Maryland's Largest School District
MONTGOMERY COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS
MONTGOMERY COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS
NEW – HEARING NOTICE - Public testimony for the Superintendent’s Recommended FY 2027 Capital Budget and the FY 2027–2032 Capital Improvements Program.
The Montgomery County Board of Education will hold public hearings on October 23, 2025, and October 28, 2025, at 6:00 p.m., to hear testimony regarding the FY 2027 Capital Budget and the FY 2027–2032 Capital Improvements Program. The hearings will be held in person and open to the public. The Board will also continue to accept pre-recorded audio and video submissions for individuals who wish to remain virtual. All testimonies will be made available to the public on BoardDocs. Individuals who wish to provide public comments will register using the online registration form.
The public may begin signing up to provide testimony for both hearings on Tuesday, October 14, 2025, at 12:00 p.m. CLICK HERE to register.
Sign-up registration will close on the following dates:
Hearing on October 23, 2025 – Sign-ups close on Friday, October 17, 2025, at 12:00 p.m.
Hearing on October 28, 2025 – Sign-ups close on Wednesday, October 22, 2025, at 12:00 p.m.
Space is limited. Please sign up as early as possible.
Providing Testimony: Organizations, municipalities, and elected officials are each provided up to five (5) minutes to provide public testimony. Individuals are provided up to three (3) minutes to provide public testimony. No person testifying may cede time to another person, notwithstanding the capacity in which they are testifying. A speaker signed up to testify may reserve only one space. Additionally, only one speaker will be registered for any organization, unless otherwise provided by the Board. Elected officials may be placed on the agenda at their discretion.
Organizations: Organizations may include the following: Montgomery County Regional Student Government Association/Montgomery County Junior Councils, National Association for the Advancement of Colored People Parents Council, community organizations, Montgomery County Council of PTAs, individual high school clusters, and employee associations.
Submission of Testimony and Deadlines: If you are selected for one of the speaking slots, you will receive a confirmation email with instructions about how to submit your written testimony in advance to the Board Office. For speakers providing video or audio testimony, instructions will be provided on how to prepare video/audio comments for submission. Please adhere to the submission deadline and instructions, which will be included in your confirmation email. Please send your written, video, and audio to BOETestimony@mcpsmd.org. Testimonies that do not adhere to submission instructions will be returned.
Agenda: The agenda, including the list of speakers, will be posted no later than noon on the day of the hearing at https://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/boe/meetings/.
Hearings, Work Session, and Board Action
The schedule for the Board of Education review, public hearings, and action on the CIP is as follows:
Testimony Subject Matter
Generally, public testimony should address the Capital Improvement Program (CIP) and the school boundary issues before the Board for action. This is not the proper avenue for addressing specific student or employee matters, especially those on appeal to the Board. Comments about the actions or statements of individual staff members are not suitable for public testimony and should be directed to the superintendent of schools or handled through other available channels.
Broadcasts of Public Hearings and Interpreter Services
All hearings are available to view live (and will be available after the hearings on demand) on the MCPS webpage: https://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/index.aspx
Hearings will also be broadcast live on Comcast Channel 34 (HD 1071), Verizon FIOS Channel 36, RCN Channel 89, the MCPS home page (http://montgomeryschoolsmd.org), and the MCPS YouTube Channel (http://youtube.com/mcpstv).
Additional information about public hearings may be found in the Board of Education Handbook.
The Board of Education designates time during each business meeting and regular work session for public comments. The process for signing up and providing public testimony is outlined below. If you have questions regarding this process, please submit them to BOETestimony@mcpsmd.org.
Unless otherwise notified, the sign-up period typically opens to the public one (1) week prior to the meeting at 6:00 p.m. and closes three (3) days prior to the meeting at 9:00 a.m.
The Board’s business meetings and regular work sessions will be open to the public, and in-person public comments will be permitted. The Board will also continue to accept pre-recorded audio and video submissions for individuals who wish to remain virtual. All testimonies will be made available to the public on BoardDocs. Individuals who want to provide public comments will register using the online registration form and will be selected on a first-come, first-served basis.
In addition to the online sign-ups, the Board will return to the practice of in person, same day sign-ups when space allows. Unallocated slots may be filled on a first-come, first-served basis, on the day of the meeting.
Safety Procedures for In-Person Public Comments and Observation: Please avoid in-person attendance if you are experiencing symptoms of illness. If you choose to bring a sign, please ensure it is no larger than 8.5” x 11”. Signs may not be mounted on sticks.
The first twenty (20) speakers who sign up for public comments during the designated sign-up process are afforded two (2) minutes to speak. Public testimony slots that remain available following the closing of the sign-up process may be filled on a first-come, first-served basis on the day of the meeting by signing in with Board staff no later than fifteen (15) minutes prior to the scheduled start time of the open session.
In addition to the twenty (20) testimony slots available to the public, separate testimony slots will be reserved at each business meeting and regular work session for a designated representative of each MCPS employee association. Each association representative will be afforded two (2) minutes to speak.
The Board is interested in hearing a broad range of perspectives from the community. Accordingly, when the Board receives more requests than the allotted number of testimony slots, first priority will be given to individuals who have not testified at a Board business meeting or regular work session within the previous 30 calendar days.
Once the public comment sign-up period has closed, speakers will receive a confirmation email within 24 hours with instructions about how to submit their written testimony in advance to the Board Office. For speakers providing video or audio testimony, instructions will be provided on how to prepare video/audio comments for submission. Please adhere to the submission deadline and instructions included in the confirmation email. All written, video, and audio comments for the meeting should be submitted to BOETestimony@mcpsmd.org.
While public input on policies, programs, and practices is encouraged, public comments are not the proper avenue to address specific student or employee matters. Comments regarding specific student or employee matters shall be directed to the Board or superintendent, as appropriate, through separate communication.
Those who are unable to sign up or are not selected to provide comments during the meeting may email their comments to BOETestimony@mcpsmd.org. Emails sent to this address are automatically distributed to all Board members and leadership staff.
Additional information about public comments may be found in the Board of Education Handbook.