Final Boundary option will be presented to BoE this week?

[Anonymous]

Any info?

[Anonymous]

They haven't posted any documents on the agenda yet, recommend checking Wednesday evening and/or Thursday morning for these.

This is the agenda for Thursday
https://go.boarddocs.com/mabe/mcpsmd/Board.nsf/goto?open&id=DN3SB971C0A2

[Anonymous]

Taylor said this at the council's education committee meeting on the CIP last week. I expect he'll be repeating some of these points to the board on Thursday:

"When the two boundary studies were originally conceived, and construction was conceived for the Woodward and Crown Farm property school, those two were trying to solve problems that have shifted. The problem downcounty of having four high schools that were overcapacity, one that was abundantly overcapacity, is easily solved with the reopening of Charles Woodward High School. Wonderful. A little bit different dynamic in upcounty, where we're looking at the school campus in Gaithersburg and relieving some of that pressure because some of the population issues have shifted since it was originally conceived, and the trajectory is different than it was originally conceived. That will have to factor in to some of this conversation as we move forward. Whether it's the conversation about holding schools, or whether it's the conversation about consolidation, or whether it's the conversation about facilities, we really need to have this almost portfolio mindset of taking a look at all of the school campuses that we have, and how do we use them to the highest and best use for the students that we have right now and what we project in the future. And as that information changes, what mechanisms do we have to adjust to those changes along the way. We may realize a sharper drop in population than what we had originally conceived, or, and this would be the ideal situation, we experience a recovery in Montgomery County that's uncharacteristic of the rest of the nation, and our enrollment goes back up. How well are we conditioned to respond to either one of those scenarios, and how can we do that quickly? It's tough stuff, but that is going to be the conversation that we have, and the CIP is going to be featured prominently in those discussions because of what we have available to us and how we use it."

[Anonymous]

If they blow up Wootton I can promise you many people will tell people not to move into this area and look in Howard or other counties because this superintendent was brought in by the board and told to shake things up. You will have an exodus of high achieving kids and families. This county’s heyday was 15years ago max. This board and sup are all out for their own political advancement and they have no fiduciary obligation to student or families.

Welcome to 2026… open your eyes

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If they blow up Wootton I can promise you many people will tell people not to move into this area and look in Howard or other counties because this superintendent was brought in by the board and told to shake things up. You will have an exodus of high achieving kids and families. This county’s heyday was 15years ago max. This board and sup are all out for their own political advancement and they have no fiduciary obligation to student or families.

Welcome to 2026… open your eyes

Taylor will dump his mess into the County Council’s lap because at it’s core this is a political problem for them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If they blow up Wootton I can promise you many people will tell people not to move into this area and look in Howard or other counties because this superintendent was brought in by the board and told to shake things up. You will have an exodus of high achieving kids and families. This county’s heyday was 15years ago max. This board and sup are all out for their own political advancement and they have no fiduciary obligation to student or families.

Welcome to 2026… open your eyes

That's what Chevy Chase families were saying at the country club years ago. No Chevy Chase families, no MCPS either.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If they blow up Wootton I can promise you many people will tell people not to move into this area and look in Howard or other counties because this superintendent was brought in by the board and told to shake things up. You will have an exodus of high achieving kids and families. This county’s heyday was 15years ago max. This board and sup are all out for their own political advancement and they have no fiduciary obligation to student or families.

Welcome to 2026… open your eyes

That's what Chevy Chase families were saying at the country club years ago. No Chevy Chase families, no MCPS either.

In response to what, kids from SS starting to go to BCC?

[Anonymous]

Big, big day tomorrow. Generational impact. Good luck everyone.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Taylor said this at the council's education committee meeting on the CIP last week. I expect he'll be repeating some of these points to the board on Thursday:

"When the two boundary studies were originally conceived, and construction was conceived for the Woodward and Crown Farm property school, those two were trying to solve problems that have shifted. The problem downcounty of having four high schools that were overcapacity, one that was abundantly overcapacity, is easily solved with the reopening of Charles Woodward High School. Wonderful. A little bit different dynamic in upcounty, where we're looking at the school campus in Gaithersburg and relieving some of that pressure because some of the population issues have shifted since it was originally conceived, and the trajectory is different than it was originally conceived. That will have to factor in to some of this conversation as we move forward. Whether it's the conversation about holding schools, or whether it's the conversation about consolidation, or whether it's the conversation about facilities, we really need to have this almost portfolio mindset of taking a look at all of the school campuses that we have, and how do we use them to the highest and best use for the students that we have right now and what we project in the future. And as that information changes, what mechanisms do we have to adjust to those changes along the way. We may realize a sharper drop in population than what we had originally conceived, or, and this would be the ideal situation, we experience a recovery in Montgomery County that's uncharacteristic of the rest of the nation, and our enrollment goes back up. How well are we conditioned to respond to either one of those scenarios, and how can we do that quickly? It's tough stuff, but that is going to be the conversation that we have, and the CIP is going to be featured prominently in those discussions because of what we have available to us and how we use it."

Yup, hopefully we have a recovery in enrollment; there's going to be a lot of housing building in the Gaithersburg region. This boundary study won't be the last word, because this area will probably look very different in the next 10-20 years.

As a parent in the Rachel Carson Elementary School, the whiplash has been pretty extreme. When my kids went to school, Rachel Carson was the most overcrowded elementary school in the county; there were portables and the kids had to eat in shifts from 10 - 2 because the cafeteria wasn't large enough to host all those kids. In 2018-2019, there was a boundary study that would move some of the students over to DuFief because we had 500 extra students over capacity. There was some talk about shifting those students also to Wootton because Quince Orchard was overcrowded while Wootton was below capacity.

Fast forward through the pandemic and suddenly Rachel Carson loses those 500 students and the portables are gone. This was unthinkable pre-pandemic, but something changed in the meantime. My theory is basically that everyone froze in place; Kentlands / Lakelands was rotating people in and out (young families in, older folks to someplace cheaper), but the pandemic + subsequent housing market increase and interest rates meant that people didn't move at all.

I have relatives and friends that live in both the Crown and Wootton areas. My Crown relatives just want their kids to go to the high school there.

Looking forward to seeing what the superintendent comes up with and then popping popcorn reading this board.

[Anonymous]

I'm wondering if Taylor will hold uploading the presentation to BoardDocs until after the meeting. Because if he doesn't, he'll scoop himself.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm wondering if Taylor will hold uploading the presentation to BoardDocs until after the meeting. Because if he doesn't, he'll scoop himself.

Oh no what is that??

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm wondering if Taylor will hold uploading the presentation to BoardDocs until after the meeting. Because if he doesn't, he'll scoop himself.

Oh no what is that??

Scooping himself meaning he'd be letting the news out about the decision before the meeting.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm wondering if Taylor will hold uploading the presentation to BoardDocs until after the meeting. Because if he doesn't, he'll scoop himself.

Oh no what is that??

Scooping himself meaning he'd be letting the news out about the decision before the meeting.

Ok phew.

[Anonymous]

Proud and impressed by the superintendent's fearless and no nonsense approach on the boundary and other issues. Bring it home TommyTay! Be well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Proud and impressed by the superintendent's fearless and no nonsense approach on the boundary and other issues. Bring it home TommyTay! Be well.

Who are you?