On November 10, 2026 we hosted our third PTSA Meeting of the year over zoom.

• See the presentation, with links to all relevant information.
• Detailed Meeting Notes (aka Minutes) – COMING SOON.

The agenda:

• Multicultural Night is on Nov 12 (this Thursday).  Sign up form for performances, displays and food.
• An ask for help with our Teacher Appreciation Soup & Pie break on Nov 23rd (during Parent Teacher conferences). Sign up genius.
• An ask to donate items or services for our Spring Silent Auction, or join the committee to help. For info email: ann.w.gordon@gmail.com
• We ended our Membership Drive. You can become a member at any time. Everyone who became a member earned a point for their student’s STRIVE house. Look for information on the STRIVE house winners in upcoming PTSA newsletters.
• Update on our Fundraising Drive.  Our goal is $17000 by December 1st.  We only have $3000 more to go –  donate any amount to help us out!
• Minority Scholars Program students shared a little about what they do and let us know about their upcoming Winter Social in December (date TBD).  They ask that we all help them achieve their goals by supporting them in their academic and social efforts.
• A monthly budget update from our treasurer.
• English Department Head, Ms. Todhunter, gave a talk on the new English Curriculum.  The presentation can be found here.
• Robust Q&A.
• There is no PTSA Meeting in the month of December.

Students that attend our PTSA meetings recieve SSL hours.

To receive SSL hours your student must:

1. sign-in thru the form linked in the meeting chat towards the meeting’s end.
2. Then go to the main office the next day to pick up the SSL form.
3. The student must complete the SSL form and return it to the main office.

Our first PTSA Meeting of the year – Tuesday, Sept 8, 2026 from 7-8:30pm.

• Slide Presentation can be found here.
• Meeting notes can be found here.   

PTSA Meetings are held over Zoom from 7-8:30 on the second Tuesday of each month, except December.

Join us for our next PTSA meeting on October 13th, 2026.

May 12, 2026 | Parent Teacher Student Association (PTSA) General Meeting Minutes

 

Meeting slides: 2026.05 – PTSA General Meeting

Welcome!

Chris welcomed the PTSA Board, TPMS administrators, and members of the TPMS community to our May meeting. He noted this will be our last PTSA meeting for the 2025-2026 school year.  

 

Upcoming Events

May 12-13 – MCAP Math Testing

May 13 – Band concert (7-9 pm) (open to the TPMS community)

May 14 – MAP ELA

May 14 – Orchestra concert (7-9 pm) (open to the TPMS community)

May 15 – MAP Math

May 18-20 – Outdoor Education Session 3 (6th grade only)

May 19 – Theater 2 field trip 

May 21-22 – Social Studies MCAP (8th grade only)

May 21 – Medieval Times field trip (7th grade only)

May 25 & 27 – No school (note there IS school May 26)

May 29 – Music in the Park field trip

Access the school calendar for June events, including the 8th grade dance, and end of year activities. 

 

Budget Update

After lots of hard work on the part of the PTSA Board – especially our Treasurer. Mic Murphy – we are now in good standing with the Maryland Department of Assessments and Taxation. This was a priority for Mic as Treasurer; this accreditation opens up many opportunities for our PTSA. The revised accounting for Books and Basketball is $3,905 (up from $2,780).

The final PTSA Budget for the school year is below. Per our Bylaws, we need a 3-person financial review committee to review our finances by the end of September, 2026. Are you interested? Please contact tpms.pta.president@gmail.com.

After many successful events, the PTSA has a surplus in the budget. The Board voted to increase event sponsorship by $1,000 to support field trips and student dances. Summer Smith, PTSA Board Member called a vote to approve the motion. Chris Campbell, PTSA Board member seconded the motion. The motion passed per the attendees at the meeting. 

 

Accomplishments and Gratitude!

We have so much to be grateful for this year! Heather Brown-Palsgrove presented some highlights from our amazing year!

27% improvement in gross fundraising and donation income!

20+% of the school community became members of the PTSA. 

Strengthened communication with addition of WhatsApp Groups, and zoom meetings.

Dozens of our community signed up to volunteer for our events!

Supported the teacher community with special events (conference night soup and pie!), Teacher Appreciation Week, staff development events, and mini-grant funding. 

Enriched the student experience with cultural heritage assemblies, dance support, instrument repair, and a lot more!

Developed programs and sponsored speakers to share timely information, like stress management and digital awareness.

Created community building events serving hundreds, such as Books & Basketball, Back to School Potluck, and Multicultural Night.  

Created spaces for families, students, and teachers to engage on TPMS topics.

 

Special Thanks!

A special thank you to wonderful folks who won’t be on the PTSA Board next year:

PTSA VPs, Becca Jones-Albertus & Monisha Shah

Books & Basketball Chair, Celine Allard

Special Education Committee Chairs, Beverley Hassell & Bonita Williams

Magnet Committee Chairs, Ha Le & Ashwin Venkat

Acting-Principal, Mr. Loznak

 

Open PTSA Committee and Auxiliary Positions – we need YOU!

NAACP Rep*

MCCPTA Rep*

Special Education*

Magnet*

Books & Basketball 

Teacher appreciation

Multicultural Night

Safe Routes to School*

Welcome Picnic*

Silent Auction

8th Grade Dance*

Advocacy*

Grant Writer*

Bold Purple (and with *) are roles we need to fill.  Other roles you may run for or assist with.

 

Maybe you have an idea of what you want to do?  

If you see a need for a committee or event or way to improve the school, make a proposal!

Questions? Contact: Becca at beccaj@gmail.com 

 

Electing the TPMS PTSA 2026-2027 Board

Becca Jones-Albertus, Chair of the PTSA Nominating Committee started the process for electing the TPMS PTSA Board for the 2026-2027 school year. Each member gave a brief description of why they want to serve on the Board. Becca noted that for each role, there is only one person who wants to run (despite extensive outreach). There will be time after Board Nominations for Candidates to nominate themselves or others. 

No members of the Community self nominated or nominated others. 

Becca motioned to approve the Board, Riziki House-Okon seconded the motion. The 26 people on Zoom, including members of the school community, Board Members and TPMS administration approved the 2026-2027 Board. 

The TPMS PTSA 2026-2027 Board as elected, is:

President – Emily Modde

Executive Vice President – Beth Dunford

Treasurer – Mic Murphy

Secretary – Summer Lingard Smith

Vice President for Membership – Heather Brown-Palsgrove

Vice President for Communications – Chris Campbell

Vice President for Fundraising – Melanie Stickle

Vice President for Events – Ramata Diop

 

This will be the last PTSA general meeting for this year. Stay tuned for our next meeting in September. Note the Board will continue to meet to plan for next year. 

 

Questions?

Emily opened up the floor for questions. There were no questions. The meeting was adjourned at 7:44.

February 10, 2026 | Parent Teacher Student Association (PTSA) General Meeting Minutes

 

PTSA Meeting Slide Deck

Board Members Present: Emily Modde, Summer Smith, Ms. Martin, Mr. Loznak, Mic Murphy, Ramata Diop, and Becca Jones-Albertus.

At the peak of the meeting, there were 51 community members, including students and the Board. 

 

Welcome

At 7:04 Emily Modde, PTSA President started the meeting and welcomed everyone. Emily said that we would discuss upcoming events; give a quick update on the School Climate Update; host a Generative AI Panel; and finally go over ways to keep yourself (and your students!) safe online. 

Emily introduced herself and went over all the ways the PTSA communicates with the community – something for everyone! See the slides for multiple ways to get involved. Ramat offered Spanish translation for those who need it. 

 

Upcoming February Events

• February 27: Early release day (12:30 pm)
• February 27-28: Books and Basketball events (see more below)

 

Upcoming March Events

• March 3 and 5: MISA testing (8th graders)
• March 5: TPMS Parent Workshop Series: Internet Safety & Generative AI for Parents, Guardians and Communities
• March 10: Monthly PTSA Meeting
• March 12: Spring musical
• March 19: Choral festival at Blair HS 
• March 30-April 6: No school (Spring Break)

 

For more information and details, see the school calendar. 

https://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/schools/takomaparkms/calendar-index/ 

 

Books and Basketball

The Books and Basketball events is one of our biggest fundraisers of the year. Friday, February 27 from 6-8:30 is the students versus staff basketball game in the gym. This year we are doing a play-in for teams – the winning team will then play the TPMS Staff. 

 

Silent Auction

This year, we are doing the auction online to make it more accessible for all. The auction will open Sunday, February 22 – look for an announcement on all the TPMS channels: Community Newsletter, Blue Devil Digest, and PTSA communications. During the week of February 23, the bidding will be live – track items you are interested in or set a limit and let the website track it for you. On Saturday, February 28 the auction will close.

 

Teacher Appreciation Week 

We need volunteers. Please check out this interest form: https://bit.ly/4qskUXE  

 

Consider Joining the TPMS PTSA Board

Elections for the 2026-2027 PTSA Board will be in May 2026. Please start to think about what positions you could contribute to. Positions are:

Board Positions: President, Exec Vice President, Treasurer, Secretary, Membership, Communications, Events, and Fundraising

Committee & Aux Positions: NAACP Rep, MCCPTA Rep, Special Education, Books & Basketball, Multicultural Night, Welcome Picnic, Silent Auction, 8th Grade Dance, Advocacy, and Grant Writer

Maybe you have an idea of what you want to do? If you see a need for a committee or event or way to improve the school, make a proposal!

Questions or interested in a position? Reach out to: president.tpms.pta@gmail.com 

 

School Climate Survey Update

We’ve talked in the past about the parent input to the survey, and now Mr. Loznak would like to highlight student input. A school year 2026 goal is to increase favorable response to Student-Student Relationships, Physical Safety, Bullying and Physical Environment. 

Highlight the great things that are happening at TPMS. 

 

February 10, 2026 Budget Update

We need to shift some finances around due to our dues to Free State PTA (the PTA that our PTSA falls under). Summer Smith, PTSA Secretary called a vote to move funds from one category to another. The majority of the members voted yes. No members voted no on the motion. The motion to move money in the TPMS PTSA category budget was approved. 

 

GenAL Panel 

Becca Jones-Albertus opened the session by introducing  our speaker: Amanda Lenhart. Amanda said she was excited to be here and give an overview of Gen AI. She started by discussing the slide with an AI generated “well fed possum.” She stressed that there are good reasons to be wary about GenAI, but it can also be a fun tool. Her family challenged AI to create a super cute well-fed possum. 

What is AI? There are two types of AI that we are talking about: usually traditional AI – Syri, Alexi, computer chess game: these are very bounded ways of using AI. A machine learning model is working in a set of parameters – it’s never going to give you something you don’t expect.

Generative AI is more complex and responses to prompts. The thing that GenAI is based on are based on Large Language Models (LLM). They are not generating new things, but rather on the data they are trained on. They don’t know anything that they have not been fed to learn on. One thing to note is that it’s predicting, and NOT thinking. The big three models are ChatGPT, Gemini, and Claude. Amanda presented a slide on kid and teen use of Gen AI – 70% of American teens 13-17 have ever used generative AI. One thing that she thinks is important: newer research is showing that teens are using Gen AI about once a week. 

Amanda encouraged folks to drop how they and their families use GenAI in their lives into the chat. Responses included ChatGPT, Gemini, Copilot, and others. She then went over some “promises” (personalized learning, help students and teachers, erase language barriers) and some “challenges” (we might not learn things because we rely on chatbots to do the work for us; misinformation and bias: the models are based on the best of the best and worst of the worst when it comes to information, and that chatbots are designed to be your best friend and this can pose challenges). 

Becca then introduced the GenAI Panel: Ms. Lever, Daniel Ward, and Katherine (Kit) Smallwood.

Ms. Lever started the panel saying that some kids are using AI to do their work faster. It’s also helping when you are facing a blank page and have an assignment to complete. She said that she sometimes uses it to start an email when she’s not sure what to say. It can also be used as a private tutor, but be aware that sometimes it makes things up and you need to understand where the information is coming from. Ms. Lever said that she is worried that it can contribute to kids who feel helpless and make them feel worse. 

Kit said that they see their friends use it for interactions and writing. They said that some kids don’t want to do the work or don’t have time to do the work and copy paste off AI. They said that the most common way is to ask for the answer rather than learn what you need to know to answer the question. They mentioned that Google has now incorporated X into their search so it’s harder to know what’s real and a good source.

Daniel said that they have a lot of people in their life who use AI. They said that it’s great for a lot of things but not for school. When kids get caught using it they have to redo the work. They said it’s good for teaching people how to do a certain thing that they can’t find elsewhere – especially if that thing is specific. Amanda asked for an example. Daniel said that one of their friends wanted to learn something for a computer science project. They couldn’t figure out how to solve the problem and AI gave them a little bump to help them solve the problem. It was good because it didn’t solve the problem, but helped them get there.

Kit said that they have seen their classmates and peers are complaining that their teachers are using AI and it’s unfair. They said that teachers should be the experts and not use the information to create lesson plans.

Ms. Lever said that she wanted to challenge that idea. She said that adults have gone through the learning and know how to use it. She said that the amount of work teachers need to do, combined with critical thinking, and being adults makes it ok for adults. 

Another student chimed in saying that they have seen teachers use AI to grade papers and that sometimes AI can’t understand as well as teachers. They said that a lot of people are using the AI overview because sometimes Wikipedia is the only other source. Amanda said that what she’s hearing is that the most important thing is that a human is always involved. 

Amanda asked the panel for areas where AI shocked them. Kit said that they see peers use it for entertainment – writing stories. But the way they are using it creates more harm than good. They were using real people’s names and it felt uncomfortable. Another student said that it can be questionable with the AI overview. They have come across areas where they want to look up silly things and they get questionable results. 

Amanda asked the panel what parents need to know, or what might surprise them. Daniel said that parents need to know that most kids are using it. And parents need to teach kids how to use it correctly.

Pam said that it’s important for parents to be aware and not stick their head in the sand and be really aware of what’s out there and what kids are using. Kit added awareness of kids’ interaction with AI and understanding that not all AI is bad, not all of it is detrimental to learning. That being said, there needs to be parent awareness. They used the example of graphic calculators and that there was a worry that no one would do math anymore. Not all AI is bad. Ms. Lever said she likes that analogy. 

Amanda thanked the panel for giving us an insight of what kids are doing at TPMS. She shared a final slide with some resources for people. 

Amanda echoed what Pam said – you need to experience this yourself. She also suggested that kids look into something that they know a lot about. Then look at the output to see where the model made mistakes. You can learn a lot when you see what the model got wrong and where you need to bring your critical thinking. Pam said that she thinks of AI as an assistant, not the person doing the job.

 

Digital Safety Resources

Becca Jones-Albertus introduced Ruth Masterson, who has done a lot of research on digital safety and how to keep our kids safe. Ruth Masterson thanked the students for their insight and Ms. Lever for her input. Ruth said she’s not an expert, but she’s been looking in her home on how to keep her family safe and set up proper parental controls. She said that she believes that AI should be a tool for us to use, and not something that rules us. 

She said that one thing is very important and that everyone who is using AI needs to be transparent about their use. She suggested three powerful resources: 

The Anxious Generation (book) – Ruth said it’s very readable and relatable to families. 

Julie Frumin – www.healthier-tech.org  

Sarah Gallager Trombley (webinars on phones)

Resources: wait until 8th (one of the earlies groups to suggest doing something. Note that it’s a complicated decision. www.waituntil8th.org), ok to delay www.oktodelay.com (She’s starting a TPMS chapter, email her: oktodelaytakomapark@gmail.com), commonsense media www.commonsensemedia.org (good practical advise).

Ruth stressed that “we are all building the plane when we fly it.” We think we are on the right digital track and then we learn that things we think are ok, might not be. Part of the parenting win is being on the same page and being transparent within your family. 

 

Next PTSA Meeting

Tuesday, March 10, 2026. 7-8:30. (location TBD) 

 

Open Q&A

For Amanda and Ruth:

Emily said that this was very useful information. She asked about what tools our kids will need to take AI with them as they make decisions and move into the future. Amanda said that open communication is key. One reason we have school is to teach our kids how to write and learn. Some of that could be lost if we go over that and just go to AI. Very narrow AI tools could be good, but don’t have young children use chatbots without parent supervision. The stress is also why school is important and the critical thinking they are learning. 

 

Meeting Close

Emily thanked everyone for coming. She adjourned the meeting at 8:22.

January 19, 2026 | Parent Teacher Student Association (PTSA) General Meeting Minutes

Meeting slides: 2026.01 – PTSA General Meeting

 

Link to meeting minutes from last General Membership Meeting: 

Attendees

TPMS PTSA Board: Jesse Loznak, Emily Modde, Summer Smith, Mic Murphy, Chris Campbell, Ramata Diop, Heather Brown – Palsgrove

 

TPMS Teachers / Staff : Ms. Soriano, Ms. Steinberg, Ms. Lever, Mr. Einhorn, Ms. Martinez, Ms. O’Connell, Lara Finklea

 

Other Guest: Kaysi-Ann Webley- City of Takoma Park Transit Planner

 

Public attendance: At the peak of the meeting, there were 132 members participating in the Zoom call, including the Board, community members, and students.  

Agenda

• Upcoming Events (Chris Campbell)
• Multicultural Night Information (Ramata Diop)
• Books & Basketball and Silent Auction Information (Celine Allard, Ann Gordon)
• Update from Student Climate Survey (Principal Loznak)
• Budget (Mic Murphy) 
• Financial Review Committee Findings (Kristin O’Planick)
• Present the findings from the Observations of pickup and dropoff (Kayci-Ann Webley – the TPk Transit Planner)
• Shifts in the traffic / pedestrian flow (Principal Loznak)
• The class selection process for rising 7th & 8th graders (Vice Principal Soriano)
• Open Q&A with Mr.Loznak and the PTSA

 

Meeting Minutes

Welcome & Important events

Chris Campbell welcomed everyone to the meeting at 7:03. He thanked everyone for attending our first meeting of 2026. He gave a brief overview of the agenda and what we would be discussing tonight. He asked that any students put their name in the chat and indicate that they are a student so we can offer SSL hours. Ramata welcomed everyone in Spanish and offered a breakout room if needed. No one asked for the Spanish room. 

 

Chris reminded everyone of important upcoming events that have been shared by the school, the PTSA, and in our communication channels. 

 

January

• January 16: Parent Workshop: MyMCPS Classroom and Canvas 
• January 19: No School (MLK Day)
• January 23: Deadline to submit elective choices for next year (6th and 7th graders only)
• January 23: End of marking period 2
• January 26: No School 
• January 27: Parent Workshop: Stress Management for Middle School Students and Parents
• January 29: National History Day Competition

 

February

• February 4: Report cards distributed
• February 6: Multicultural Night
• February 6–13: Book Fair
• February 16: No School (Presidents’ Day)
• February 17: No School
• February 25: Scripps Spelling Bee
• February 27: Early release day
• February 27-28: Books and Basketball events

 

Multicultural Night – February 6, 2026

TPMS annual Multicultural Night will be Friday, February 6, 2026 from 6-8 PM. The event will celebrate the richness of our diverse cultures. The night will feature music, dance, delicious food, and traditions from all around the world – all at our wonderful school. Please bring your family and friends to this unique TPMS event.

 

We need students and families to sign-up to sign-up to present their cultures. For more information / sign up  https://bit.ly/45TrzCO see the QR code in the slides and/or reach out to: mutchad@yaoo.com. 

 

Books and Basketball – February 27th (game and book presale) – February 28th (book sale and community event)

Taking place over two days in the last weekend of February, this is our biggest community event and fundraiser of the year – and it’s a ton of fun!   It’s a used book sale event combined with a student vs teachers basketball game, silent auction AND a community showcase of student activities including the jazz band and horticulture club, the Difference makers and more!

 

Why you should definitely not miss this event:

• A thrilling basketball game, and fantastic performance by “We will rock you” band ahead of the game
• Treasures and bargains at the book sale
• Concerts by the school Jazz Band and Flute Choir 
• An Art Show by students
• Plants for purchase by the Horticulture Club
• Amazing prices at the Silent Auction (more in two slides)
• Yummy Bake sale
• And plenty of other fun activities…

When

• Friday February 27, 6-8:30 pm: Student v Teacher basketball game and book presale (Gym)
• Friday February 27, 5-9 pm: Book Pre-sale open to TPMS families (Cafeteria)
• Saturday February 28, 10-1 pm:  Book sale, Community event with amazing activities, and Silent auction (Open to the entire community, bring your friends! Cafeteria) 

Book Sale – how you can help 

We need your book donations! We take all types of books (picture books, first readers, chapter books, Young adults, fiction, non fiction, cookbooks, travel books, etc). There are several ways you can donate books:

• A donation box outside the main office 
• Drop-off sessions on Saturday January 24 and Saturday January 14 (10 am to 1 pm). Drive and drop your boxes by the school. 
• Let your friends and neighbors know about the call for book donations (and the event!). If you collect books from your neighbors, you can contact me (celineallard@yahoo.com) and I can come and pick them up, if that helps.
• Drop books on my porch, 409 Beech Avenue or on the porch of 902 Gist Ave, Silver Spring (summersmith100@gmail.com )

Silent Auction – how you can help

The Takoma Park community will have the chance to bid on outings and experiences in the D.C. area, food and beverage donations from local retailers, and various items. 

We need your help to make it a success!

• Volunteers needed!
  • 2-3 hours of work to solicit donations and build the auction catalog. Ideal for students who want fundraising experience. Reach out to Ann Gordon ann.w.gordon@gmail.com for details.
• Items needed! 
  • Fill out the form with your contribution for event tickets,  handmade items, experiences, etc. Reach out to Ann Gordon with questions.
• Reach out to Ann Gordon (ann.w.gordon@gmail.com) with questions and/or to volunteer.

 

Communications

Chris reminded attendees on all the ways you can stay in touch with the PTSA: newsletters (Announce and Discuss) and multiple Whatsapp groups (see the slides for QR code to join the groups). Chris reiterated that if you are a student, please put your name in the chat so we can record your SSL hours. 

https://www.tpmspta.org/abouttpmspta/mailinglists/ 

 

Update from Student Climate Survey

Mr. Loznak presented a quick update on the Climate Survey. He thanked members for responding. There will be another chance to provide input in the Spring. Positive growth was shown in 14 of the 15 categories and in 11 of the 14 went up by 12%. One area of concern is homework. He presented overall homework timeframes for each grade:

6th

He also addressed concerns over finding assignments and upcoming assignments. 

 

Budget Update

Mic Murphy, Treasurer, presented a budget update for the PTSA. We have raised $ and we have spent. We have  in the bank.

 

The TPMS PTSA is now current with the Maryland Secretary of State Charities Registry. This was a priority for this BOard and we are pleased to have met this goal. 

 

At the end of the PTSA’s fiscal year (June 30, 2025) the treasurer closes out the financial records 

 

Mic provided a summary of the 2024-2025 of the findings of the independent review committee. Kristin O’Planick presented the results of review. She thanked Megan and X.

 

Certify the results of the review and made sure that the 2024-2025 Board met their requirements last year to make sure funds were being spent as appropriate. They found that the Board met their requirements. There were minor errors that were easily addressed by the Board. One check was missing, but the proper documentation was presented to account for this. There had been findings in the past review that were all addressed by the 2024-2025 Board, which shows they not only met the requirements. 

 

Summer Smith, PTSA Secretary called a vote to approve the review. The majority of members approved the review and no one indicated that they did not approve the review.

 

Pick-up and Drop-off observations and Recommendations

Emily introduced our new Safe Routes to School Chair – Kelly Doordan. Please reach out if you have concerns…

Findings from the Observations of pickup and dropoff Review

Kayci-Ann from the City of Takoma Park presented the observations from the October 8, 2025 review. The review looked at two locations including at pickup and dropoff to see what a typical day at TPMS is like related to the movement of our students.  Find out more at our website:  https://www.tpmspta.org/pick-up-drop-off-observations-oct-2025/ 

 

There were many things that were working well: 

• Students generally follow crossing rules
• Crosswalks and signals functioning as designed
• Bus stop locations appropriate with good visibility
• School staff actively assisting where possible

 

Challenges: the primary safety concern is related to heavy congestion blocking intersections. THis was worse in the afternoon because the dismissal is all at once. There were also concerns about vehicles making unsafe actions including …

Piney Branch Rd

• Vehicles stuck in intersection due to congestion
• Crossing guard arriving late / leaving early
• Guard not actively crossing students or using hand signals
• Red light violation exiting school.

Grant Ave

• Drop-off line backing onto Grant & Chestnut
• Students exiting vehicles into traffic lanes
• Mid-block crossings between parked cars
• Three-point turns and idling reduce roadway width

 

Another issue was the crossing guard did not arrive early enough and was not using appropriate signals and engaging students in safe behavior.   This crossing guard has since been dismissed and is no longer working as a guard. 

 

The recommendations are focused on things that can quickly improve student safety. There isn’t a crossing guard at Grant, but the school does a great job picking up the need for assistance. 

 

Reinforce no-exit and no-turn

 

Assess if Grant Ave can be one way and improve visibility. The overall goal is to make sure students, caregivers, staff, and community members are making sure that everyone is safe. The students are mostly operating in a safe manor with the cars having the largest negative impact. The City looks forward to continuing to work with the PTSA, the School, and others to make sure that everyone is safe. 

 

Mr. Loznak thanked Kaysi-Ann, the TPMS Police Department, and the City for all their help and support to make sure our kids are safe. He also shared some adjustments that have already been made related to traffic flow. There were some students observed walking to parked cars across Piney Branch. This has been eliminated. There was also observed walking on Grant Ave, where our buses come up for pickup. Students have been asked to stay on the sidewalks. The school has already seen a difference in student and caregiver behavior. THere is a new crossing guard at the Piney Branch location to help students move safely to and from schools. 

 

There is a QR code that has the full report provided by the City on our website. https://www.tpmspta.org/pick-up-drop-off-observations-oct-2025/ 

 

There is also a place for feedback – we want to hear more about what you think and what TPMS and the PTSA Board can do to keep our kids safe. These links will also go out on our channels. 

Submit feedback on the report here: https://forms.gle/DbgdKh6ArqpDDiV4A 

 

Next PTSA Meeting

Our next PTSA meeting will be Tuesday, February 10 7-8:30 over Zoom. More information on the School Climate Survey and a conversation on Generative AI and Digital LIteracy with a panel discussion. 

 

Rising 7th and 8th grade Class Choice Discussion 

If you are an 8th grade family, you can drop off if you would like. The conversation will focus on Elective choices for next year’s 7th and 8th grade students. Today, the Administrators went into math classes today to present electives for next year. 

TPMS Parent Articulation Meeting for Rising 7th & 8 (2026-2027) – Google Slides 

 

https://www.canva.com/design/DAG7Vdb2rzw/LZ5Z9J5Ush7JuLZY7EUX2g/edit

 

Required classes for 7th grade:

Advanced English

Math

Historical Inquiry 

 

Required classes for 8th grade

 

Detailed information on Math classes at TPMS: Depending on what class your student is in now, will depend on what course they will take next year. All information is reviewed to see if students should be moved. Math courses are decided by the math content specialist and teachers: grades from previous math courses; MAP-M scores; teacher recommendations; and student interest. If you have questions or concerns about your students’ math course for next year, reach out to your students’ teacher or Administrator. There is also a Math Intervention Course Math 180…and Reading: EBLI and ILit. If a student needs these classes the Administration will reach out to discuss with families. If a student is in the class now, there will also be a conversation if the student should stay in this class. 

 

Opportunities for Extensions – for 8th grade students only

 

Electives next year will be paired to make scheduling easier and make sure that electives are not overcrowded. This means that electives come as a set, you have to choose both of them.

 

7th grade electives: The students get to chose what they want to take, but they have to chose the pair. There is one exception: if they did not take a foundational class in 6th grade (because they were in Band, Orchestra, Chorus, or World Language). If they decide to drop Band, Orchestra, Chorus, or World Lange, they can pick the arts rotation. 

 

FACS 1 is new to all rising 7th grade students because they could not take it as 6th graders. 

 

8th grade elections: the students have to pick pairs. The pairings have not been decided what semester they will be offered to your student. Note that for some rising 8th graders, they may not have the experience for (they can’t take Art 3 Ceramics if they have not taken Art 1 and Art 2). If none of these pairings work then they can provide that information. IF your student CAN take a paring (even if they don’t necessarily want it) they should try and choose that paring. If none of these options work, they can indicate that on their sheet. Remember, if ANY option works, they should request it (as in, if they don’t like it, they can’t not choose it). 

 

World Language: If you are already in a language, they will be placed in the next level (in most cases). If they haven’t started a language, Dr. Finklea suggests that students start now.  These classes go on their high school transcript and count towards the MCPS requirement for 2 years of the same language in high school. It must be the same world language for two years. If you have specific questions, please reach out to Dr. Finklea. 

 

For rising 8th grade students: there is a virtual school option. This is a small program with very specific requirements. Ms. Soriano will share an interest form. This is for students who are coming off the Block Schedule as 6th graders who might need/want to take another class to fulfill a requirement. It is the responsibility of the student to stay on top of this class.

 

High School Credit Classes: World Language, math, and technology education. The requirements for high school credit taken in middle school: … see slide.

 

The process for selecting the electives are on the form that was shared with students today. They will either be choosing two one semester pairings and one year elective. OR they might select two one year electives. There will also be a place to indicate backup electives. 

 

Link for course registration to make decisions for electives. 

https://sites.google.com/mcpsmd.net/tpmscounseling/tpms-registration 

 

Next Tuesday the students will register on the google form to collect the final information. 

 

After the deadline, there is no guarantee that requests to change electives will be granted. Please discuss these options with your students so they are excited about them for next year. 

 

Student Service Learning

Students must earn 75 hours before they can graduate from any public High School in Maryland. Hours can be earned during the school year and during the summer. They are updated as they come up, but sometimes there is a lag. The best place to see current SSL hours will be quarterly. 

 

Emily Modde, PTMS PTSA President suggested that folks put questions in the chat and/or come off mute. Slides and notes will be posted soon. 

 

Emily adjourned the meeting at 8:25. 

2025.11.11 – PTSA General Meeting Outline

In person at TPMS. 

Attendance: The full PTSA board, Ms. Martin, Mr. Loznak, and 19 members of the community, including students. At the peak of the meeting, there were 30 people present.

 

PTSA Meeting slides: November 11, 2025 PTSA Slides

 

Mr. Loznak Meeting Slides: November 11, 2025 Mr. Loznak Slides 

Meeting minutes from last General Membership Meeting: 2025.10.14 – PTSA General Meeting Minutes

 

Meeting Minutes

Welcome

At 7:03 Emily, PTSA President, opened the meeting and welcomed families, community members, TPMS Administration, students and the PTSA Board. She told participants that Ramata would be translating in Spanish today, if needed (translation services were not needed during this meeting).

 

Upcoming Events

Emily shared key upcoming events including:

November 17: SpED Workshop on Special Education Transition Services 

Focused on 8th grade families who will be transitioning their Special Education Needs to a new school. Note all are welcome. 

 

November 21:  Student Government Association Dance 

The PTSA provides snacks for this event. We also need volunteer chaperones. 

 

November 24:  Parent Teacher Conferences

If you are new to Middle School, this is a different format than you are probably used to. Conferences are run “arena style” where teachers are all located in the cafeteria. A caregiver mom asked about how you navigate the arena style parent teacher conferences with multiple students. Emily said that you can prioritize where you students need the most help. Mr. Loznak suggested caregivers focus on teachers that you don’t have as much contact with.

 

The PTSA provides dinner for teachers, the administration, and staff. After a successful event last year, we will again provide soup and pie. Please sign up to make (or buy) soup and pie. 

Please see the slides for QR codes to register for these events. Emily highlighted the school calendar that shows what is going on at our school. It’s a great resource to learn details of events, get zoom links, and stay connected: TPMS Calendar 

 

Regional Analysis Update 

Liz Ryan, MCPSPTA Representative, and Jamie Koppel, Blair’s PTSA representative, gave an update to the MCPS boundary study. At the last PTSA Meeting, we had a detailed discussion of the proposals and discussions. One main area of concern is that the MCPS BoE can’t articulate how they will make sure the new proposal is equitable to all students. The County Council PTA passed a proposal that formally asked the MCPS BoE to slow down the process so families, caregivers, teachers, and others can really grasp what is going on. There are many unanswered questions, especially around impacts to autism programs, bussing, and resource management. The Teachers Union also voted, and passed, a resolution formally asking for the process to slow down. 

It was noted that at the MCPS BoE meeting hosted last night at Blair High School, the BoE refused to take notes of the input and questions that were offered.

Jamie said that there are still lots of opportunities to offer feedback on this ongoing process. The TPMS PTSA has a regional WhatsApp group (please join us and ask questions or give input!). In addition, the MCCPTA (who represents all  211 MCPS PTSA) is encouraging people to testify at the next BoE meeting, which will be November 29, 2025. Starting Thursday, November 20, 2025 people can sign up to testify. 

In addition, Ramata said that before the public meeting there was a 2 hour meeting with selected members of the Community. MCPS BoE expressed that they were very concerned about a significant decline in enrolment at MCPS schools and they expect this decline to continue. They are also concerned over the status of school buildings, and the impact of these changes on our students, staff, and community. Ramata said that the group stressed that MCPS needs to listen to us and the consensus from those who were in the smaller group meeting is that not a lot of information is being shared. The few people in the small group meeting asked questions and they didn’t feel that MCPS answered questions that were asked.

 

Emily asked those in the room to raise their hands if they knew about the proposed boundary study. About half of the participants raised their hands. One caregiver said that there was so much information, it was hard to know what to read and what to follow. She suggested that more concise information be made available. 

 

TPMS PTSA Budget Update

Mic Murphy, PTSA Treasurer, presented an overview of the PTSA Budget. To date, we have spent about 11 percent of our budget, around $3,000. The PTSA has been able to raise over $15,000 in donations. We currently have enough funds to pay for our 2025-2026 budget and provide next year’s PTSA with money to spare. Ramata, a PTSA Board Member, proposed that we passed the monthly budget. Kristen, a caregiver, seconded the motion. Everyone in the room agreed to the monthly budget via raised hands. The motion passed.

 

The School Improvement Plan, Mr. Loznak

Mr. Loznak asked those in attendance to think about 6 areas of focus for a school, and which one area would be the most important area. The areas were: safety, math, english, special education, emergent multilingual learners, and positive climate. He encouraged the group to discuss with those around them the most important issue to them. One caregiver said that positive climate was most important because it impacted all the other areas. A student said safety was the most important issue because of the boys bathrooms. Another caregiver said that a positive climate was important because it impacted overall learning.

 Mr. Loznak explained that the Maryland Report Card is an accountability system that measures relevant, actionable aspects of school performance. It has been used since 2018 for all Maryland schools. The administration is focusing on this now because there is a shift in MCPS to use this report as our measure of success at all MCPS schools, including TMPS. There is an increased focus to dig into the report and really look at where we are as a school, and where we can do better. The superintendent is also focusing on this report, which will help the school system and schools be on the same page. Mr. Loznak said that they are often asked what they do over the summer. Reviewing this report and planning how to take action; who is having success at TPMS, and who needs more support. This is what they are doing over summer break. 

 

There are 4 components of the report:

Indicator	Weight	Description
Academic Achievement	20%	Student performance on MCAP state assessments in English Language Arts (ELA) and mathematics: percent proficient or higher + average performance level. These are the English and Math tests the students take in April/May of each school year.
Academic Progress	35%	Growth of students on state assessments (ELA, math) compared to peers with similar prior performance; and for middle schools, includes 8th-grade science/social studies state assessment performance and credit-earning in core coursework. This area measures growth and takes into consideration where students are and if they are making progress. Information is broken down within groups of students and by demographics. It also includes the 8th grade science and social studies state assessments.
Progress in Achieving English Language Proficiency	10%	For students who are English learners: the percentage on track toward English language proficiency. This measures the progress of English learning for students.
School Quality & Student Success	35%	Measures include: percent of students not chronically absent (15 possible points), results of student/educator surveys (10 points), access to a well-rounded education curriculum (10 points) in middle/elementary level. This area focuses on school quality – what do students and teachers say about the school. Portions of this area were the focus of the rest of the meeting.
Total	100%	—

*Italicized information is context from the PTSA meeting. 

Mr. Loznak continued and shared that TPMS is a 4-star school this year. A few years ago, we were a 3-star school, so progress has been made. There are currently no 5-star middle schools in MCPS, which means our 4-star rating is a good one. The goal of the administration is to get a 5-star rating next year. Some areas of focus will be: increased strategies for reading comprehension; a focus on what students will need later in life; and working together to solve math problems, think about math in different ways, like you would in the real world. In addition, increased support for English learners and Special Education students.

Mr. Loznak said that there are three key areas where TPMS scored low, and we want to discuss them tonight. The administration wants to know what is working well, and where they can make improvements. All the areas listed above have the potential for progress at TPMS. During the meeting, we focused on three areas: peer to peer interactions (how students relate to each other); bullying; and physical environment (the physical spaces in the school – classrooms, hallways, cafeteria, outdoor area, etc). 

Those in attendance were divided into breakout groups. Notes were taken and shared with the administration (we will focus on responses at a later PTSA meeting). There were 3 caregiver groups, and 1 student group. Mr. Loznak said that the school is focusing on these areas because they received the lowest scores on our report card. The school is currently highlighting teachers and students who show STRIVE values, highlighting the good behavior that they want modeled. They are also focusing on having students embrace each other and their differences, working on how they work through conflict, and trying to reduce bullying and peer to peer conflict.

Mr. Loznak said the feedback received during the meeting will help the school reach the goal of becoming a 5-star school. 

Action Item: please take the MCPS survey sent out to all caregivers on October 29, 2025 (the link will be shared again in the newsletter). This is a change from past years when feedback was asked for at the end of the year, and action could only be taken the following year. This year MCPS is asking for feedback on the school now, so the administration can make changes this year. There will be another survey in the spring. The feedback goes to TPMS, so please take that into consideration.  

 

A community member asked a specific question about skipping lessons if their student already knew the content. Mr. Loznak said to reach out personally and they could discuss. 

 

Interim Principal Update

Starting in December 1, Mr. Loznak will be the Principal at TPMS. Dr. Gadsden, current Principal at Takoma Park Elementary School (TPES), will join Mr. Loznak at TPMS. Ms. Martin will be principal at TPES. These changes will go until January 31, 2026. 

 

Adjourn the Meeting

Emily thanked everyone for coming to meet in person. Our next PTSA meeting will be in January via Zoom. At 8:21 Emily closed the meeting.