Solar energy is set to shine with a contract between Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) and SolarCity, the country’s largest solar power provider. Solar fields mounted on the ground will be installed at the rear of Robert D. Stethem Educational Center and its neighbor Dr. James Craik Elementary School. Ground-mounted solar panels also will be placed at Piccowaxen and Mattawoman middle schools, and installation of ground-mounted units is set for the new elementary school site on Billingsley Road. Roof-mounted panels will go up at the school system’s maintenance shop on Radio Station Road. The switch to solar energy at Read more…

Nicholas Gallegos, a John Hanson Middle School eighth grader, earned the title of top speller at this year’s Charles County Public Schools Spelling Bee held Feb. 19 at Benjamin Stoddert Middle School. Gallegos was named the overall winner at the event after spelling the word “azimuth” correctly during the final round. The Merriam-Webster definition of an azimuth is an arc of the horizon measured between a fixed point and the vertical circle passing through the center of an object usually in astronomy and navigation clockwise from the north point through 360 degrees. As the overall winner, Gallegos advances to the Read more…

The application process for the Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) prekindergarten program begins Monday, April 11 at all Charles County public elementary schools. To be eligible for prekindergarten, students must be four years old by September 1. The selection of prekindergarten students is based on criteria and guidelines set by the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) and CCPS. Placement in the program is based on need in the following three categories: Category one (guaranteed admission): students who are eligible for free or reduced-price meals; qualify for homeless status (certified by the CCPS department of student services); or receive food Read more…

Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) will begin to accept applications for early entrance to kindergarten on Monday, April 11. The school system has procedures and guidelines for early entrance into the kindergarten program. Parents must submit an application by June 15 for their child to be tested for early kindergarten admission. Early admission for the 2016-17 school year is open only to children whose fifth birthday falls between Sept. 2 and Oct. 15, 2016, and who reside with a parent or guardian in Charles County. State law requires students entering kindergarten to be five years old by Sept. 1 in Read more…

The registration process for the Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) kindergarten program begins on Monday, April 11 at all Charles County public elementary schools. To be eligible for kindergarten for the 2016-17 school year, students must be five years old by September 1. Kindergarten registration for in-county students is conducted at the individual elementary schools. To find out what elementary school an address is zoned for, use the School Locator feature on the Charles County Public Schools website at www.ccboe.com. Some schools allow parents to make kindergarten registration appointments in advance. Call your child’s zoned school of attendance to ask Read more…

The 38th annual Charles County Spelling Bee is 6 p.m. tonight, Friday, Feb. 19 at Benjamin Stoddert Middle School in Waldorf. The Bee will be streamed live on the Charles County Public Schools website, www.ccboe.com. Visit the home page of the website and click on picture in the middle of the page to access the live feed. Viewers can also watch the Bee live at https://livestream.com/ccpstv/2016ccpsbee. Students from all Charles County public middle schools and county private schools are invited annually to participate in the event. The Spelling Bee is sponsored by Charles County Public Schools, the College of Southern Read more…

Twenty-one teams from 12 Charles County Public middle and high schools competed in the 2016 Southern Maryland VEX League Robotics Championship held Feb. 6 at the College of Southern Maryland’s (CSM) La Plata campus. The challenge is split into two levels of competition – one for middle school teams and one for high school teams. The VEX League is sponsored by CSM and its science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) partners to support teams in Calvert, Charles and St. Mary’s counties. Six Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) teams qualified to compete in the VEX Robotics Maryland State Championship. Teams that Read more…

  Seventh graders at John Hanson Middle School learned (almost) firsthand how the life of an intensely shy woman unfolded, leading to her being called the “bravest woman in America.” Mary Ann Jung, an actress and historical interpreter, performed two shows as Clara Barton — schoolteacher, Civil War battlefield nurse, founder of the American Red Cross — for language arts students who are studying biographies. The shows were interactive with volunteering students portraying Union and Confederate soldiers, a battlefield nurse and Dr. James Dunn, a surgeon at the Battle of Antietam who worked with Barton. The rest of the audience Read more…

Today is the 100th day of school for the 2015-16 school year and the Board of Education of Charles County is celebrating by announcing its 100-year anniversary. Members of Board XVI met at the Port Tobacco one-room schoolhouse today to kick off a series of activities designed to raise awareness of the Board of Education, its rich history and its role in the success of Charles County’s public school system. The theme for the celebration is Chalkboards to Tablets: Looking Back, Moving Forward. The Board of Education of Charles County, along with Boards of Education across Maryland, was legally organized Read more…

The Board of Education presented three resolutions to Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) students and staff at its Feb. 9 meeting. The Board votes annually to accept resolutions. The following resolutions were presented: Fine and Performing Arts Month; Read Across Charles County; and Women’s History Month. CCPS recognizes Fine and Performing Arts Month annually in March. Fine and performing arts provide students with a well-rounded education and are essential in the development of education in music, theatre and visual arts. Fine and Performing Arts Month also celebrates the impact of fine arts education in student development and achievement. Accepting the Read more…