Takoma Park Middle School

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October PTSA Meeting

On October 13, 2026 we hosted our second 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:

  • An ask for help with our Teacher Appreciation luncheon on Oct 16. Sign up genius.
  • Mark your calendars for Multicultural Night on Nov 12.  Sign up form for performances, displays and food.
  • 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
  • Update on our Membership Drive. Get to 290 members by 11/1.
  • Update on our Fundraising Drive.  We’re behind in our fundrasing from last year.  We want to be at $14000 by 11/1, and we are currently at $9000.
  • A presentation from students on the school dance “Neon Night” on Nov 20. And an ask for food and drinks from the PTSA, + chaperones.  See the presentation, and Sign up to be a chaperone.
  • A monthly budget update from our treasurer.
  • An overview Financial Review of PTSA finances recently completed by a financial review committee.
  • A presentation on the new Math Curriculum from Mr. Einhorn and Math Specialist Mr. Colwander. They explained the new curriculum MCPS has implemented, how it’s being rolled out, and information acceleration.  Presentation here.
  • Next PTSA meeting is Tue, Nov 10 over Zoom.

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.

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Represent MCCPTA on Curriculum Advisory committees

The MCPS Curriculum Advisory Committees (CACs) bring together community members, families, students, teachers, school-based staff, central office staff, and other stakeholders to receive and provide feedback on changes, updates, and information related to curriculum, instruction, programs, and assessments across MCPS. The Montgomery County Council of PTAs, along with other stakeholders, is invited to send volunteer representatives to these committees, which meet quarterly.
Representatives should be able to attend the scheduled meetings and be willing to share their perspectives, ask questions, and provide feedback as part of the committee’s work. They will also be expected to submit notes that will be included in reports to the MCCPTA delegates. No prior experience is necessary.
The CAC will meet virtually from 4:15-6:00 on the following dates:
  • October 15
  • January 14
  • April 8
  • May 14
The MCCPTA has openings to represent MCCPTA on the following committees:
 
Fine Arts: The topics covered this year will include
  • General Music at the Secondary level
  • Dance and theatre development
  • Regional Centers and course development
Health /PE: The topics covered this year will include:
1) elementary health education; 
2) elementary physical education; 
3) CDC What Works in Schools Grant; 
4) input from adapted physical education topics; 
5) health education and physical education based on the updated MSDE Frameworks approved in Winter 2026.
 
If you are interested in being an MCCPTA representative for either of these committees, please email esolvicechair@mccpta.org.
Thank you!
Evelyn Chung
MCCPTA CAC Coordinator

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After-School Financial Literacy Club for Takoma Park Middle Students (Earn SSL Hours!)

NOTE: This After-school program at the Long Branch Community Center is made available from the CHEER non-profit.  It is not available through TPMS, and bussing to/from is not available.
Learn more in these flyers and message from CHEER.
My name is Danielle Wolfe. I am the Communications Director at CHEER, a local nonprofit organization. I am reaching out to share an exciting after-school opportunity for your students that also helps them earn Student Service Learning (SSL) hours.
Starting October 6th, we are launching a new round of our financial literacy after-school club. This program teaches students essential, real-world money management skills such as budgeting, opening bank accounts, understanding investments, and navigating student loans. Our instructor, Matt, is fantastic at breaking down these concepts in a way that is fun and highly engaging for middle and high schoolers.
We would be incredibly grateful if you could please share the details below and the attached flyer with your school’s parents and families.
Program Details:
I have attached the club flyer, as well as CHEER’s brochure to provide some more background information about our organization and mission.
Thank you so much for your time, support, and help in spreading the word to our community.
Take care,
Danielle Wolfe

—

Danielle Wolfe

Communications Director

Community Health and Empowerment through Education and Research

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Have a High schooler? Take the survey asap – High School Instructional Continuity Survey

High School Instructional Continuity Survey
Last spring, MCCPTA passed a resolution asking MCPS to prioritize teacher continuity in full-year high school courses and avoid routine mid-year teacher and schedule changes.
Now that schedules are available for the new school year, MCCPTA would like to understand what families are actually seeing across MCPS high schools. Please take 2 minutes to complete this short survey about your student’s schedule.
The survey is available in English and Spanish , includes directions for checking your student’s second-semester schedule, and is anonymous. If you have more than one high school student, please submit a separate response for each student.
Please respond ASAP.
Thank you for helping MCCPTA understand how instructional continuity is being implemented across MCPS high schools.
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PLEASE SHARE WITH YOUR HIGH SCHOOL COMMUNITY
Survey on Continuity of Instruction in Secondary Schools
Last spring, MCCPTA passed a resolution calling on MCPS to prioritize continuity of teachers in year-round courses and to avoid routine mid-year teacher and schedule changes.
Now that schedules for the new school year are available, MCCPTA wants to know what families are seeing in MCPS high schools. Please take two minutes to complete this brief survey about your student’s schedule.
The survey is available in English and Spanish , includes instructions for reviewing your student’s second-semester schedule, and is anonymous. If you have more than one high school student, please submit a separate response for each student.
Please reply now.
Thank you for helping MCCPTA understand how continuity of instruction is being implemented in MCPS high schools.
Regan
MCCPTA Curriculum Committee

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Join the Regional Program Center Listserv

Hello! I’m Rebekah, the chair of the new committee for Regional Program Centers. I want to invite you all to subscribe to the listserv for this new committee. I hope it will become a valuable resource for sharing information about the new regional program centers. You can subscribe by sending a request to regional-program-centers+subscribe@mccpta.groups.io.
I look forward to answering questions and bringing your suggestions to MCPS!
Rebekah Kuschmider,
Chair, Committee on Regional Program Centers
Einstein Cluster Coordinator
Delegate, Einstein High School
President, Patrons of the Arts Community at Einstein (PACE)
“If not us, who? If not now, when?”

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Due 9/30 – Screen Use Survey for Upcoming Listening Session

MCCPTA is currently planning for a listening session to be led by a Maryland delegate that would include legislators, Board members, candidates, and MCPS leaders. The focus of the listening session would be to: 1) hear parent concerns about screen use in school; and 2) make practical recommendations to MCPS to address excessive and harmful screen use.

Please complete a BRIEF survey to help us collect some basic data about Chromebook access at your school and your support for a list of recommendations. You can also share this survey with friends who may like to join!

Complete the SURVEY SUPPORTING SCREEN USE RECOMMENDATIONS FOR MCPS

(SBS-MCPS, MCCPTA Tech Committee)

Deadline: September 30

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MCCPTA: 9/15 – NTIA Listening Session on Screens in Schools

NTIA LISTENING SESSION ON SCREENS IN SCHOOLS (9/15, 7PM)
The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) wants to hear from parents, students, and educators about how screens are used in education. On Thursday, Sept. 15 at 4 pm PST/7 PM est they are holding a public listening session, and everyone is encouraged to come. NTIA Senior Advisor Matthew Plaster recently spoke at a symposium on screen harms to children, and he described his vision of K-12 education in this one minute statement. (The symposium on screen harms, which was hosted by the Department of Health and Human Services, can be accessed here.)

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MCCPTA: SEEKING BUILDING EXPERTS: Facilities Advisory Committee Applications Open

Dear PTA colleagues,

MCPS’s capital budget is on a 6-year cycle, reviewed in full every two years. This means, for example, that if the County Council approves a $1.8 billion budget, only $300,000,000 is available in a given year for construction projects, system replacements, building improvements, and the like. Watch for training on the Capital Improvements Program (CIP) later this fall.

Today, let’s focus on the 6-year part of the CIP. While that can feel like a long time if the project at your school is scheduled for the later years, with a portfolio the size of MCPS’s (224 buildings), it’s important to also take a longer view and consider what needs shold be expected in 10-15 years and even further into the future. Regulation FAA-RA, which guides the processes for Educational Facilities Planning, includes a provision for a Facilities Advisory Committee (FAC) to make suggestions about that long-term planning (see section IX.D. on p. 13 at the link).

This FAC has been dormant for many years, but the upcoming MCPS real estate portfolio review and advocacy by some of our highly-engaged MCCPTA CIP leaders of past years has motivated MCPS to re-constitute the committee. They want to tap into the wealth of experience and knowledge that members of the Montgomery County community have regarding long-term facility planning issues and strategies. Indeed, the FAC has the potential to be an effective group and perhaps a source of long-range expertise and advice for MCPS.

For the first two years of the FAC’s re-existence (i.e., during the real estate portfolio review and elementary boundary study), the committee may meet as often as monthly. In the future, the commitment will likely be for a quarterly meeting. The initial term of service is for the 2026-27 school year.

Please share this opportunity with your networks, especially folks who work in any aspect of real estate, construction, environmental, or transportation/logistics careers. The blurb distributed by MCPS is below my signature. The direct link to the application is here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScSF3-tHBGn4c0rkx0tUZVihyqlcvh1-q17Yv48h56LZtuj5A/viewform . Submissions close on Friday, September 4.

If you have questions, please feel free to reach out to me and/or to Joseph Finneran, MCCPTA’s Data Subcommittee chair, cipdata@mccpta.org or joseph@podiumarts.com .

Thanks,

Amy A-H

Amy Ackerberg-Hastings, PhD

Interim CIP Chair

(as well as hopefully soon-outgoing MCCPTA Central Area Vice-President)

301-275-4019

cip@mccpta.org

Help Shape the Future of MCPS School Facilities

MCPS is seeking community members to serve on the Facility Advisory Committee for the 2026-2027 school year. Committee members will share their knowledge, experience and perspectives to help inform long-term planning for MCPS school facilities. Members of this committee will advise MCPS on a variety of topics related to the community’s vision for school facilities and planning that are outside the six-year Capital Improvements Program (CIP) time frame, but that may require attention in the 10-15 year time frame or beyond.

If you’re interested in helping shape the future of MCPS facilities, complete the application by Friday, Sept. 4.

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MCCPTA: Seeking Volunteers for Regional Program Committee

Dear PTA Members,

At the last Board of Directors meeting, MCCPTA approved forming a special committee on Regional Programs.

We are seeking volunteers from each of the six regions to participate in this committee. Cluster coordinators, PTSA board members, and community members are welcome to participate.

This committee will meet twice per month: one monthly meeting with MCPS staff to discuss regional program implementation plans, and one meeting of committee staff to debrief and develop materials about the regional programs to share with local PTAs and other MCCPTA committees.

The goals of the committee are:

  • Two-way communication with MCPS about planning, implementation, and evaluation of programs under the new regional model
  • Collecting and disseminating information for MCCPTA and local PTAs so they can provide support for programs in their schools
  • Gathering feedback about programs from local PTAs to share with MCPS, and to inform the work of curriculum, CIP, technology, and other MCCPTA committees
  • Advocate for accountability and data transparency to ensure programs across regions are comparable in enrichment opportunities, course offerings, curriculum used, and instructional quality.

If you are interested in volunteering for the Committee on Regional Programs, email Rebekah Kuschmider at einstein2@mccpta.org.

Rebekah Kuschmider,
Einstein Cluster Coordinator
Delegate, AEHS