From launching the highly successful Triple-E program in 12 more schools to embarking on a new required course for incoming ninth-graders, the 2019-2020 school year features more opportunities for students to be engaged at all levels as well as a focus on fostering communities of acceptance and inclusion.
With the exception of six schools that will open one day late due to planned construction projects, the first day of classes for students in first through fifth, sixth, and ninth grades will be Tuesday, September 3. The staggered openings of secondary schools will give sixth- and ninth-graders a chance to get acclimated to their new surroundings before the remaining students return to class on Wednesday, September 4.
Kindergarten, prekindergarten, and ECI students will also start school on a staggered schedule. Parents should see the school calendar located on the AACPS website for details.
Delayed openings
Planned construction projects and moves will necessitate a one-day delay in the opening of six schools. Staggered start schedules will be moved by one day to accommodate late openings at Chesapeake Bay Middle School and Arnold, Edgewater, George Cromwell, High Point, and Jessup elementary schools.
Central Special School, Marley Glen Special School, and Ruth Parker Eason Special School will open for all students on Wednesday, September 4. Parent conferences at those three schools will take place on Tuesday, September 3.
No staggered start
Students at the Mary Moss at J. Albert Adams Academy will not utilize the staggered start. All students at the school will begin class on Tuesday, September 3.
Temporary home
Richard Henry Lee Elementary School students in grades 1 through 5 will again be housed at Corkran Middle School and kindergarten students will attend classes at Oakwood Elementary School as their school’s revitalization project is completed. A ribbon cutting on the revitalized school will take place next summer, and students will return to Richard Henry Lee in the fall of 2020.
New educational opportunities
AACPS has expanded six half-day prekindergarten programs to full-day programs and added a full-day program at Jacobsville Elementary School. More than 1,400 students are expected to enroll in prekindergarten programs this year.
This fall also brings another expansion of the highly successful Triple E (Enhancing Elementary Excellence) program to all five elementary schools in the Broadneck cluster, six of the eight elementary schools in the Glen Burnie cluster, and the Marley Glen School. Oakwood and Richard Henry Lee elementary schools will start the program next year once construction activities that are impacting both sites are completed.
The program, now in place in eight clusters across the county, offers students an additional area of study with project-based lessons designed to spark creativity and teach students to approach problems with an open mind. It also provides elementary teachers with precious additional planning time.
Global Community Citizenship course
The school year brings with it a new graduation requirement for all incoming ninth-graders. The Global Community Citizenship course, which was piloted at Arundel High School in each of the last two years, has been expanded to every county high school. It is designed to explore the values and diversity of our local, national, and global communities. Through real world occurrences and issues, students identify and discuss topics, events, and essential questions relevant to their local community which allow them to understand their role in demonstrating civic virtues.
Back-To-School Events
All schools have scheduled Back-To-School Nights to provide parents with a chance to learn more about the instruction that their children are receiving and to meet the teachers who are providing that instruction. Detailed information on dates and times for every school can be found on the AACPS website.
New faces in new places
There are new principals at 16 schools across the county. Eleven of those schools – Meade, and Southern high schools; Annapolis and Meade middle schools and Old Mill Middle School North; and Four Seasons, Crofton, Jones, Linthicum, and Manor View elementary schools – will be led by first-year principals who were assistant principals in the county last year.
Student immunizations
It is the responsibility of parents and guardians to ensure that their child’s immunizations and records are both up to date and on file with the school. Students who do not have documentation of required immunizations will not be allowed to attend school when the school year starts. Parents who have questions should check with their child’s school.
A list of required immunizations can be found online here.
Security reminder for visitors to schools
In order to assist AACPS in maintain a safe and secure environment for students and staff, county schools are equipped with A/I phones which allow office personnel to communicate with visitors to determine the nature of their visit before allowing admittance to the school office. Parents, community members, school system employees, and others planning to visit schools are reminded that AACPS security procedures require all visitors to show a government-issued identification card (such as a driver’s license) to be admitted into a school. The ID card is scanned through a system that cross-references visitors against sexual offender databases.
Visitors must not hold the front door of a school open to allow other visitors not in their party into a school.
Additionally, work to construct security vestibules (double entryways) that prevent visitors from having direct access to classrooms, continues at schools around the county.
Fueled up and ready to go
This year, nearly 652,000 hours will be spent driving approximately 700 buses nearly 10 million miles to transport students to and from schools. On a daily basis, approximately 63,000 students are eligible to use county school transportation services.
Bus services are offered to students living outside designated walking areas at each school. Prekindergarten and kindergarten students who live greater than one-half mile from school, elementary school students who live greater than one mile from school, and middle and high school students who live greater than one-and-one-half miles from school are eligible to receive transportation services.
Routine bus evacuation drills will be conducted throughout the school year.
Complete school bus schedules and procedures can be found here.
Fuel for achievement
For the sixth consecutive year, the cost of school meals for students will not increase. School breakfasts will cost $1.50, with lunches at elementary and secondary schools costing $2.75 and $3.00, respectively. The cost of milk will remain at 55 cents per bottle. At all schools, reduced-price breakfast and lunch are both now free.
In addition to unlimited choices of fresh fruits and vegetables daily, AACPS offers a variety of nutritious meal options to ensure students are properly fueled for the school day. Forty-nine schools will offer free breakfast to all students as part of the Maryland Meals for Achievement program. Nine schools will allow students to purchase breakfast and eat with teachers and peers in the classroom as part of the Breakfast with Class program. In addition, 45 sites will serve free early evening meals to students through a federally funded initiative aimed at supporting good nutrition and combating youth hunger. The school system also served approximately 125,000 meals to young people over the summer.
Students who wish to apply for free or reduced-price meals must complete a new SY2019-2020 Meal Benefit Application, available here. Applications are accepted throughout the school year.
For the 11th straight year, AACPS is utilizing an enhanced computer system, MyPaymentsPlus, to make meal purchases faster and easier. Students whose parents/guardians deposit money into an account can use their six-digit student identification number to make purchases. Parents can register to receive emails when balances are low and can monitor their child’s purchases. Questions about the prepayment programs should be directed to the school a child attends.
AACPS menus will feature additional healthy options for all students. Choices include additional fresh fruits and vegetables, more whole grain options, and more lean protein and low-fat dairy options.
Last year, AACPS served more than 5.9 million lunches and 3.5 million breakfasts in schools. The system receives no county funds to operate lunch and breakfast programs. Revenue for the program comes from federal reimbursements (57 percent), food sales (39 percent), and state funding (4 percent).
Complete details about breakfast and lunch programs can be found on AACPS’ Food and Nutrition Services program website.
Notices of emergency closings and delays
Changes to school schedules caused by inclement weather or other emergency conditions are announced through Connect-ED via telephone, email, and text message; posted on the school system’s website, Facebook page, Twitter page (@AACountySchools), and Instagram page (aacountyschools); posted on all individual school Twitter pages; and announced on major area radio and television stations, including AACPS-TV (Channel 96 on Comcast and Broadstripe, and Channel 36 on Verizon; HD broadcasts on Channel 996 on Comcast, Channel 496 on Broadstripe, and Channel 1961 on Verizon).
The most reliable places to look for updated closing and delayed opening information are the AACPS website and Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram pages.
Board meetings on TV and website
Meetings of the Board of Education, which typically occur on the first and third Wednesdays of most months, are broadcast live on AACPS-TV and on Livestream on the Internet.
Links to Livestream broadcasts and archived videos of Board meetings can be found here.