Sonya Ford, a school counselor at Matthew Henson Middle School, was recently named a semifinalist for the 2015 American School Counselor Association (ASCA) School Counselor of the Year award. Ford is one of 16 semifinalists chosen from school counselors nationwide. The awards program honors counselors who serve as student advocates, are innovative, contribute to student achievement and coordinate effective counseling programs. In addition to the 16 semifinalists, the ASCA chose five finalists for the award. Earlier this year, Ford was selected to represent Maryland school counselors as the 2014 Maryland Middle School Counselor of the Year by the Maryland School Read more…

Thomas Stone High School’s It’s Academic team competed in a regional match against Einstein and Loudon County high schools that will on Saturday, Nov. 8 on WRC TV (NBC 4). The three-member team consists of seniors Rainey Southworth, who is the team captain, and Matthew Trusnovic, and junior Lee Powell. Team coaches are Nancy Jeffrey, a foreign language teacher at Stone, and Sara Thompson, who teaches English at Stone. The team won second place in the Charles County competition in December 2013, which earned them a chance to compete in a televised match this school year. It’s Academic is sponsored Read more…

Student actors in Charles County’s seven public high schools are preparing for fall plays and musicals, which began early next month. The following is a list of school plays, ticket and contact information for each high school. La Plata, Maurice J. McDonough and Westlake high schools are hosting their fall productions during the first weekend in November. La Plata High School is presenting the musical “The Addams Family,” on Nov. 6-8. The musical is about the Addams Family, a ghoulish family that enjoys frightening ways of life. Gomez Addams, head of the family, learns that his daughter Wednesday, who is Read more…

The Board of Education of Charles County and College of Southern Maryland (CSM) Board of Directors will meet at 6 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 27 at the Center for Business Industry in room BI 103/104, located on the CSM La Plata campus. The following is a tentative agenda: Pledge of Allegiance Dinner/Introductions Access CSM Early College Academy proposal Update on Middle College Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between CSM and Charles County Public Schools Adjournment Charles County Public Schools provides 26,500 students in grades prekindergarten through 12 with an academically challenging education. Located in Southern Maryland, Charles County Public Schools has Read more…

The Board of Education presented two resolutions to Charles County Public Schools students and staff at their Oct. 14 meeting. The resolutions are presented to the Board annually. The following resolutions were presented: American Education Week; and American Freedom Week. Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) celebrates American Education Week Nov. 17-21. American Education Week presents all Americans with opportunities to celebrate public education and honor individuals who are making a difference in ensuring that every child receives a quality education. Accepting the resolution at the Board meeting were Student Board Member and Westlake High School senior Georgia Benson; Education Association Read more…

The Board of Education honored five Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) employees at the Oct. 14 Board meeting, including Christine Busey, Debra Haan, Lauren Hoza, Holly Marsh and Matthew Watkoski. Busey is a prekindergarten instructional assistant at Gale-Bailey Elementary School. She was nominated for recognition for her dedication to students and exemplar work ethic. She primarily works with special education students and creates learning activities to target different levels of learning regularly. Busey also helps with behavior management strategies and assists in data collection for students with Individualized Education Plan (IEP) goals. She was also recently nominated for a Special Read more…

The Board of Education honored five students on Tuesday, Oct. 14 for excellence in academic achievement, career readiness and personal responsibility. Honored were Allissa Barnes, fifth grade, Arthur Middleton Elementary School; John Thomas “JT” Gibson, fifth grade, Mary H. Matula Elementary School; Jack Goodwin, fifth grade, Gale-Bailey Elementary School; Emily Maljak, eighth grade, Milton M. Somers Middle School; and Jordan Parker, senior, Maurice J. McDonough High School. Barnes was recognized in the area of academic achievement and is a well-rounded student. She earns honor roll grades each quarter and consistently excels in the classroom. She is enrolled in accelerated math Read more…

New textbooks proposed by Charles County Public Schools are available for review at the Jesse L. Starkey Administration Building, and at La Plata, North Point and Thomas Stone high schools. The textbooks are proposed for use at St. Charles High School as part of the school’s use of the Windows 7 Operating System. St. Charles is currently the only Charles County Public high school that has transitioned to the new operating system, and the textbooks are required for students to understand new Microsoft Office features and applications. The series of texts, Microsoft Office 2013 Illustrated Introductory, First- and Second-Courses, by Read more…

Restoring natural habitats is dirty work, but J.C. Parks Elementary School students know someone has to do it. Students and staff in every class from kindergarten to fifth grade recently went outside for 30 minutes and dug in to create an outdoor learning classroom habitat. On Oct. 8 and 9, volunteers helped students dig holes, cut the root balls off each plant and put each plant in the ground. Students added compost, soil and water to help each plant flourish. This project is the second and final phase to a grant Parks received four years ago. In 2011, Parks received Read more…

Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) just made receiving school system news, emergency closings and delay information a lot easier. CCPS has launched a mobile App that puts school system information in one easy to use location. Called CCPS On the Go (OTG), the App makes it easy for parents, students, teachers and community members to access information while on the go, from the device of their choice. App users can enjoy custom feeds to the CCPS calendar, news, contacts, CCPS Television, transportation, My Payments Plus, meal menus and more. The news feed provides personalized, on-demand access to news and alerts Read more…