COVID-19 Outbreak at Another MCPS Elementary School - Rachel Carson ES. Great Seneca Creek ES and The Heights again on list.

 Previous weekly reports at this link.

Beall Elementary School Allegany County 5 04/21/21

Bnos Yisroel of Baltimore Baltimore City 10 04/21/21

Mount St. Joseph High School Baltimore City 2 04/21/21

Paul Laurence Dunbar High School Baltimore City 4 04/21/21

Concordia Preparatory School Baltimore County 9 04/21/21

Eastern Technical High School Baltimore County 5 04/21/21

Golden Ring Middle School Baltimore County 2 04/21/21

Honey Go Elementary School Baltimore County 2 04/21/21

Redeemer Classical Christian School Baltimore County 4 04/21/21

Rosedale Baptist School Baltimore County 3 04/21/21

Sparrow's Point High School Baltimore County 4 04/21/21

St. Paul School for Girls Baltimore County 4 04/21/21

St. Paul's School Baltimore County 3 04/21/21

Talmudical Academy Elementary School Baltimore County 8 04/21/21

The Jemicy School Baltimore County 2 04/21/21

The Odyssey School Baltimore County 5 04/21/21

Towson High School Baltimore County 7 04/21/21

North Caroline High School Caroline County 3 04/21/21

Rising Sun High School Cecil County 2 04/21/21

Mace's Lane Middle School Dorchester County 5 04/21/21

New Market Middle School Frederick County 5 04/21/21

Bel Air Elementary School Harford County 2 04/21/21

Forest Lakes Elementary School Harford County 3 04/21/21

Patterson Mill Middle High School Harford County 3 04/21/21

Fulton Elementary School Howard County 6 04/21/21

Marriotts Ridge High School Howard County 2 04/21/21

River Hill High School Howard County 4 04/21/21

Great Seneca Creek Elementary School Montgomery County 2 04/21/21

Rachel Carson Elementary School Montgomery County 2 04/21/21

The Heights School Montgomery County 3 04/21/21

Centreville Middle School Queen Anne's County 3 04/21/21

Somerset Intermediate School Somerset County 2 04/21/21

Chopticon High School St. Mary's County 3 04/21/21

Boonsboro High School Washington County 16 04/21/21

Broadfording Christian Academy Washington County 2 04/21/21

Eastern Elementary School Washington County 3 04/21/21

Lincolnshire Elementary School Washington County 3 04/21/21

Northern Middle School Washington County 2 04/21/21

Smithsburg High School Washington County 4 04/21/21

South Hagerstown High School Washington County 2 04/21/21

St. Mary Catholic School Washington County 2 04/21/21

Williamsport High School Washington County 22 04/21/21

Stephen Decatur High School Worcester County 24 04/21/21

As a reminder, the Maryland Dashboard uses the following criteria for reporting COVID-19 cases.  Not all cases are reported, only those that satisfy the following criteria.

  Note: This dataset reflects public and non-public K-12 schools in Maryland that have COVID-19 outbreaks. Data are based on local health department reports to MDH, which may be revised if additional information becomes available. This list does not include child care facilities or institutes of higher education.

Schools listed meet 1 or more of the following criteria:

    1) At least two confirmed COVID-19 cases among students/teachers/staff within a 14-day period and who are epidemiologically linked, but not household contacts; or

    2) Three or more classrooms or cohorts with cases from separate households that meet the classroom/cohort outbreak definition that occurs within 14 days; or

    3) Five percent or more unrelated students/teachers/staff have confirmed COVID-19 within a 14 day period (minimum of 10 unrelated students/teachers/staff).

Cases reported reflect the current total number of cases. Schools are removed from the list when health officials determine 14 days have passed with no new cases and no tests pending. Archival data is available through the COVID-19 open data catalogue.

These data are updated weekly on Wednesdays during the 10 a.m. hour. MDH is continuously evaluating its data and reporting systems and will make updates as more data becomes available.

 https://coronavirus.maryland.gov/pages/school-resources

4 schools In Montgomery County Get Makeover for Spring Break

Anyone know how these 3 MCPS schools were selected? 

ROCKVILLE, Md., April 20, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- CoesterVMS, a national appraisal management company, partnered with Montgomery County Public Schools, to complete an Extreme School Makeover at four schools in the state of Maryland.

CoesterVMS provided cleaning materials and 50 volunteers to spend a day completing multiple landscape, cleaning and painting projects...

...The four schools were Rachael Carson Elementary, Thurgood Marshall Elementary, Georgetown Hill and Clopper Mill Elementary. "It was so great to partner with CoesterVMS this year and they did a great job," said Collen Johnson, a teacher at Rachel Carson. "Thanks to their generous support, we were able to assist more schools than ever before with landscaping, painting, cleaning and setting up classrooms so that thousands of children could have the very best start to their school year."...

http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/coestervms-partners-with-montgomery-county-public-schools-to-makeover-4-schools-in-maryland-for-spring-break-year-300442212.html

Should Ice Cream be Available 5 Days a Week in MCPS Elementary Schools?

A parent had not realized that MCPS allows ice cream to be served daily in the lunchroom.  The parent set up an online poll on this topic. 

How many days/week do you think it's appropriate for RCES to serve ice cream to the kids at lunch?  Click link below to vote.  Thank you!

https://fans.vote/vote/ACnkNKPeCl4/rces-capacity-discussion/how-many-days-week-do-you-think-it-s-appropriate-for-rces-to-serve-icecream-to-the-kids-at-lunch 

Proposed Boundary Changes, Overcrowding and Planning Recommendations Released

Interim Superintendent's Recommendations

• Supplement A-Interim Superintendent's Recommendation for Clarksburg/Damascus Middle School Boundaries
• Supplement B- Interim Superintendent's Recommendation to Address Elementary School Overutilization in the Lower Portion of the Downcounty Consortium
• Supplement C-Interim Superintendent's Recommendation for a Tri-Cluster Roundtable Discussion Group for the Gaithersburg, Col. Zadok Magruder, and Thomas S. Wootton Clusters
• Supplement D- Interim Superintendent's Recommendation for a Walter Johnson Cluster Roundtable Discussion Group
• Supplement E-Interim Superintendent's Recommendation to Address the Rachel Carson Elementary School Overutilization

“What is the staff confidence level that this is going to work sort of as advertised, that fees that are incurred and assessed by the City of Gaithersburg are actually going to … that MCPS is going to play ball and they’re actually going to go toward relief for our capacity problems at the specific school level.” #overcrowding #Gaithersburg

At a July 6 Joint Mayor and City Council and Planning Commission Public Hearing, a proposed amendment to the city’s Adequate Public Facilities Ordinance (APFO) was discussed. The amendment suggests raising the APFO from 110 to 150 percent of school capacity five years in the future and collecting a Gaithersburg Schools Facilities Payment Fee from developers in areas where a specific school exceeds 105 percent capacity.
In Fiscal Year (FY) 2016, Rachel Carson Elementary School is expected to reach 148.1 percent capacity, a student population increase of more than 5 percent from FY2015. Speaking before the Mayor and City Council and Planning Commission, John Schlichting, director of Planning and Code Administration, said that RCES is “the most crowded school in the City of Gaithersburg, and one of the most crowded elementary schools in the county … (and) is already one of the largest if not the largest elementary school in the county.”
All of the elementary schools in the Quince Orchard cluster are overcapacity, he noted. Fields Road will be at 125.5 percent in FY2016 and Thurgood Marshall at 124.2 percent.
In total, 11 Gaithersburg public schools will be over 110 percent in FY2016, putting them in moratorium per the city’s current APFO that limits residential development when schools exceed 110 percent capacity. While waivers can be granted for schools that are below 120 percent capacity, only Gaithersburg Elementary at a projected 117.6 percent capacity and Northwest High School at a projected 110.3 percent capacity are eligible for this...

...Working in tandem with the new fee, the current 110 percent maximum for forecasted enrollment (in five years) would be changed to 150 percent. The City Council would be given authority to waive either the 150 percent capacity ceiling or the Gaithersburg Schools Facilities Payment Fee (or both) with defined justifications...

 http://towncourier.com/proposed-apfo-amendment-suggests-local-fix-for-schools/

Rachel Carson PTA Suggests New Lakelands Elementary and Study to Expand RCES

Parents packed into the Rachel Carson Elementary School media room Wednesday to try to figure out what to do about the school’s persistent overcrowding issue...
...Rachel Carson at about 1,000 kids is about 300 students over capacity and is listed as one of the most consistently over capacity schools in the district...

http://www.mymcmedia.org/rachel-carson-pta-suggests-new-lakelands-elementary-and-study-to-expand-rces/

Patch: Firing of Former Rachel Carson Teacher Affirmed by Maryland School Board

PATCH article at this link:  Daniel Picca was terminated after 17 years with Montgomery County Public Schools, with officials citing numerous incidents of inappropriate conduct with young male students.

Ashman wanted to know why Rachel Carson Elementary School (RCES), which has been over capacity for years, is not part of a feasibility study...

The Town Courier:  MCPS Offers Gaithersburg Update

According to Craig Shuman Jr., director of the MCPS Division of Construction, the Gaithersburg High School renovation project is on schedule. The stadium field AstroTurf was installed in late July and is ready for use. Whether Gaithersburg can play its football home opener is still undecided due to parking and other construction-related matters... 

...RCES OvercrowdingFollowing an overview through 2017 from Bruce Crispell, the MCPS director of the Division of Long-range Planning, gave an overview of Gaithersburg schools through 2017, Council member Jud Ashman asked if overcrowding was the main factor in whether or not a facility would be considered for school additions. Specifically, Ashman wanted to know why Rachel Carson Elementary School (RCES), which has been over capacity for years, is not part of a feasibility study. RCES was built for 668 students and, according to MCPS senior planner Debbie Szyfer, enrollment for the upcoming school year was projected at 914 students.
As of Aug. 7, however, Szyfer said the school’s enrollment was already over projection estimates by 19 students. (At press time, Principal Larry Chep said RCES has 944 students enrolled for the upcoming school year.)
Crispell said he understood the overcrowding situation at the school but that, in this situation, there is not much that could be done...

A Tale of Two Cities

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times… They of different names but same zip code (Gaithersburg/North Potomac 20878) educate their children in more than a few elementary schools, but for the purpose of this story, the main characters are Rachel Carson Elementary School (RCES - Gaithersburg 20878) and Stone Mill Elementary School (SMES - North Potomac 20878). **Travilah ES (North Potomac 20878) is an interesting but bit player due to proximity. Based on proximity to Rachel Carson, Stone Mill is only 2.8 mi as the Google crow flies; Travilah is 3.7 mi.

Now the Gaithersburg Town Courier posted on Facebook that RCES is at 137% capacity, the calculated number from their posting of 889 students in a school with a capacity of 649. Not noted, but according to the accountability office, RCES was 68% white in 2010, one of the few domains of majority White anywhere in the Montgomery County school system. RCES appears to be the poor cousin in the 20878 zip at 14.2% FARMS (Free and Reduced Meals) - a FARMS rate 2.6 times that of SMES; the majority of the 13.5% Hispanic children and the 6.6% African American children at RCES are in the FARMS category

Looking just 2.8 mi down the road, RCES parents might wonder why the closer-to-Potomac SMES is only at 86% capacity; only 593 students in a school that can hold 689. This school is majority Asian (48%) and White (39.8%), an astounding total of 87.8%.

What do the communities say? In these worst of times, would Stone Mill open their arms to the less fortunate, overcrowded of Rachel Carson?

Will the Board of Soccer - er, Board of Education - weigh in on this?

Face it Rachel Carson parents - you're not a focus/red zone school, so you're unlikely to get any help from your elected officials.

** Then again, Travilah Elementary School at 3.7 mi from RCES has even fewer students (at only 83.8% capacity), and a very similar SMES - like majority of White/Asian (88.4%), but an in-between FARMS @ 8.2%. DuFief ES, another over capacity school in the same zip/Gaithersburg, but not as overcrowded as RCES, might want to appeal to their neighboring Travilah community.

- Agnes Jones-Trower

The Town Courier: MCPS Checks Lakelands Bus Routes

MCPS Checks Lakelands Bus Routes

October 12, 2010

By Krista Brick

Montgomery County school officials may check to make sure students are eligible to ride school buses after some concern about crowded buses.

Parents with kids getting picked up at two stops in Lakelands got letters recently reminding them that only students outside the designated walk area may catch a ride to Rachel Carson Elementary School...

 ,,,“The trigger was the bus outside of the Lakelands. If there were a large number of non-eligible transported students, we could then shift our resources using this bus to help out the other bus serving outside the Lakelands and the possibility of combining both into one bus,” he said.

In evaluating the stops, Punturiero said he wanted to get an accurate count of who was riding the bus but should actually have been walking to school.

“We sent out a general letter that stated if you live within the walk boundary, you are a walker. That created an uproar in the community,” Punturiero said.

After getting complaints from parents, Punturiero personally visited the bus stops on two occasions. Each time he said the buses had an adequate number of seats to accommodate the students...