A police officer used a pepper ball launcher to deploy several de-escalation “air pops” — loud sounds that do not release ammunition or pepper — while ordering students to disperse.

Police Detail Response to Fights After Blake High Football Game

The Montgomery County Police Department (MCPD) has released additional information regarding a September 19 incident at Blake High School, where officers responded to multiple student fights outside the school following a football game.

According to MCPD, around 9 p.m. officers working a football security detail requested backup after observing several groups of teens fighting near the tennis courts and parking lot. Montgomery County Public Schools security staff also attempted to break up the fights as hundreds of students ignored repeated instructions to leave...

https://www.mymcmedia.org/alleged-shoplifter-found-with-loaded-ghost-gun-in-silver-spring/

Springbrook High teachers raise concerns about principal’s alleged bullying, retaliation

After a group of teachers at Silver Spring’s Springbrook High School raised concerns about Principal Stephanie Valentine allegedly bullying and retaliating against staff, the school will be holding several listening sessions to address the concerns, according to letters from the school’s staff and Valentine.  

One letter dated March 11 was shared with Bethesda Today on March 21. It was written by several Springbrook High staff members and sent to Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) administrators, school board members and others with the aim of bringing “to your attention the very harmful workplace culture at Springbrook High School that has been fostered under the leadership of Principal Stephanie Valentine,” the letter said. “Over time, a pattern of bullying, intimidation and unprofessional behavior has developed, creating a toxic work environment that significantly affects the morale and well-being of the staff.  

In response, Valentine told staff in an email on March 28 shared with Bethesda Today that listening sessions will be held at the school to help develop “action plans to improve school climate and culture.”  

Valentine has served as the principal of Springbrook High since 2022, according to a 2022 school board document. Prior to serving as the principal of Springbrook, Valentine was the principal of Eastern Middle School in Silver Spring from 2021 to 2022, principal intern at Westland Middle School in Bethesda from 2020 to 2021 and as assistant principal of Francis Scot Key Middle School in Silver Spring from 2016 to 2020, according to the board document...

Springbrook High teachers raise concerns about principal’s alleged bullying, retaliation  - Bethesda Magazine

Breaking: AC Broken at Springbrook HS, Median Temp of School 83 Degrees at 10:20 AM

Let's begin with the definition of "median" from Webster's Dictionary  "being in the middle." 

And then word from students at Springbrook High School that they are in the second day of no air conditioning due to a broken HVAC system.

What's new this year is that MCPS has installed indoor air monitors in EVERY SINGLE CLASSROOM in the entire school system.  Parents and guardians can now monitor the indoor air quality of their child's school in real time. 

However, MCPS administrators only want parents to have limited information about the indoor air of schools.  Therefore, MCPS is only making the median indoor air temperature of the entire building public.  

So for each MCPS school building, even though every single room has an indoor air monitor, MCPS only releases one number for the entire building.  The number released is the median temperature number for the entire school building.

Today, we know that as of 10:20 AM the median temperature of Springbrook High School is 83 degrees.  That's the median temperature.  How hot are half of the classrooms in that building right now?  

One Person in Police Custody Following Assault at Springbrook High

Montgomery County Police are investigating a physical assault at Springbrook High School on Valley Brook Drive in Silver Spring.

One person is in custody following the assault Tuesday...

One Person in Police Custody Following Assault at Springbrook High - Montgomery Community Media (mymcmedia.org)

Intruder searching for girl enters Springbrook High School undetected, witnesses say..Witnesses and school officials estimate the man was in the building for at least 20 minutes.

Montgomery County Police cited a man living in a homeless shelter for criminal trespass after incident. He was not arrested

SILVER SPRING, Md. — Montgomery County police have cited a man with criminal trespassing after he entered Springbrook High School in the White Oak Section of Silver Spring Thursday without being detected by school authorities.

Witnesses say the man told students he was searching for a girl he had met at a nearby McDonald's. Concerned students made videos of the intruder wandering in hallways and alerted school officials.

Witnesses and school officials estimate the man was in the building for at least 20 minutes. The man left before administrators and security workers could react...

Man trespassing at Springbrook High School entered behind student | wusa9.com

ABC7: A female Springbrook High School student reported she was sexually assaulted in a boy's bathroom on the basement level of the school, per police sources.

STORY: A female Springbrook High School student reported she was sexually assaulted in a boy's bathroom on the basement level of the school, per police sources.

It occurred around 1:15p Tuesday, which is in the middle of Period 6 on regular school days.https://t.co/eP9zXIj8h5

— Kevin Lewis (@KevinLewis7News) February 25, 2022

https://wjla.com/news/local/springbrook-high-school-silver-spring-sexual-assault-rape-bathroom-montgomery-county-public-schools-police-sro-ceo

Letter: Transparency in Resource and Staffing Allocations by Dustin Jeter, Social Studies Teacher at Springbrook H.S.

...We are very fortunate that in the State of Maryland and especially here at the Montgomery County level, we can benefit from the Maryland Open Meetings Act, which facilitates transparency. We benefit from hearing what decisions are being made, but we are also privy to the discussions that lead to those decisions. Unfortunately, the transparency that is afforded at the county level is non-existent at our local schools. Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) has set up a system where school-level decisions are made without any input or discussion from staff or the community. The lack of transparency at the school level perpetuates inequality within our system. It disenfranchises many of the key stakeholders who must live with the school-based decisions that are made...

 

https://www.thesentinel.com/communities/montgomery/opinion/transparency-in-resource-and-staffing-allocations/article_51d64f8a-08c2-11eb-9b87-4bab294f6c39.html

Some Springbrook HS Students have 1 hr and 10 min Bus Rides, other Elem. and Middle 1 hr.

Superintendent Jack R. Smith put out a very brief memo to the Board of Education giving some information on the length of time MCPS students ride school buses.

For the 2019‒2020 school year, 103,960 students are transported daily on 1,203 routes:

630 regular education routes with 92,860 students; 

512 special education routes with 5,900 students; and

61 magnet program routes with 5,200 students.


https://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/uploadedFiles/boe/meetings/memorandum/200205%20Bus%20Routes%20Ridership%2001-09-20-02-B-C%20BD.pdf?fbclid=IwAR0TfFBY_77_MgQWbhsN6-dwj1I2GUnpoNsTh9Xc7outgPwnpxBVaeIukuc

Cell Tower Vendors on Board of Education Land Owe $165,000 in Property Taxes #Again

The Montgomery County Board of Education has cell towers on 12 pieces of public school land. 11 of those cell towers are on Board of Education property where a public school is currently located.

7 of those cell towers have vendors who have not been paying their Maryland Property Taxes. The amount of property tax dues for each vendor is shown in the images below.  The account number is shown on the MCPS list of cell towers and on the property tax bills below. Note some cell towers have multiple vendors.

The Parents' Coalition discovered unpaid property taxes in 2013, and in 2015, and in 2016, and again in 2017, on cell tower compounds located on Board of Education land. 

Charges filed from fight that broke out during the Paint Branch High School v. Springbrook High School football game. Injuries to MCPS Staff Detailed.

MORE: Per court documents, a female assistant principal injured her neck, back and knees.

A male assistant principal injured his lower back and was clocked in the head at least three times.

A male security guard injured his right thumb and shoulder, plus broke his Casio watch. pic.twitter.com/sWmlcC7d3j

— Kevin Lewis (@ABC7Kevin) October 15, 2019

@ABC7Kevin NEW: A fight broke out during the Paint Branch High School v. Springbrook High School football game last evening requiring dozens of police officers from multiple districts to quell the chaos.

NEW: A fight broke out during the Paint Branch High School v. Springbrook High School football game last evening requiring dozens of police officers from multiple districts to quell the chaos.

"Off-duty 2373! Start us some units to Paint Branch! Large fight!" - officer on scene pic.twitter.com/hvIfP9CQ1x

— Kevin Lewis (@ABC7Kevin) September 21, 2019

MORE: MoCo Police not stated what started the fight at the football field, but officers arrested multiple juveniles/young adults.

"Just let them know we are getting hit with bottles and cans from the top of the stands! Just tell the officers to be careful!" - officer to dispatch pic.twitter.com/ogmHWw3S0y

— Kevin Lewis (@ABC7Kevin) September 21, 2019

MORE: A teen later called 911 to report he was robbed of his iPhone XR during the melee at Paint Branch.

The victim said the suspect implied he had a gun, but never showed a weapon.

Paint Branch beat Springbrook 50-6. @BlueDevils_FB says the game was called due to the fight. pic.twitter.com/0T5ICDzwZ2

— Kevin Lewis (@ABC7Kevin) September 21, 2019

MCPS Employee Sentenced to Six Months for Sexually Abusing Child

A former child-care worker and school system employee who pleaded guilty to sexually abusing a child in 2018 was sentenced this week to six months in jail.

Thomas Ridges, an 18-year employee of Horizon Child Care Inc. in Silver Spring, pleaded guilty in April to the charge after inappropriately touching a teenage girl during a summer school program in 2016, according to court records.

Ridges, 39, was driving the girl home July 20, 2018, when he asked if she remembered that he had touched her two years earlier in a “private area” and said “it was purposeful,” according to police and court records.

The girl had believed the touching was accidental, according to police. Ridges, of Beltsville, also asked about the girl’s sexual history and asked her to send naked photographs to him via text message.

The matter was reported in September, and Ridges was arrested about a week later and charged by a grand jury with two counts of sexual abuse of a minor and fourth-degree sexual offense...

https://bethesdamagazine.com/bethesda-beat/courts/former-child-care-worker-mcps-employee-sentenced-to-six-months-for-sexually-abusing-child/#disqus_thread

MCPS Outlines Plan To Increase Access to ‘Choice Programs’

...Roughly 1,000 students apply each year for about 100 seats in the school’s IB program.

In response to the demand for IB programming and the Richard Montgomery High School model, the school system will expand the program to three additional high schools with existing IB programs – Watkins Mill, John F. Kennedy and Springbrook – potentially tripling the number of available seats, beginning in the 2020-2021 academic year...

 https://bethesdamagazine.com/bethesda-beat/schools/mcps-outlines-plan-to-increase-access-to-choice-programs/

Springbrook High School Student Arrested and Charged with Possession of Unloaded Handgun on School Property

Detectives from the Montgomery County Police Department’s Firearms Investigations Unit have charged 17-year-old Solomon Henderson of Silver Spring as an adult with offenses related to the possession of an unloaded handgun on school property.

Today shortly after 10:30 a.m., administrative staff and security personnel for Springbrook High School, located at 201 Valley Brook Drive in Silver Spring, received information that Henderson was in possession of a handgun.  The School Resource Officer (SRO) was notified.  An unloaded .40 caliber handgun and an empty magazine were located in Henderson’s gym bag.

Henderson was transported to the Central Processing Unit and charged with possession of a handgun, possession of a firearm by a person under 21 years old, and possession of a firearm on school property.  Bond information is not available.

At this time, detectives have not identified any type of threat or intention by Henderson to harm other students or staff.

Investigation has determined that the handgun was legally purchased and is registered to Henderson’s father.

Anyone who has information about this incident is asked to call the Firearms Investigations Unit at 240-773-6400.

At the time of these offenses, Ridges was also a Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) paraeducator and a coach for Springbrook High School Boys Junior Varsity Basketball team.

Man Charged with Inappropriate Touching and Sexual Exploitation of Juvenile Female
Posted on 09/17/2018

Detectives from the Montgomery County Police Department – Special Victims Investigations Division (SVID) have arrested and charged Thomas Henry Ridges, age 38, of Chase Terrace in Beltsville, Maryland, with two counts of sexual abuse of a minor and a fourth-degree sexual offense related to his inappropriate touching of the juvenile female and his inappropriate sexual conversation with and proposition of the victim.

Ridges’ came into contact with the victim as his role as a Horizon Child Care, Inc. employee.  At the time of these offenses, Ridges was also a Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) paraeducator and a coach for Springbrook High School Boys Junior Varsity Basketball team.

On September 5, detectives received information regarding possible sexual abuse of a minor.  Investigators determined that on July 20, Ridges offered to drive the 16-year-old victim home from the Horizon facility in Silver Spring.  The victim accepted the ride.  Ridges did not drive toward the victim’s home.  He began to ask the victim if she remembered a time when she was 14 years old and was at a local pool as a camper at Horizon’s summer camp program.  Ridges told the victim that he had touched her in a private area and that it was purposeful.  The victim had previously believed the touching was accidental.

As Ridges continued driving around, he attempted to engage the victim in a sexual conversation and posed inappropriate questions to include asking her about her previous sexual encounters, asking her about drinking alcohol (as her parked in front of a liquor store), and asking her to send naked photographs of herself to him via cell phone.  Ridges also propositioned the victim to engage in sexual acts with him during the car ride.

On September 14, investigators obtained an arrest warrant for Ridges.  He was arrested on that day and transported to the Central Processing Unit. He has since been released on bond.

Detectives are requesting that parents of juveniles who attend Horizon Child Care, Inc. or who have had contact with Ridges to talk to their children about possible interactions with Ridges and contact SVID detectives at 240-773-5400 if they believe their child was victimized.


Thomas Henry Ridges

Incident at Varsity Football Game

From: Mildred Charley-Greene <noreply@mcpsmd.org>
Date: Sat, Nov 4, 2017 at 3:50 PM
Subject: Incident at Varsity Football Game
To: Northwood High 

Good Afternoon Gladiator Families,

I am contacting you to make you aware of an incident that occurred at last night’s varsity football game against Springbrook High School played here at Northwood. During the first quarter, an on-field altercation between players led to spectators on the sidelines and in the stands coming onto the field. Springbrook Principal Art Williams and I, working with the athletic directors from both schools, made the decision to end the game due to public safety concerns. With the support of Montgomery County Police and administrators and security from Northwood and Springbrook, spectators from both teams were separated and the stadium was cleared. We are working with MCPS athletics to conduct a full investigation, including the review of game film, to identify the cause of this incident and to address unsafe and unsportsmanlike behavior. 

I regret that our senior athletes and their families who were to be presented at half time were not recognized due to this incident. We appreciate the hard work of student athletes who uphold our core values of respect and responsibility. I will be working with the athletic director, Mr. Fuggitti, and student athletes to determine a venue for celebrating these Gladiators.

Thank you for your support.

Best,

M. Charley-Greene

Springbrook High School cheerleaders continue cheer boycott after principal's 'ghetto' comment

http://www.fox5dc.com/news/local-news/231832652-story

Equity: Which MCPS Parent Club is Getting $200K from State and $500K from Board of Education for Plastic Grass?

Kennedy HS - Not getting $700,000 for new football field.

Springbrook HS - Not getting $700,000.

This will be easy, right?

Here are 3 MCPS high school football fields.

The parent booster club for one of these fields just won $200,000 from the State of Maryland through a Bond Bill, and $500,000 from the Board of Education so that parents can purchase a plastic grass football field.

As we are all about equity here in Montgomery County, you can be sure that the community with the greatest need will be getting that cash, correct?

But, no. 

Winner! Damascus HS

$8,101 in Back Property Taxes Owed on Springbrook Cell Tower

Warning on cell tower on Board of Education land.

One more cell tower vendor on Montgomery County Board of Education land that is not paying their required property taxes.  

Account Number: 03696578

Huff Post: My call to action is for the Montgomery County school board is to institute best practices immediately to prevent these types of exposures that can have both long and short term effects.

...The efforts of the school were proactive in their thinking, and I am certain they thought they were taking "healthy" steps to prevent illness not cause it. That said this is where the road splits on intentions and intelligence on the part of the school board. While one can hardly blame employees, clearly as with many schools, there are either inadequate or non-existent "best practices" for the school system in handling these very toxic and harmful chemicals. No surprise these children started turning up with burns that even hospitalized one for three days and who now will also miss the rest of the football season. 

The disinfectant Virex ll 256 as reported by the Washington Post used in this incident warns on its label: "PRECAUTIONARY STATEMENTS HAZARD TO HUMANS AND DOMESTIC ANIMALS DANGER: Corrosive. Causes irreversible eye damage and skin burns. Do not get in eyes, on skin or on clothing. Wear chemical splash-proof goggles or face shield, rubber gloves and protective clothing. Harmful if swallowed, inhaled or absorbed through skin. Avoid breathing spray mist. Wash thoroughly with soap and water after handling and before eating, drinking, chewing gum, using tobacco or using the toilet. Remove contaminated clothing and wash before reuse."
I called the general number for Montgomery County Public Schools that oversees this school. They transferred me a few times before getting turned over to the school board office. My question- what is the school board doing to create best practices to prevent this from happening again? While I did not get an answer, I did leave my number...



http://www.huffingtonpost.com/bill-couzens/hey-i-am-knocking-on-your_b_5882980.html