NAACP Parents’ Council Reps, Colleagues, and Friends:

Thank you to the 186 people that registered for the meeting and a special thanks to our MCPS speakers, Jeannie Franklin, Stephanie Brant, and Niki Porter.

Agenda & Presentations

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Detailed Summary

Quick recap

 

This NAACP Parents Council meeting covered three major topics: voter engagement, secondary school program options, and the new mathematics curriculum and assessment systems in Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS).

Key Highlights:

• Voter Engagement: Byron shared concerning statistics showing that almost half of eligible voters in Montgomery County did not vote in the last midterm election. The council distributed “Your Plan to Vote” resources to help increase voter participation in the upcoming election.
• Celebrating our win: Byron shared the invitation from the Legal Defense Fund, Democracy Forward, and ACLU to a September 22^nd celebration of our win in the Dear Colleague Letter case!
• Museum Field Trip Grant: Libby Rogovoy announced that MCPS received state grant funding—$6,000 more than last year—to provide field trips to the National Museum of African American History and Culture and other cultural institutions for approximately 11,000 students.
• High School Center Programs: Jeannie Franklin and Stephanie Powell presented the new regional center program structure, explaining how eighth-grade students can apply to up to eight specialized center programs through a ranked lottery system. The application deadline is November 6th, with results released in late January.
• New Math Curriculum: Stephanie Brant detailed the implementation of Amplify Desmos Math for grades Pre-K through Algebra 1, including the cluster grouping model for 4th graders (expanding to 3rd and 5th grades next year) and the new MCLASS Math assessment system.
• Assessment Changes: Niki Porter introduced the M-STAR state assessment replacing MCAP, with a 25% reduction in testing time. MAP Math will now only be administered at the end of the year for growth measurement, while MCLASS Math will be given three times per year for elementary students.Next steps

  Byron

• Share the meeting notes, including the “Your Plan to Vote” flyer and the PSAT flyer, with attendees.
• Ensure the Parents Council is informed about the upcoming community meetings regarding school consolidations and closures.

• Share LDF “Celebrate Our Win” webinar link

  Elizabeth

• Write a memo to all principals about the field trip grant process and sign-up information, to be sent out by the first week of October.Collaboration
• Parent Reps: Reach out to their school administrations in the first week of October to discuss field trip dates and support for the grant-funded trips.
• Parent Reps: Share the “Your Plan to Vote” infographic and resources with their school communities to encourage voter participation.
• Parents: Ensure they have a ParentVUE account and assist eighth-grade students with completing the High School Possibility Form by November 6th.
• Parents: Attend the regional high school showcases in October to learn about center programs.
• Parents: Utilize the Caregiver Hub and Boost platform for math and ELA resources and practice.
• Parents: Provide feedback to Stephanie Brant and Nikki Porter regarding inconsistencies in curriculum implementation at the local school level.
• MCPS Curriculum Team (Stephanie Brant/Nikki Porter): Update the Q&A document for the new math curriculum and share it with parent reps.
• MCPS Curriculum Team: Send weekly information about the PSAT to parents, including resources and practice assessments.

Byron Johns

Chair, Education | Parents’ Council

NAACP-MC

bajusa@yahoo.com |  703.856.4354