Charles County Public Schools has released its student orientation schedule for the 2013-14 school year. Listed below are orientation dates and times, and other activities for schools. Elementary Schools C. Paul Barnhart, meet the teacher, Aug. 22, 2 – 4 p.m.; Berry, meet and greet, Aug. 22, 2 – 4 p.m.; Dr. Gustavus Brown, new students, Aug. 22, 10 – 11 a.m.; and meet and greet, Aug. 22, 2 – 4 p.m.; Dr. James Craik, orientation/drop in, Aug. 22, 3 – 5 p.m.; William A. Diggs, meet and greet, Aug. 22, 1 – 3 p.m.; Gale-Bailey, kindergarten, Aug. 22, 1 Read more…

Charles County Public Schools has released its open house schedule for the 2013-14 school year. Listed below are open house dates and times, and other activities for schools. Elementary Schools C. Paul Barnhart, all students, Sept. 4, 6 – 8 p.m.; Berry, back-to-school night, Sept. 5, 6 – 7:30 p.m.; Dr. Gustavus Brown, back-to-school night, Sept. 12, 6 – 7:30 p.m.; Dr. James Craik, back-to-school night, Sept. 19, 6 – 8 p.m.; William A. Diggs, all students, Sept. 5, 6 – 8 p.m.; Gale-Bailey, all students, Sept. 3, 6:30 – 8 p.m.; Dr. Thomas L. Higdon, all students, Sept. 12, Read more…

Donald M. Wade, a longtime Charles County Board of Education member and former chairman, was recently named the 2013 recipient of the Maryland Association of Boards of Education (MABE) Charles W. Willis Award. The award is named for the first executive director of the Association and is presented to a board member in Maryland who has made outstanding contributions to the school Board and school system they serve. Wade was nominated for the award by Charles County Board of Education Chairman Roberta S. Wise, and was selected from a number of highly-qualified candidates. Wade was unaware that he had been Read more…

A new Advanced Placement (AP) Spanish textbook proposed for next school year is on display at all Charles County Public high schools, and is available for review at the Jesse L. Starkey Administration Building in La Plata. The textbook, titled “Abriendo Paso,” is proposed for use at the high school level as part of the AP program, and will provide students with the opportunity to study Spanish on more of a global scale. The textbook is published by Pearson Education, Inc. The Board of Education is reviewing the book and will take action at the Aug. 13 meeting. Community members Read more…

Maryland School Assessment (MSA) scores declined slightly across the state and in Charles County, according to data released today by the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE). This is the final year of full MSA testing as school systems transition to the Common Core State Standards in English/Language Arts/Literacy and mathematics. Next school year, Maryland school systems will test students with a combination of MSA and the new statewide assessment, the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC). All students will be assessed using PARCC in the 2014-15 school year. In Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) elementary Read more…

The Board of Education today approved the appointment of two vice principals at the high-school level. Appointed were Philip Genua as a vice principal at North Point High School, and Douglas Lamb as a vice principal at Westlake High School. Genua most recently served as an administrative assistant at Henry E. Lackey High School, where he also taught physical education for six years. He started his career with Charles County Public Schools in 2004 as a physical education teacher at J.C. Parks Elementary School. Lamb started his career with the school system as a special education teacher at Thomas Stone Read more…

The Board of Education is holding an executive session phone conference 11 a.m., Tuesday, July 23, at the Jesse L. Starkey Administration Building as permitted by the Maryland Open Meetings Act, Section 10-508(a) and Section 10-503(c) of the State Government Article to discuss: personnel matters, specifically the Superintendent's recommendations on certificated positions. About Charles County Public Schools Charles County Public Schools provides 26,700 students in grades prekindergarten through 12 with an academically challenging education. Located in Southern Maryland, Charles County Public Schools has 35 schools that offer a technologically advanced, progressive and high quality education that builds character, equips for Read more…

Thirteen North Point High School students placed in the national top 10 at the 49th annual National Leadership and Skills Conference (NLSC) held in Kansas City, Mo. last month. More than 6,000 career and technical education students and state contest winners competed in the event, which featured 84 different trade and technical leadership categories. Gold, silver and bronze medals are presented to all first-, second-, and third-place winners in each category, and additional awards are handed out to students who finish in fourth through tenth place. The following students earned first, second or third place: Quiz Bowl category, silver medal, Read more…

Rebecca Olsen, a senior at Thomas Stone High School, was recently named a local honoree in the 2013 Kohl's Care Scholarship Program for community service. She was one of 45 Maryland local honorees recognized and received a recognition certificate and $50 gift card to Kohl's. Olsen is enrolled in the Project Lead the Way (PLTW) program at Stone and is a Maryland state registered EMT with the Hughesville Volunteer Fire Department. Last school year, Olsen participated in the Air Force STEM 2020 Challenge essay contest and in the Fighter Pilot for a Day program. Joseph Perriello, a freshman at North Read more…

The Charles County Public Schools communications department recently received three top National School Public Relations Association (NSPRA) awards in the 2013 Publications and Electronic Media Contest. A video produced by communications staff titled “Every 15 Minutes in Charles County Public Schools” received an Award of Excellence, which is the highest award given by NSPRA. The video was selected from among 135 entries, and was one of only 15 selected for the Award of Excellence. The video features the national Every 15 Minutes program held at Thomas Stone and Westlake high schools which teaches students about the dangers of driving under Read more…