Embracing Change Through Partnerships ! NAACP Parents’ Council Monthly Newsletter In this issue….. At Last Month’s Meeting Schools Represented at Last Month’s Meeting What’s Happening in our Schools? Best and Brightest May 2013 Our June Meeting “The Best and Brightest Meeting” Saturday, June 1, 2013 8:45-11:00 am 850 Hungerford Drive, Rockville. Please join us as we celebrate over 30 MCPS Staff members that we think are our Best and Brightest! At Last Month’s Meeting Our guest for the April NAACP Parents’ Council meeting was our own superintendent, Dr. Joshua Starr. He shared his thoughts about how we are doing and the work that still needs to be done for stu- dents across Montgomery County. “We cannot deny success that we’ve had. We still have work” he shared. Dr. Starr believes that the core purpose of education is to prepare kids to thrive in their future. He thinks we’ve done well for some kids but not well enough for others. Students now have more information available to them than ever before. Educators have the task of figuring out what kids need to be able to do. Kids still need academics though there is a shift in what aca- demic success is. Dr. Starr stated kids still need crea- tive problem solving skills and be able to work with others. Also there will be social and emotional com- petencies that students will need to master. The reorganization plan for MCPS will be available soon and will feature a one page information sheet that will discuss what our focus will be and how we will measure it. A special look at resources should take place at the school level for we know the way that money is used could determine your results-though every school is different. Dr. Starr wants the county to look at GPA and eligibility and engagement as im- portant factors in school success. Every school must address social emotional health and have an approach to dealing with that aspect of the child. Dr. Starr spoke about the vital signs that will allow us to check on our progress. Some of these vital signs included 3 rd grade reading scores, 5 th and 8 th grade reading and math, and success in 9 th grade. He be- lieves these factors are all important checkpoints for us to pay attention to when ensuring student success. In terms of the reorganization, there has been a real- location of some positions and the county will now organize by level and use a “case management ap- proach” to schools and improvement. A team based approach in the schools will help kids with problems by including community resources in the solution. Dr. Starr believes in the ideals of learning, respect, rela- tionships, excellence, and equity. Lastly, Dr. Starr encourages us to Show up! We need to make our voices heard at any and all open meetings where education for our students is being discussed- “the squeaky wheel” syndrome (squeaky wheel is the one that gets the oil) is alive and well. Dr. Starr be- lieves that relationships matter in the lives of our chil- dren and all the children of MCPS.
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Embracing Change Through Partnerships !
NAACP Parents’ Council
Monthly Newsletter
In this issue….. At Last Month’s Meeting Schools Represented at Last
Month’s Meeting What’s Happening in our Schools? Best and Brightest
May 2013
Our June Meeting “The Best and Brightest Meeting”
Saturday, June 1, 2013 8:45-11:00 am
850 Hungerford Drive, Rockville. Please join us as we celebrate over 30 MCPS Staff members that we think are our Best and
Brightest!
At Last Month’s Meeting
Our guest for the April NAACP Parents’ Council meeting was our own superintendent, Dr. Joshua Starr. He shared his thoughts about how we are doing and the work that still needs to be done for stu-dents across Montgomery County.
“We cannot deny success that we’ve had. We still have work” he shared. Dr. Starr believes that the core purpose of education is to prepare kids to thrive in their future. He thinks we’ve done well for some kids but not well enough for others.
Students now have more information available to them than ever before. Educators have the task of figuring out what kids need to be able to do. Kids still need academics though there is a shift in what aca-demic success is. Dr. Starr stated kids still need crea-tive problem solving skills and be able to work with others. Also there will be social and emotional com-petencies that students will need to master.
The reorganization plan for MCPS will be available soon and will feature a one page information sheet that will discuss what our focus will be and how we will measure it. A special look at resources should take place at the school level for we know the way that money is used could determine your results-though
every school is different. Dr. Starr wants the county to look at GPA and eligibility and engagement as im-portant factors in school success. Every school must address social emotional health and have an approach to dealing with that aspect of the child.
Dr. Starr spoke about the vital signs that will allow us to check on our progress. Some of these vital signs included 3rd grade reading scores, 5th and 8th grade reading and math, and success in 9th grade. He be-lieves these factors are all important checkpoints for us to pay attention to when ensuring student success. In terms of the reorganization, there has been a real-location of some positions and the county will now organize by level and use a “case management ap-proach” to schools and improvement. A team based approach in the schools will help kids with problems by including community resources in the solution. Dr. Starr believes in the ideals of learning, respect, rela-tionships, excellence, and equity.
Lastly, Dr. Starr encourages us to Show up! We need to make our voices heard at any and all open meetings where education for our students is being discussed-“the squeaky wheel” syndrome (squeaky wheel is the one that gets the oil) is alive and well. Dr. Starr be-lieves that relationships matter in the lives of our chil-dren and all the children of MCPS.
Embracing Change Through Partnerships !
Schools Represented at our April Meeting
Albert Einstein HS
Bethesda Chevy Chase HS
James Hubert Blake HS
Briggs Chaney MS
Farmland ES
William Farquhar MS
Gaithersburg HS
Gaithersburg MS
Montgomery Village MS
North Bethesda MS
Northwest HS
Northwood HS
Quince Orchard HS
RICA (Regional Institute for Children and Adults)
Sherwood ES
Sherwood HS
Springbrook HS
Stonegate ES
Westland MS
Wheaton Woods ES
Woodlin ES
Thomas Wootton HS
Meeting Note for Parents’ Council
Representatives Please make sure to sign in at all monthly PC meetings. This is what we use to document your attendance.
Embracing Change Through Partnerships !
What’s Happening in Our Schools?
Northwest High School Germantown, MD
Northwest High Continues to Carry and Run With A
Burning Torch for Bridging the Academic Achievement Gap
The Northwest High School African American Parent Council hosted an Enrichment Panel Discussion meeting on Wednesday, April 10, 2013 at 7:00 PM in the NWHS cafeteria. . Flyers were distributed to various MCPS schools to attract the parents and students in the MCPS community so that they could learn about some of the enrichment programs available to MCPS students at all grade levels (K through 12). The programs in-clude remedial, on level, and advanced level instruction as well as en-richment opportunities beyond the classroom. Panelists representative of the State Of The African American Student in Montgomery County Public
Schools meeting held in March shared these op-portunities at NWHS. Panelists included Dan-ielle Williams-Saddler of the MCPS Division of Family and Community Partnerships, Lorna Forde of the Montgomery County, MD Alumni Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., Mi-chael Thomas of the George B. Thomas Learning
Academy and Donald Williams of Aim High In Life. Submitted by Denize Stanton Williams Northwest High School, Parents’ Council Representative
Embracing Change Through Partnerships !
National Scholastic Winners MCPS had two 2013 National Scholastic win-ners. Each year Scholastic awards 9 student "National READ 180 All-Star" awards and 4 teacher "National Scholastic Outstanding Educator" Awards. This year, MCPS had both a student and teacher winner. Jeannette Simmons was one of the four Outstanding Educator Award winners, and Keyon Budd, a student at Poole MS, is one of the nine student winners. Ms. Simmons is a teacher at Argyle Middle School in Silver Spring, MD. They both were presented plaques by Mr. James Howard, a Regional Scholastic Representative Submitted by Patricia Williams, Parents’ Council Advisor
What’s Happening in Our Schools?
Attention: Parents'’ Council Representatives
Please let us know if you plan to return next year as a Parents’ Council representative for your school. If you are not returning, please make every effort to find anoth-er committed, active parent to replace you.
Our first meeting next year will be held on August 17, 2013 at CESC. Have a great summer and we hope to see you back next year!
Embracing Change Through Partnerships !
Sligo Middle School Silver Spring, MD Sligo Middle School’s Parents’ Council will host a celebration to honor the Af-rican American/black students who have achieved grade point averages of 3.0 the first two quarters of the 2012-2013 school year. The event will be held on Tuesday, May 28, 2013. This is the third year students will be celebrated with a light, continental breakfast to acknowledge their achievements. Parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, family members, friends, and staff are encour-aged and welcomed to attend the event.
The first breakfast, under the leadership of Principal Rhodes, included 1/3 of the African American/black students at the school. This year, the honorees are 47% of the school’s eligible students. That is an increase of 14% in two year! We are thrilled for the increase of Sligo Scholars and thank the parents, families, and staff of Sligo for and continuing to encourage and support students.
Last year’s program was supported by Cluster Rep, Soffie Cessay and Parents’ Council Advisor, Pa-tricia Williams. Both ladies honored the three 4.0 gpa students from the school—two were hon-orees!We expect this year’s program to be even better.
Submitted by Pat Price Sligo Middle School Parents’ Council Representative
Farquhar Middle School Olney, MD
“Reach for the Toppings” June 4, 2013
Farquhar Middle School Farquhar’s own, AAEA (African American Excellence Award) will be awarded to stu-
dents with a B average or higher on June 4, 2013 at 7:00 pm. Invited families are asked to bring an ice cream toppings to the celebration to share. Mr. Bruce Caviness, a retiring Farquhar staff member ,will be our guest speaker. We celebrate hard work and academic success! Sharon Cannon, Farquhar parent is assisting with the plan-
ning of this now annual event. Submitted by Sharon Mosley-Ramsey Farquhar MS Parents’ Council Representative
What’s Happening in Our Schools?
Embracing Change Through Partnerships !
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