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Dear MCPS Community,

While the school year is coming to a close, our work to ensure school safety continues. This spring, MCPS released a report on school safety. The report outlined the multipronged approach that our school system takes to keep students and staff safe. As part of this report, we included an action plan that provides next steps in our ongoing effort for safety. An update of our progress on the action plan can be found here.

Additionally, I want to share with you some of what we have been hearing from students regarding school safety. Last month, we surveyed a sample of students to gather suggestions on steps they believe MCPS should take to keep schools safe. We received more than 1,100 responses. The key themes raised were facility infrastructure enhancements; increased presence of security personnel; and expanded mental health services and support. I appreciate all of their thoughtful feedback on this important topic. An infographic of their input can be viewed here.

MCPS will continue to provide updates regarding safety and security in the summer months on our website.

Ensuring the safety of our schools is our first priority, but we cannot do it alone. Your support and input are critical to our success. Thank you for everything you have done and will do to keep our students safe.

Sincerely,

Jack R. Smith, Ph.D.
Superintendent of Schools