Dorchester County Public Schools (DCPS) recently held a public meeting that covered a range of issues, including personnel, negotiations, legal matters, and administrative functions. However, it was the Countywide Feasibility and Master Plan meeting that generated strong responses from parents, teachers, and community members.
The meeting began with the Board recognizing Pre-Kindergarten accreditation by the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) for all seven DCPS elementary schools. The Board also commended Briana Beulah of Sandy Hill ES as 2023-2024 DCPS Teacher of the Year, and Wendi Bleyer of Sandy Hill ES as 2023-2024 First-Class Teacher of the Year.
However, it was the public comments section where things started to heat up. Several parents expressed their concerns about the Countywide Feasibility and Master Plan process, citing a lack of transparency and failure to appreciate the views of parents, especially those of children attending well-performing schools. Parents believed that plans to close and/or combine schools had already been adopted, and threatened to take their children out of DCPS if successful schools where children thrive are harmed as a result of any reorganization.
Three teachers from Choptank ES also spoke about the crisis conditions at the school, which they claimed no longer felt like a safe place for students, teachers, and staff. The teachers explained that they did not have the tools to help their students and saw no effective assistance coming from DCPS. They stated strongly that Choptank ES desperately needs immediate help.
Board President Susan Morgan and other Board members clarified that the Board was not satisfied with the process and preliminary options presented at last week’s Board Work Session by the external consultants for the Countywide Feasibility and Master Plan process.
As a result, the Board directed that the process be stopped and reworked because the consultants and their community design participants had not been given and were not able to evaluate all the information needed to develop viable options. The Board has made no planning decisions and will make no such decisions until input from all communities has been received and evaluated.
At the same time, members indicated that everyone must understand that we cannot continue to pour millions of dollars into school buildings that are 80 years old, and that developing a long-range plan for DCPS is critical for future success. Long-range planning has been put off for too long, and the current Board will have to make some difficult decisions in the months ahead.
Other items approved during the meeting included the purchase of Clear Backpacks and Water Bottles ($89,790) for mandated use as a safety measure, and the Purchase of the Navigate360 – PBIS Rewards System ($29,640), i-Ready Math Assessment & Personalized Instruction system from Curriculum Associates ($267,283 for a 3-year contract), and K-Algebra II Mathematics Curriculum and Resources system from Imagine Learning ($331,331 for a 3-year contract). The Board also approved Tray line replacements for Hurlock, Sandy Hill, Vienna, and Warwick Elementary Schools ($161,888), Delmarva Document Solutions / Xerox Corporation charges ($1,235,445) for a 5-year equipment lease to include maintenance and color copying, and Lightspeed Internet Filter, Alert and Classroom Management system charges ($144,645 for 5 years).
The Board concluded the meeting by stressing that they hope to create a school system with which the entire community can be proud. They thanked members of the South Dorchester community and all those who participated in the meeting, encouraging the community to participate fully in the reworked process.
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