're growing or not growing or you, you compare, you know, the, you know, grade nine students who took algebra one
last year in the grade nine, students algebra one this year. You know, those are the kind of things I think, that could help demonstrate more clearly how our trajectory which this is useful, and I think it will be
more useful as the years go on, because then we can compare quarter one to quarter one, but we're not. We can't do that yet. So until we can do that, maybe there's something there's other ways we can look at our direction, because I just don't
think we have time to wait all year to see what happened the next year. So I think if there's anything we can do as a follow up, especially with math. Thank you. Okay. Thank you all
for your presentation. I think we're nearing the end. We're up to item number ten, which is for information only. So finally we have reached item number 11. Can I get a motion
for adjournment? Motion to adjourn second. All in favor, raise your hand. And that is Carla. Do I see your hand? You want to do? Oh, she's in, she's in. That's unanimous of everybody here. Thank you.
Thank you.