Parents who live in Title I school zones with children who are 3 years old by Sept. 1 can apply for the Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) Thriving Threes and Me Early Learning Program. The application launches online Tuesday, Sept. 1 and children must meet certain criteria for program acceptance. The program features a two-generation approach, meaning parents participate in the program along with their child in order to help the child receive a strong educational foundation. The goal is to provide families with resources and skills to help their children achieve academic and personal success. The program starts for Read more…

Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) is preparing for the first day of school for students on Monday, Aug. 31, with the first weeks of school focused on students and staff reconnecting and building relationships. To aid with virtual learning, a family internet center at Henry E. Lackey High School will open starting Wednesday, Sept. 2, to provide a space for students who need access to WiFi. The study hall-type space will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., Monday through Friday, in Lackey’s gym with desks socially distanced. Space is limited and must be reserved between 8:30 a.m. to Read more…

Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) is offering a back-to-school hotline for parents and students to call with questions about the start of the 2020-21 school year. The first day of school for CCPS students is Monday, Aug. 31. The hotline phone number is 301-932-6655 and available from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 27, Friday, Aug. 28, Monday, Aug. 31, and Tuesday, Sept. 1. Parents and students can also submit questions online using the AskCCPS help desk available on the school system website at www.ccboe.com. The Spanish hotline phone number is 240-523-3032. Staff manage the hotline Monday through Friday Read more…

Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) students officially begin the 2020-21 school year online Monday, Aug. 31. More than 27,000 students are expected to log on Aug. 31 to start an enhanced virtual learning experience. Students will learn virtually four days a week with a mid-week break on Wednesdays to participate in pre-planned instruction, focused instructional needs or classwork. Students in the prekindergarten program begin online instruction Tuesday, Sept. 8. Some CCPS teachers will oversee lessons from home through telework, while others have opted to return to their school buildings to teach from their classrooms. While this is an unprecedented way Read more…

The Board of Education will meet in executive session at 1 p.m.  on Thursday, Aug. 27 to discuss strategies for negotiations with the county concerning school seat allocations. The meeting will be held at the Jesse L. Starkey Administration Building on Radio Station Road in La Plata; however, the building is not open to the public at this time. Executive sessions are closed to the public as permitted by the Maryland Open Meetings Act, Sections 3-305 and 3-103 of the General Provisions Article. The following is a tentative meeting agenda and is subject to change. Call to order – 1 Read more…

Twelve seniors finished their high school coursework requirements and graduated from Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) Aug. 6 during summer commencement exercises at the Robert D. Stethem Educational Center. The ceremony was virtual; however students, following safety protocols, were able to walk across the center’s stage and accepted their diploma from Principal Curry Werkheiser. Representing five high schools, the graduates wore caps and gowns in their respective schools’ colors. The virtual summer graduation featured Marvin Jones, executive director of schools, as the guest speaker, and included messages from Superintendent Kimberly Hill and members of the Board of Education. Jones said Read more…

Students will use StudentVue accounts to access live instruction, how-to steps below The first day of school for Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) students is Monday, Aug. 31. Teachers will present live instruction using a secure-Zoom connection in Synergy, the student information system connected to StudentVue and ParentVue. Schools are finalizing student schedules and will share them with parents and students by next week. Schedules will be posted in StudentVue and ParentVue in the left menu area under a tab titled Class Schedule. Teachers will present live instruction on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday of each week. To access daily Read more…

  Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) held New Teacher Orientation Aug. 17 to 19 — a three-day hybrid of virtual and in-person trainings. Topics covered an analysis of standards, curriculum and instructional resources, classroom management in a virtual world and training on Synergy, the student management system. Other trainings targeted each grade, subject or educational program. CCPS has hired 149 new teachers for this school year. The school system has 33 teaching positions open as of mid-August.   This school year will start unlike any other in the history of CCPS. Students return to school on Aug. 31, without physically Read more…

As it has for years, Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) held summer enrichment camps to keep academic skills sharp among students while introducing them to new activities or expanding on their love of others. Earlier this year when the threat of spreading COVID-19 put a halt to in-person instruction, CCPS gifted education services staff — which coordinates the enrichment camp program — scrambled to figure out how to offer camps. Teachers had already submitted proposals, kids were already registering. Organizers reached out to teachers asking if they could tailor their camps to be held virtually — many said they could. Read more…

Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) staff is working to inventory and provide laptops to all secondary students, and complete requests for devices at the elementary-school level. Some students may receive a device by the first day of school, Monday, Aug. 31, while others may be assigned a laptop shortly after the start of the school year. High school devices are being readied for distribution and the middle school devices are set to be ready in mid-September. Laptops for elementary school students are provided from current CCPS inventories and assigned to families as requested. How to request a device or a Read more…