The Montgomery County Board of Education met on Monday, July 26, and, among other items, approved the updated Policy ABC, Parent and Family Involvement. The Board also gave preliminary approval to a part of the school system’s Comprehensive Master Plan and approved the appointments of eight administrators.

Final Approval of Policy ABC, Parental Involvement
The Board gave final approval to the updated Policy ABC, Parent and Family Involvement.  The policy sets forth guidelines for encouraging parent and family involvement in the school community to support children’s education, healthy development, and well-being. The policy, which was tentatively approved on Jan. 12, was updated to remove regulatory language and align with research-based national standards for family-school partnerships, and then was sent out for public comment. The policy also directs Montgomery County Public Schools to promote family involvement efforts to reach and include the school system’s diverse community.

Bridge to Excellence Master Plan 2010 update, Part II, Preliminary Submission
The Board of Education tentatively approved Part II of the school system’s Comprehensive Master Plan. The plan contains goals and strategies to promote academic excellence among all students and to eliminate performance gaps among identified subgroups. The Bridge to Excellence in Public Schools Act of 2002 requires each school system in the state to submit an annual update of a comprehensive five-year master plan. The MCPS master plan is based on the school system’s strategic plan, Our Call to Action: Pursuit of Excellence, which the Board approved for 2010–2015 on June 28. The Board will submit Part II of the Comprehensive Master Plan to the county executive and County Council by Sept. 15 and will take final action on both Parts I and II of the plan by Oct. 15.

Human Resources Appointments
The Board of Education approved the following administrative appointments: 

• Monique T. Felder, currently acting director, Division of Accelerated and Enriched Instruction, as director, Division of Accelerated and Enriched Instruction
  
• Diane D. Morris, currently principal intern, Robert Frost Middle School, as principal, William H. Farquhar Middle School
  
• Dana E. Davison, currently assistant principal, Neelsville Middle School, as principal, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Middle School
  
• Jennifer Webster, currently assistant principal, Walt Whitman High School, as principal, Thomas W. Pyle Middle School
  
• Yolanda Stanislaus, currently assistant principal, Cresthaven Elementary School, as principal Galway Elementary School
  
• Douglas E. Nelson, currently staff development teacher, Gaithersburg Middle School, as magnet coordinator, Roberto W. Clemente Centers Program
  
• Rebecca A. Jones, currently principal, Damascus Elementary School, as principal, Westbrook Elementary School
  
• Melanie M. Haste, currently resource teacher special education, Gaithersburg Middle School, as coordinator, Needwood Academy

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Montgomery County Board of Education: Ms. Patricia O’Neill, president; Mr. Christopher Barclay, vice president. Members: Ms. Laura Berthiaume, Ms. Shirley  Brandman, Dr. Judy Docca, Mr. Michael Durso, Mr. Phil Kauffman, and Mr. Alan Xie, student member. Dr. Jerry D. Weast, superintendent and secretary-treasurer. Office of the Board: 301-279-3617. 
The Montgomery County Board of Education is the official educational policymaking body in the county. The Board is responsible for the direction and operation of the public school system. The Board consists of seven county residents elected by voters for a four-year term and a student elected by secondary school students for a one-year term. Board members are elected countywide but run at-large or from the Board district in which they reside.