Charles County Public Schools will host more than 150 colleges at its 16th annual Charles County College Fair on Wednesday, Sept. 18, at North Point High School. The fair is open to the public from 6 to 8 p.m. High school juniors and seniors attend the event during the school day as part of the system’s career readiness goal in the five-year plan. Students are transported from school by bus and are able to speak with representatives and gather information from participating colleges. Students wishing to attend the fair during the school day must submit a signed permission slip to Read more…

Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) opened for the 2013-14 school year Monday, Aug. 26, with first day jitters, excitement and messages of safety. Superintendent Kimberly Hill joined Sheriff Rex Coffey at North Point High School Monday morning to remind students to drive safely. Along with sheriff’s officers, Hill and Coffey handed student drivers safety flyers and reminders to stow telephones before driving a car. Police officers at the five other high schools also stopped student drivers to provide the flyer, which is part of a six-year-old “We Care” program, a safe driving initiative for teens by teens with guidance from Read more…

The Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) released Maryland School Assessment (MSA) science scores and the School Progress Index (SPI) data for elementary and middle schools on Aug. 27 during the Maryland State Board of Education meeting. Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) scores on the MSA for science increased slightly, with fifth-grade scores rising 1.4 points to 64.4 percent. Eighth-grade scores increased to 68.4 percent, up 1.1 points. The federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) requires annual assessment on science at the elementary, middle, and high school levels. Maryland tests students on the MSA science exam at the fifth- Read more…

The Board of Education of Charles County is holding a work session at 6 p.m., Monday, Aug. 26, in the Board room at the Jesse L. Starkey Administration Building. The agenda is as follows: Call to Order– 6 p.m. Pledge of Allegiance Public Forum Work session Possible changes to policies 6411.7 and 6411.8 concerning testing to adapt to Race to the Top and Common Core curriculum changes FY 2013 intercategory budget request Training session on Outlook calendar for Board use Executive session Adjournment Charles County Public Schools provides 26,700 students in grades prekindergarten through 12 with an academically challenging education. Read more…

The start date for all students enrolled in the Charles County Public Schools prekindergarten program is Tuesday, Sept. 3. This includes all students in categories one, two and three. Originally, prekindergarten students began school on a staggered schedule, with categories one and two beginning on one date, and category three students beginning a week later. Parents with students beginning prekindergarten this school year are being notified by letter of their child’s acceptance into the program and the start date. Print copies of the 2013-14 Charles County Public Schools Parent/Handbook Calendar, which will be distributed to all students during the first Read more…

Superintendent Kimberly Hill told Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) 124 new teachers it’s okay to be nervous. “Anyone who cares is going to be nervous,” she said. New teachers started their jobs Monday with an orientation and a welcome to Charles County Public Schools. So far this school year, CCPS has hired 124 teachers, including 61 secondary and related arts, 31 elementary, 23 special education, five counselors, one administrative assistant, one speech language pathologist and two school psychologists. Charles County’s newest teachers gathered Monday through Wednesday at North Point High School to learn their role as teachers and for many, Read more…

Some students will take fewer exams this year if the Board of Education approves testing policy changes. Assistant Superintendent of Instruction Amy Hollstein asked the Board of Education on Tuesday to approve suggested policy changes that eliminate quarterly exams and introduce pre- and post-testing procedures to better align to the Common Core State Standards. Quarterly exams no longer meet the needs of students or teachers with the transition to the common core standards and student achievement-centered teacher evaluations, Hollstein said. The proposed testing changes may reduce the number of tests students take, create tests that provide teachers and students more Read more…

The Board of Education's next monthly meeting is Tuesday, August 13, at the Jesse L. Starkey Administration Building on Radio Station Road in La Plata. The public portion of the meeting begins at 1 p.m. and Public Forum is at 6 p.m. All Board meetings are televised live on Comcast Channel 96 and Verizon FiOS Channel 12, and rebroadcast throughout the week. Viewing schedules are available on the Charles County Public Schools website at www.ccboe.com. Executive Session – 11 a.m. Call to order – 1 p.m. Pledge of Allegiance Superintendent's update Reports of officers/boards/committees Correspondence/Board member updates Education Association of Read more…

Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) is sponsoring a bus hotline for parents to call with questions about school bus routes. Call 301-932-6655 to access the hotline. The hotline is available Aug. 22-23 from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., and Aug. 26-27 from 6 a.m. to 5 p.m. Parents can access bus routes through the School Locator feature available on the CCPS website. School Locator is designed to allow the public to enter an address and see which three schools – elementary, middle and high – an address is zoned for. It also indicates if the address is eligible for bus Read more…