The Montgomery County Board of Education (Board) met on Tuesday, April 9, 2019, at Carver Educational Services Center, 850 Hungerford Drive in Rockville.  During the meeting, the Board held a discussion on the George B. Thomas Sr. Learning Academy; took final action on several Board policies; and received a legislative update.

The agenda for the meeting, with links to related materials, can be viewed on the Board of Education website.

Action on Board Policies

Final Action on Policy BBB, Ethics

On November 13, 2018, the Board of Education took tentative action on Board Policy BBB, Ethics, and sent it out for public comment. The proposed revisions aligned with current Maryland law and the Maryland State Ethics Commission model provisions for local governments and school boards. Changes to the policy also included revisions to the financial disclosure procedures for the student member of the Board to align with current Maryland law. At its April 9, 2019, meeting, the Board took final action on Policy BBB.

Read the Policy Management Committee chair’s memorandum to the Board. 

Final Action, Policy BFA, Policysetting

On November 13, 2018, the Board of Education took tentative action on Board Policy BFA, Policysetting, and sent it out for public comment. The proposed revisions clarified and updated procedures for setting policies to guide MCPS, increasing stakeholder involvement in the policysetting process, and informing stakeholders that public comments submitted become part of the public record. At its April 9, 2019, meeting, the Board took final action on Policy BFA.

Read the Policy Management Committee chair’s memorandum to the Board.

Final Action, Policy IGK, Career and Technology Education

On November 13, 2018, the Board of Education took tentative action on Board Policy IGK, Career and Technology Education, and sent it out for public comment. Policy IGK, with the revisions, sets forth a comprehensive career readiness strategy and provides opportunities for students to acquire the skills needed to be prepared for the range of roles available in the 21st century economy, which values short-term, meaningful career credentials in addition to four-year college degrees. At its April 9, 2019, meeting, the Board took final action on Policy IGK, including renaming the policy Career Readiness.

Read the Policy Management Committee chair’s memorandum to the Board.

Recommended Positions on Items of Legislation

The Board’s Staff Assistant for Governmental Affairs and Community Outreach Danielle Susskind presented a summary of the 2019 legislative session, as well as outcomes for various legislation.  

View the 2019 Legislation Score Card

The George B. Thomas Sr. Learning Academy, Inc.

The Board of Education received a presentation from staff and held a discussion on the George B. Thomas Sr. Learning Academy Saturday School Program and the Office of Shared Accountability outcome study, An Examination of the George B. Thomas, Sr. Learning Academy.

The George B. Thomas Sr. Learning Academy, Inc. serves students annually through a variety of programs and services and works in tandem with Montgomery County Public Schools  (MCPS) to support student mastery of grade-level learning outcomes. During the past several years, Saturday School started offering a revenue based Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Curiosity Academy and Coding programs to provide acceleration for students. The George B. Thomas Sr. Learning Academy, Inc. provides Saturday School locations at 12 high schools. With Saturday School as the primary signature program, the focus is to support MCPS cluster schools—elementary, middle, and high schools—in key areas where the district’s work will have the greatest impact.

In June 2018, MCPS staff conducted a study entitled An Examination of the Impact of the George B. Thomas, Sr. Learning Academy - Saturday School Program in Montgomery County Public Schools. The study concludes found that there was evidence of a positive impact of Saturday School on the academic outcomes for some student groups at the elementary level in both reading and mathematics. No statistically significant differences were observed at the middle and high school levels.

In an effort to identify student growth during Fiscal Year 2019, The George B. Thomas Sr. Learning Academy, Inc. piloted an Achieve 3000 assessment tool to identify student growth in reading. A final assessment will be conducted this month. The results indicate Lexile growth in all grades with the greatest gain in Grades K–3. MCPS staff is providing additional student performance data utilizing the Measures of Academic Performance in Reading and Math (MAP-R/M), which will be brought forward at the end of the year.

Read the memorandum to the Board

Facilities and School Construction

The Board appointed architectural firms for the Northwood High School addition project and Gaithersburg cluster elementary school project.

Administrative Appointment

The Board approved the following administrative appointment:

Jennifer L. Craft, Acting Supervisor, Curriculum, English Language Arts and Secondary Literacy, Office of Curriculum and Instructional Programs, as Supervisor, Curriculum, English Language Arts and Secondary Literacy, Office of Curriculum and Instructional Programs

Recognitions

The Board approved resolutions in recognition of the following:

Administrative Professionals Week - April 22–26, 2019

Teacher Appreciation Week - May 6–10, 2019

Arab American Heritage Month - April 2019

School Nutrition Employee Week - May 6–10, 2019

Recognition for Police Chief J. Thomas Manger

Future Meetings

The Board of Education will hold its next regular business meeting on Monday, April 29, 2019.  Please check the Board of Education website and meeting calendar for further information. 

About the Board of Education
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.

Montgomery County Board of Education: Mrs. Shebra L. Evans, president; Mrs. Patricia O’Neill, vice president. Members: Ms. Jeanette E. Dixon, Dr. Judith Docca, Ms. Karla Silvestre, Mrs. Rebecca Smondrowski, Ms. Brenda Wolff, and Ms. Ananya Tadikonda, student member. Dr. Jack R. Smith, superintendent of schools and secretary-treasurer. Office of the Board: 240-740-3030.