ANSWER:

Even though the court liaison in Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) theoretically is responsible for coverage of the entire district for court-involved youth, in actuality, not all 210 schools have a need. Typically, the need is at the high school level with a small number of cases in middle schools. Last year, the court liaison fielded more than 100 requests for information on court cases from July 2021 through June 2022. To date this school year, that number already is at 64 requests. These requests are in addition to Interagency Transition Team (ITT) meetings and work with individual students and families.

The court liaison is responsible for court appearances (as requested), chairing ITT meetings, collaborating with the county’s Department of Juvenile Services (DJS) case managers and supervisors, and collaborating with school administrators and teams. There were 13 ITT meetings requested last school year, and 8 ITT meetings have been requested to date this school year. As DJS case managers prepare for hearings, the court liaison is called upon to provide information on grades, attendance, discipline history, and accommodations. This year, the court liaison has been called to provide parental contact information for peace order requests.

The court liaison also responds to requests from juvenile court judges who need input on MCPS policies and possible interventions for cases involving MCPS students; this may mean appearing in court. There is no actual count for these requests since some of the requests are not scheduled in advance. However, the court liaison made a minimum of 21 court appearances last school year and has made at least 10 court appearances this school year. For clarity, following is information as to the outlined responsibilities:

*As of January 24, 2023