College Gardens Elementary School

"A Message from Dr. Starr"

Dear Friends,

As the first year of my tenure as Superintendent comes to a close, I want to say thank you to the entire Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) community for making this an extremely successful and important year in our school district's history.

Over the past 11 months, I have had the opportunity to talk to thousands of parents, students, staff and community members about what makes MCPS a great school system and where we can improve. I have appreciated the honest feedback and constructive suggestions I have heard from so many of you.

It's clear that the citizens of Montgomery County are extremely proud of MCPS and recognize that it is one of the best school districts in the nation. But I also think we recognize that in order for MCPS to continue to be a national model of excellence, we are going to have to make changes and improve in the areas that have the biggest impact on teaching and learning

Based on what I heard from the entire MCPS community, and in partnership with the Board of Education, we have identified three areas where we will place specific focus in the coming year:

• Professional Development: Making sure our employees are receiving the training they need so they can best serve our students;
• Interventions: Improving our efforts to identify students who are struggling and giving them timely, comprehensive interventions and support; and
• Community Engagement: Fully engaging our school community and collaborating with other agencies and organizations to provide a wide range of services to our students.

It's important to note that we are not increasing funding in these areas this year and we are not implementing any major new initiatives. Rather, we are seeking to make sure our efforts in these strategic areas are coordinated, collaborative and maximize the resources we currently have.

I want to thank everyone who turned out for all of the entry events I held over the past year, including 17 Listen and Learn events, four Student Town Halls, three Book Clubs and four Spring Forums on specific topics of interest to MCPS. More than 2,000 people attended one or more of these events, helping me understand what MCPS is all about. If you missed any of the events, you can watch them online on the MCPS website.

In closing, I also want to thank our staff for making my first year at MCPS a success. Leadership transitions can be difficult in any organization—especially one as large as MCPS—but our employees have continued to focus on the needs of students and we have continued to see great results. MCPS has the best staff in public education, bar none, and I am grateful for their collaboration and commitment.

I hope everyone has a wonderful, relaxing summer. I am already looking forward to next school year and all that is possible for the future of Montgomery County Public Schools.

Sincerely, 
Joshua P. Starr 
Superintendent of Schools

MCPL Summer Reading Program

Summer Reading Program to be Held at Montgomery County Public Libraries June 12-August 11 with Online Registration; Fun Programs Scheduled

Children of all ages are invited to participate in this year’s Summer Reading Program at Montgomery County Public Libraries (MCPL) which will run from June 12 to August 11.  This year's themes are "Dream Big-Read" for children and "Own the Night" for teens Registration is online through the Library’s website (www.montgomerycountymd.gov/library) beginning June 12.  Participants can sign up for the program and keep track of the books they read, or have read to them, using any computer in the library, at home or anywhere.

This year’s Summer Reading Program is offered on three levels:

• Read to Me! is for children from birth to 5 years old.  Parents or caregivers can sign up their children. After reading at least five books, an online certificate can be printed out from the computer.

• Kids Read! is for children from ages 6 to 12.  Kids can sign up and read at least five books to earn a certificate, which can be printed out from the computer.

• Teens Read! is for teens in middle and high school.  Teens who read four books or more earn a certificate, which can be printed out from the computer. 

Studies have shown that public library summer reading programs enhance student achievement and help children to retain their reading skills.  Recommended reading lists by grade will be available on the Library’s website.

Magicians, musicians, storytellers, jugglers, puppets and more will entertain children at all branches of Montgomery County Public Libraries this summer.  Schedules of programs are on the library’s calendar of events, and flyers will be available at the branches. All programs are funded by the Friends of the Library, Montgomery County, Inc. (FOLMC) and by local Friends of the Library chapters.

Summer Reading t-shirts are on sale now through the FOLMC.  For more information on t-shirts, please call 240-777-0020.

To request ADA program accommodations, call the library hosting the program at least five work days in advance.

For more information, visit www.montgomerycountymd.gov/library.