Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) is expanding its prekindergarten program, adding room for about 250 more four-year-olds in seven elementary schools. The additions are made possible as a result of the Commission on Innovation and Excellence in Education, also called the Kirwan Commission, recommendation that the state provide supplemental grant funding targeting early childhood education and expanding publicly funded prekindergarten programs. The state awarded CCPS $1.2 million in prekindergarten supplemental grants specifically to increase the number of prekindergarten classes. The grant provides more access to free prekindergarten and the conversion of some programs from half-day to full-day. CCPS currently has Read more…

The Charles County Commissioners on Tuesday reduced the Board of Education’s fiscal year 2020 budget by $452,200, the amount identified to fund the Fresh Start Academy. The Commissioners, by a 3-2 vote, reduced the instruction, fixed charges and administration categories by the exact amount in each category designated to support the Academy and placed those amounts in a contingency fund. “Fresh Start Academy is designed to help children who are having difficulty adjusting to the classroom structure. We are disappointed in the Commissioners’ decision; however, we plan to continue to do everything we can to support our students and teachers,” Read more…

New to Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) is an online student registration system for parents. The system is active and available on the school system website at https://www.ccboe.com/index.php/online-registration. The website features details about the registration process, what is required for parents enrolling a student new to CCPS and an easy-to-follow video tutorial. The registration website also includes step-by-step directions for users. Parents with students already enrolled in CCPS can register another child using an active ParentVue account. A registration tab is located in the upper right-hand corner of all active ParentVue accounts. Click the tab to begin registration. To find Read more…

The Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) Class of 2019 included nearly 2,000 students who graduated from high school earlier this month. While many graduated with honors, academic accolades or athletic accomplishments, other graduates focused on the end goal: receiving a high school diploma. The path to graduation is not the same for any one student. But with a variety of options, such as career and technology education (CTE) completer programs, evening high school and dual college enrollment, students are achieving success. High school students now have another option to consider on their path to graduation: the Virtual Academy. Piloted in Read more…

Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) held the second annual Be the Difference Awards program June 10 to honor volunteers who contribute their time, talents and resources to students, staff and schools.   The Outstanding Volunteer of the Year “Be the Difference” awards program began in 2018 to recognize exemplary volunteers. There are five categories including elementary school parent volunteer, middle school parent volunteer, high school parent volunteer, Charles County business volunteer and community organization volunteer. Winners are named in each category, voted on by a committee made up of Board of Education members and CCPS staff. This year, Stephanie “Dusty” Read more…

The first day on the job for Concitta Walls was Sept. 5, 1969, and she was 18. William Diggs — the namesake of a Waldorf elementary school — stopped by her house over the summer. He knew her mother had health concerns and Walls, who had just graduated high school, would be looking for a job. She started at the F.B. Gwynn Educational Center and stayed there until 1986. From there she moved to the Jesse L. Starkey Administration Building to work for the Training for Effective Transition, a program that helped support special education students, teaching them job coaching Read more…

Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) will hold toddler playgroups this summer at four elementary schools. The playgroups are open to Charles County children 18 months to 4 years old and will include hands-on play, story time and school readiness activities. Playgroups will be held once a week from July 2 to Aug. 14 at J.P. Ryon, Dr. Gustavus Brown and Daniel of St. Thomas Jenifer elementary schools. At Ryon, the group will meet Tuesdays from 9:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m., 11 a.m. to noon Tuesdays at Dr. Brown and from 11 a.m. to noon Wednesdays at Jenifer. On Wednesdays from Read more…

It’s not every day that your principal asks you to go out into the world as a soaring eagle thermostat. But that’s what Dr. Gustavus Brown Elementary School Principal Karen Lewis asked fifth graders to do at their promotion ceremony June 11. Lewis told the story of a baby eagle who fell out of his nest, landing in a turkey farm. The eaglet grew up among turkeys, and even though he never quite fit in, he went along, doing what turkeys do. One day while he was walking through the forest, he ran into an owl who challenged the eagle Read more…

Middle schoolers are challenged with a variety of activities that teach them personal responsibility such as a rotating class schedule, remembering a locker combination and multiple homework assignments. They are also learning how to navigate being a pre-teenager. Some may find it hard to connect to their school administrators, especially at the middle-school level. But not at Matthew Henson Middle School, where the administrative team goes out of its way to connect with students. Part of this team is Anthony Carroll, a vice principal at the school for the past four years. Teachers say his ability to maintain relationships with Read more…