TPMS is killing the arts, the magnet program, and the autism program
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Anonymous
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Nearing the conclusion of a “community engagement” over changing the bell schedule where the teachers voted for the outcome prior to any community engagement, the process completely lacked transparency, the community surveys were a joke where questions were overtly biased and obviously meant to support a particular outcome, the consequences of the change in bell schedule where only clearly stated to “shareholders” when the process was too far gone, the administration refused to share the data from the surveys, the administration refused to provide information regarding when the final outcome of the “community engagement” would be sent to central office for approval or who it will be sent to, afterthought meetings to special groups such as the magnet program, and absolutely zero meetings with other majorly affected groups such as the autism program and other programs for children requiring extra enrichment. Not to mention the 14 page Google doc the magnet parents wrote in questions to per administrations request was never responded to.
The bottom line, the arts and music programs at TPMS will be shells of their former selves with little to no magnet students, autism students, or students who need extra support being able to access these programs any longer. Parents are threatening to pull their children and many feel like it’s been a huge bait and switch. Any family who is considering this school for next year and wondering if a long commute would be worth your child’s time, should think long and hard. |
Anonymous
| Wow, thank you PP for this info. We are awaiting the lottery placements and are thinking about just going w/the home school. |
Anonymous
| Please cite your sources. |
Anonymous
Ask anyone with a current magnet student there |
Anonymous
| And? Some of us tried to warn you all when you thought it was funny when they aready got rid of the MVA, a Autism program (so this will be the second program and they don't have enough), a trade program and early education. That was just the beginning. Taylor is just the same as all the rest. |
Anonymous
| Ma’am this is a Wendy’s. |
Anonymous
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I'm surprised MCPS would gut TPMS. I thought it was considered one of the golden schools in the system? But the rest of the stuff you described in terms of lack of transparency, disregarding community input, etc. is very much textbook MCPS.
I just didn't think they'd do that to Takoma Park! |
Anonymous
You get more choices and options at Wendys than MCPS. |
Anonymous
What on earth does that mean? |
Anonymous
Click Ma’am this is a Wendy’s. |
Anonymous
No. Rumor mongering is tacky. |
Anonymous
The teachers voted to go from teaching 6 classes to 5. They voted to keep class size at current level. Said a few more per class was absolutely not doable. Translates to one less elective for everyone. And for any special program student, magnet or otherwise, means they only have one. Most of the magnet students were pushed in to taking a language as an elective and so now must choose between an actual elective and language. The majority will choose language. The school openly acknowledges that the number of electives teachers will decrease- the majority of which are music and art teachers. The majority of magnet kids (1/3 of the school) had their “2nd elective” in the arts- many in band/orchestra. As for the autism program and other programs where kids need enrichments, they will loose those enrichments or have zero electives. The administration “promises” to review “mitigation strategies” at some point. Fat chance. |
Anonymous
It’s not a rumor. |
Anonymous
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Complain about the process but teachers have every right to work under the same conditions as elsewhere in MCPS. The fact that they’ve been teaching more classes, with no additional compensation, than their peers was a travesty.
-TPMS parent |
Anonymous
Takoma isn’t a golden school, it’s only good by DCC standards. The magnet was put there because it was one of the first middle schools in MoCo to get an influx of poor minorities due to maple Ave and they incentivized an influx of kids to stabilize things |