MCPS’s budget is failing its students: The county continues to squander money in all the wrong places

How much money do you think Montgomery County Public Schools spends each year? $500 million? $1 billion? Wrong. MCPS Superintendent Dr. Monifa B. McKnight recently prepared a MCPS budget recommendation for $3.2 billion for the fiscal year 2024. To put that number into perspective, it places MCPS’s budget on par with the GDP of small countries like Andorra. 

With a budget larger than 30 UN-recognized countries, MCPS is more than capable of funding basic programs like free lunches for students. Instead, MCPS has decided to invest their funds on easy news-worthy wins, which at the end of the day, won’t help students learn. 

Wasteful Spending

Whether it’s spending $40 million for boxlight screens or $5.2 million for bus-tracking software that already exists, it's clear that MCPS pays no heed to the return on its multi-million dollar investments. 

For example, MCPS recently purchased new Lenovo Chromebooks for students, regardless of whether or not students actually needed a new Chromebook. Many students, like junior Alexander Groen, received replacements from the school districts despite having working Chromebooks. “Necessary? No.” said Groen when asked about the recent Chromebook replacements...

MCPS’s budget is failing its students | Silver Chips (mbhs.edu)