The PTSA is looking to restart the Parents At Lunch (PAL) program. PALs are a group of volunteers that support a healthy, safe and vibrant lunchtime experience at TPMS. We need a volunteer coordinator to help schedule other parent volunteers to be onsite for lunch so the kids can have outside recess time during lunch. PAL volunteers get to know staff and students, support healthy interactions, ensure the cafeteria and outdoor areas are cleaned up, and help make lunchtime fun! The biggest need is for volunteers during 6th grade lunch. If you are interested, please email Emily Pickren at epickren@gmail.com or TPMS.pta.president@gmail.com.
Blue Devil Digest for Week of December 8, 2025 (PTSA Weekly Newsletter)
boletín informativo en español / ጋዜጣ በአማርኛ
No December PTSA Meeting, See You In January!
Please note that we will not be hosting a PTSA Meeting in December. Please mark your calendar for our next PTSA Meeting over Zoom on January 13.
Parent Talk: Fostering Resilience and Emotional Regulations in Adolescents
This is an excellent Parent Talk on fostering resilience and emotional regulations in adolescents? No problem, you can click on the link to access the recording.
Looking for SSL Hours?
Be sure to check out the Montgomery County Volunteer Center site at https://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/volunteercenter/volunteers/ssl.html
No habrá reunión de la PTSA en diciembre. ¡Nos vemos en enero!
Les informamos que no tendremos reunión de la PTSA en diciembre. Anoten en su calendario nuestra próxima reunión por Zoom el 13 de enero.
Charla para padres: Fomentando la resiliencia y la regulación emocional en adolescentes
¿Esta es una excelente charla para padres sobre cómo fomentar la resiliencia y la regulación emocional en adolescentes? No hay problema, pueden hacer clic en el enlace para acceder a la grabación.
¿Buscan horarios de SSL?
No olviden visitar el sitio web del Centro de Voluntarios del Condado de Montgomery: https://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/volunteercenter/volunteers/ssl.html
የዲሴምበር PTSA ስብሰባ የለም፣ በጥር እንገናኝ!
እባክዎን በዲሴምበር ውስጥ የPTSA ስብሰባ እንደማናስተናግድ ልብ ይበሉ። እባኮትን በጥር 13 በማጉላት በሚቀጥለው የPTSA ስብሰባ ቀን መቁጠሪያዎን ምልክት ያድርጉ።
የወላጅ ንግግር፡ በጉርምስና ዕድሜ ላይ የሚገኙ ወጣቶችን የመቋቋም እና ስሜታዊ ደንቦችን ማሳደግ
ይህ በጉርምስና ዕድሜ ላይ ያሉ ወጣቶችን የመቋቋም እና ስሜታዊ ደንቦችን ስለማሳደግ ጥሩ የወላጅ ንግግር ነው? ምንም ችግር የለም፣ ቀረጻውን ለመድረስ አገናኙ ላይ ጠቅ ማድረግ ይችላሉ።
SSL ሰዓቶችን ይፈልጋሉ?
የሞንትጎመሪ ካውንቲ የበጎ ፈቃደኞች ማዕከልን በ https://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/volunteercenter/volunteers/ssl.html ላይ መመልከትዎን እርግጠኛ ይሁኑ።
Blue Devil Digest for Week of December 1, 2025 (PTSA Weekly Newsletter)
boletín informativo en español / ጋዜጣ በአማርኛ
No December PTSA Meeting, See You In January!
Please note that we will not be hosting a PTSA Meeting in December. Please mark your calendar for our next PTSA Meeting over Zoom on January 13.
MCCPTA Seeks Your Views on School Chromebook Use
The MCCPTA Technology Committee invites all families to share your views regarding use of school-issued Chromebooks! Parents have reached out to us to express their concerns, and we wanted to provide a way for individuals to share their specific concerns, and also collect data and testimonials to share with MCPS and the Board of Education. As the Technology Committee is also considering what recommendations to provide to MCPS on its draft artificial intelligence policy, it is especially important for us to share how technology has been and is being used in the classroom now. Please make sure you share this opportunity to make your voice heard on this important issue.
- MCPS Chromebook Use – Share Your Experiences
- Help improve the insights for TPMS by responding to the MCCPTA MCPS Chromebook Use survey. (see response chart below)
Take Action through PTA!
TPMS PTSA is a member of National PTA, a nationwide network of nearly 4 million families, students, educators and community leaders that work at state and national levels to improve education, health and safety conditions for our kids. There are many issues facing our students and families today, and adding your voice to the work of PTA can help improve outcomes for all.
- Write to your congress person to demand that they address issues important to our kids: https://www.pta.org/home/advocacy/take-action
Wednesday, Dec 3, 7 pm – “Game On: Creating Safe Gaming Spaces Together” Townhall
Gaming continues to be very popular among youth with new platforms and apps introduced daily, bringing new challenges and opportunities around youth digital safety and well-being. Join this townhall hosted by National PTA to gain insight on what young people are experiencing and looking for in gaming platforms and how families can take positive, practical and proactive approaches to ensure these platforms are places where their children can thrive and be safe.
- Register to attend: https://pta.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_YnS56n5CSeWQb1W0KsfNrw#/registration
No habrá reunión de la PTSA en diciembre. ¡Nos vemos en enero!
Les informamos que no tendremos reunión de la PTSA en diciembre. Anoten en su calendario nuestra próxima reunión de la PTSA por Zoom el 13 de enero.
MCCPTA solicita su opinión sobre el uso de Chromebooks en la escuela
El Comité de Tecnología de MCCPTA invita a todas las familias a compartir su opinión sobre el uso de los Chromebooks escolares. Algunos padres nos han contactado para expresar sus inquietudes, y queríamos brindarles una oportunidad para que compartieran sus inquietudes específicas, además de recopilar datos y testimonios para compartir con MCPS y la Junta de Educación. Dado que el Comité de Tecnología también está considerando qué recomendaciones proporcionar a MCPS sobre su borrador de política de inteligencia artificial, es especialmente importante para nosotros compartir cómo se ha utilizado y se utiliza la tecnología en el aula. Por favor, asegúrense de compartir esta oportunidad para que su voz se escuche sobre este importante tema.
Uso de Chromebooks en MCPS: compartan sus experiencias
Ayuden a mejorar la información de TPMS respondiendo a la encuesta de MCCPTA sobre el uso de Chromebooks en MCPS (ver la tabla de respuestas a continuación).
¡Actúe a través de la PTA!
La PTSA de TPMS es miembro de la PTA Nacional, una red nacional de casi 4 millones de familias, estudiantes, educadores y líderes comunitarios que trabajan a nivel estatal y nacional para mejorar la educación, la salud y la seguridad de nuestros niños. Nuestros estudiantes y familias enfrentan muchos problemas hoy en día, y sumar su voz al trabajo de la PTA puede ayudar a mejorar los resultados para todos.
Escriba a su congresista para exigirle que aborde temas importantes para nuestros niños: https://www.pta.org/home/advocacy/take-action
Miércoles, 3 de diciembre, 19:00 h – Reunión comunitaria “A jugar: Creando juntos espacios de juego seguros”
Los videojuegos siguen siendo muy populares entre los jóvenes, con nuevas plataformas y aplicaciones que se lanzan a diario, lo que genera nuevos desafíos y oportunidades en torno a la seguridad y el bienestar digital de los jóvenes. Únase a este foro organizado por la PTA Nacional para comprender mejor las experiencias y las búsquedas de los jóvenes en las plataformas de juegos, y cómo las familias pueden adoptar enfoques positivos, prácticos y proactivos para garantizar que estas plataformas sean lugares donde sus hijos puedan prosperar y estar seguros.
Inscríbase: https://pta.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_YnS56n5CSeWQb1W0KsfNrw#/registration
የዲሴምበር PTSA ስብሰባ የለም፣ በጥር እንገናኝ!
እባክዎን በዲሴምበር ውስጥ የPTSA ስብሰባ እንደማናስተናግድ ልብ ይበሉ። እባኮትን በጥር 13 በማጉላት በሚቀጥለው የPTSA ስብሰባ ቀን መቁጠሪያዎን ምልክት ያድርጉ።
MCCPTA በትምህርት ቤት Chromebook አጠቃቀም ላይ የእርስዎን እይታ ይፈልጋል
የMCCPTA ቴክኖሎጂ ኮሚቴ በትምህርት ቤት የተሰጡ Chromebooks አጠቃቀምን በተመለከተ ሁሉም ቤተሰቦች ያለዎትን አስተያየት እንዲጋሩ ይጋብዛል! ወላጆች ስጋታቸውን እንድንገልጽ ረድተውናል፣ እናም ግለሰቦች ጉዳያቸውን የሚጋሩበት መንገድ ልንሰጥ እንፈልጋለን፣ እና እንዲሁም መረጃዎችን እና ምስክርነቶችን ከMCPS እና የትምህርት ቦርድ ጋር ለመካፈል። የቴክኖሎጂ ኮሚቴው በረቂቅ አርቴፊሻል ኢንተለጀንስ ፖሊሲው ላይ ለMCPS ምን አይነት ምክሮችን መስጠት እንዳለበት እያሰላሰለ፣ በተለይ በክፍል ውስጥ ቴክኖሎጂ እንዴት እንደነበረ እና ጥቅም ላይ እንደዋለ ማካፈላችን በጣም አስፈላጊ ነው። በዚህ አስፈላጊ ጉዳይ ላይ ድምጽዎን ለማሰማት ይህንን እድል ማጋራትዎን ያረጋግጡ።
የMCPS Chromebook አጠቃቀም – ልምዶችዎን ያካፍሉ።
ለMCCPTA MCPS Chromebook Use የዳሰሳ ጥናት ምላሽ በመስጠት ለTPMS ግንዛቤዎችን ለማሻሻል ያግዙ። (ከዚህ በታች የምላሽ ሰንጠረዥ ይመልከቱ)
በPTA በኩል እርምጃ ይውሰዱ!
TPMS PTSA የብሔራዊ PTA አባል ነው፣ ወደ 4 ሚሊዮን የሚጠጉ ቤተሰቦች፣ ተማሪዎች፣ አስተማሪዎች እና የማህበረሰብ መሪዎች ያሉት ለልጆቻችን የትምህርት፣ የጤና እና የደህንነት ሁኔታዎችን ለማሻሻል በክፍለ ሃገር እና በብሔራዊ ደረጃ የሚሰሩ። ዛሬ በተማሪዎቻችን እና በቤተሰቦቻችን ላይ የሚያጋጥሟቸው ብዙ ችግሮች አሉ፣ እና ድምጽዎን ወደ PTA ስራ ማከል ለሁሉም ውጤትን ለማሻሻል ይረዳል።
ለልጆቻችን አስፈላጊ የሆኑ ጉዳዮችን እንዲፈቱ ለመጠየቅ ለኮንግሬስዎ ሰው ይፃፉ፡ https://www.pta.org/home/advocacy/take-action
እሮብ፣ ዲሴምበር 3፣ 7 pm – “ጨዋታ በርቷል፡ ደህንነቱ የተጠበቀ የጨዋታ ቦታዎችን በጋራ መፍጠር” Townhall
ጨዋታ በየእለቱ በተዋወቁ አዳዲስ መድረኮች እና መተግበሪያዎች በወጣቶች ዘንድ በጣም ተወዳጅ ሆኖ ቀጥሏል፣ ይህም በወጣቶች ዲጂታል ደህንነት እና ደህንነት ዙሪያ አዳዲስ ፈተናዎችን እና እድሎችን ያመጣል። ወጣቶች በጨዋታ መድረኮች ውስጥ ምን እያጋጠሟቸው እና እንደሚፈልጉ እና ቤተሰቦች እንዴት አወንታዊ፣ ተግባራዊ እና ንቁ አቀራረቦችን እንደሚወስዱ ግንዛቤ ለማግኘት በብሔራዊ PTA የሚስተናገደውን ይህን የከተማ አዳራሽ ይቀላቀሉ።
ለመገኘት ይመዝገቡ፡ https://pta.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_YnS56n5CSeWQb1W0KsfNrw#/registration
Blue Devil Digest for Week of November 24, 2025 (PTSA Weekly Newsletter)
boletín informativo en español / ጋዜጣ በአማርኛ
Gratitude for our TPMS Community
As we enter this week of gratitude and reflection, I want to thank the TPMS community for the many ways you show up for our students, teachers, and staff. Whether you volunteered your time, made a donation, shared a thoughtful idea, or advocated for improving our schools, your contributions matter.
This community makes TPMS stronger, more supportive, and a place our children can thrive — and I am deeply grateful to be part of it.
I’d also like to especially recognize Alisa Obrien, our PTSA Teacher Appreciation Chair who, with the assistance of our community, pulled together a fabulous Parent Teacher Conference’s Soup & Pie meal on Monday. Thanks for leveling up what is possible, Alisa!
With appreciation,
Emily Modde
TPMS PTSA President
Meeting Minutes (aka Notes) from our November PTSA Meeting
Please find the meeting notes from our November PTSA meeting by following this link: https://www.tpmspta.org/november-2025-ptsa-monthly-meeting-notes/
No December PTSA Meeting, See You In January!
Please note that we will not be hosting a PTSA Meeting in December. Please mark your calendar for our next PTSA Meeting over Zoom on January 13.
MCPS School Climate Survey
In our November PTSA Meeting we discussed the School Improvement plan and how it works, and raised ideas for improvement opportunities. Something we learned in this meeting is that the school relies on information from the MCPS School Climate Survey to help formulate its plan for improvement.
In the past, this survey was only provided in the spring. This year they are putting this survey out in the fall to get early feedback that the school can take action on, and again in the spring to see how well the school did. You can help TPMS on its path to become a 5-star school by answering the MCPS School Climate Survey. I assure you that your comments will be read!
Share your experiences and thoughts on academics, communication and overall satisfaction with your school and the district. We want to improve our teaching and make our schools and district a more welcoming place for all students, staff and families.
Surveys are now available in eight languages:
English | Spanish | French | Chinese | Vietnamese | Amharic | Korean | Portuguese
To complete the survey, you will be asked for your child’s student ID number. You can find this in ParentVUE → Student Information.
Your responses are confidential—the student ID is used only to connect your input to the right school. Your Input Matters!
Gratitud para nuestra comunidad de TPMS
Al comenzar esta semana de gratitud y reflexión, quiero agradecer a la comunidad de TPMS por las múltiples maneras en que se muestran solidarios con nuestros estudiantes, maestros y personal. Ya sea que hayan ofrecido su tiempo como voluntarios, hecho una donación, compartido una idea valiosa o abogado por la mejora de nuestras escuelas, sus contribuciones son importantes.
Esta comunidad hace que TPMS sea más fuerte, más solidaria y un lugar donde nuestros niños pueden prosperar, y estoy profundamente agradecida de formar parte de ella.
También me gustaría reconocer especialmente a Alisa Obrien, nuestra Presidenta de Agradecimiento a los Maestros de la PTSA, quien, con la ayuda de nuestra comunidad, organizó una fabulosa cena de sopa y pastel para la Conferencia de Padres y Maestros el lunes. ¡Gracias por impulsar lo que es posible, Alisa!
Con agradecimiento,
Emily Modde
Presidenta de la PTSA de TPMS
Actas de la reunión de la PTSA de noviembre
Encuentre las actas de la reunión de la PTSA de noviembre en este enlace: https://www.tpmspta.org/november-2025-ptsa-monthly-meeting-notes/
¡No habrá reunión de la PTSA en diciembre! ¡Nos vemos en enero!
Tenga en cuenta que no tendremos reunión de la PTSA en diciembre. Anote en su calendario nuestra próxima reunión de la PTSA por Zoom el 13 de enero.
Encuesta sobre el Clima Escolar de MCPS
En nuestra reunión de la PTSA de noviembre, hablamos sobre el plan de mejora escolar y su funcionamiento, y propusimos ideas para oportunidades de mejora. Aprendimos que la escuela se basa en la información de la Encuesta sobre el Clima Escolar de MCPS para formular su plan de mejora.
Anteriormente, esta encuesta solo se realizaba en primavera. Este año, se realizará en otoño para obtener comentarios tempranos que permitan a la escuela tomar medidas, y nuevamente en primavera para evaluar los resultados. Puedes ayudar a TPMS a convertirse en una escuela de 5 estrellas respondiendo la Encuesta sobre el Clima Escolar de MCPS. ¡Te aseguro que leeremos tus comentarios!
Comparte tus experiencias y opiniones sobre el rendimiento académico, la comunicación y tu satisfacción general con la escuela y el distrito. Queremos mejorar nuestra enseñanza y hacer de nuestras escuelas y distrito un lugar más acogedor para todos los estudiantes, el personal y las familias.
Las encuestas están disponibles en ocho idiomas:
Inglés | Español | Francés | Chino | Vietnamita | Amárico | Coreano | Portugués
Para completar la encuesta, se le pedirá el número de identificación estudiantil de su hijo/a. Puede encontrarlo en ParentVUE → Información del estudiante.
Sus respuestas son confidenciales; el número de identificación estudiantil se utiliza únicamente para conectar su información con la escuela correspondiente. ¡Su opinión es importante!
ለTPMS ማህበረሰባችን እናመሰግናለን
ወደዚህ የምስጋና እና የማሰላሰል ሳምንት ስንገባ፣ ለተማሪዎቻችን፣ ለአስተማሪዎቻችን እና ለሰራተኞቻችን ለሚያሳዩት ብዙ መንገዶች የTPMS ማህበረሰብን ማመስገን እፈልጋለሁ። ጊዜህን በፈቃደኝነት ሰጥተህ፣ ልገሳ፣ አስተዋይ ሐሳብ ተካፍለህ፣ ወይም ትምህርት ቤቶቻችንን ለማሻሻል ተሟገተህ፣ የአንተ አስተዋጽዖ አስፈላጊ ነው።
ይህ ማህበረሰብ TPMSን የበለጠ ጠንካራ፣ የበለጠ ደጋፊ እና ልጆቻችን የሚያድጉበት ቦታ ያደርገዋል – እናም የዚህ አካል በመሆኔ በጣም አመስጋኝ ነኝ።
በተለይ በአሊሳ ኦብሪየን፣ የPTSA አስተማሪ አድናቆታችንን ሊቀመንበራችን በማህበረሰባችን እርዳታ፣ በሰኞ ዕለት ድንቅ የሆነ የወላጅ መምህር ኮንፈረንስ ሾርባ እና አምባሻ ምግብን ሰብስቦ ላውቅ እወዳለሁ። የሚቻለውን ስላስተካከልክ እናመሰግናለን አሊሳ!
ከአድናቆት ጋር፣
ኤሚሊ ሞድዴ
የ TPMS PTSA ፕሬዝዳንት
የስብሰባ ደቂቃዎች (በማስታወሻዎች በመባል ይታወቃሉ) ከህዳር PTSA ስብሰባችን
እባክዎን የስብሰባ ማስታወሻዎችን ከህዳር PTSA ስብሰባችን ይህንን ሊንክ በመከተል ያግኙ፡- https://www.tpmspta.org/november-2025-ptsa-monthly-meeting-notes/
የዲሴምበር PTSA ስብሰባ የለም፣ በጥር እንገናኝ!
እባክዎን በዲሴምበር ውስጥ የPTSA ስብሰባ እንደማናስተናግድ ልብ ይበሉ። እባኮትን በጥር 13 በማጉላት በሚቀጥለው የPTSA ስብሰባ ቀን መቁጠሪያዎን ምልክት ያድርጉ።
የMCPS ትምህርት ቤት የአየር ንብረት ዳሰሳ
በህዳር PTSA ስብሰባ የትምህርት ቤት ማሻሻያ እቅድ እና እንዴት እንደሚሰራ ተወያይተናል፣ እና የማሻሻያ እድሎችን ሀሳብ አንስተናል። በዚህ ስብሰባ ላይ የተማርነው ነገር ቢኖር ትምህርት ቤቱ የማሻሻያ እቅዱን ለመንደፍ ከMCPS ትምህርት ቤት የአየር ንብረት ዳሰሳ በተገኘ መረጃ ላይ የተመሰረተ መሆኑን ነው።
ቀደም ባሉት ጊዜያት ይህ የዳሰሳ ጥናት የቀረበው በፀደይ ወቅት ብቻ ነበር. በዚህ አመት ትምህርት ቤቱ እርምጃ ሊወስድበት የሚችለውን ቀደምት ግብረመልስ ለማግኘት እና በፀደይ ወቅት ትምህርት ቤቱ ምን ያህል ጥሩ እንደነበረ ለማየት ይህንን የዳሰሳ ጥናት በልግ ላይ እያደረጉ ነው። የMCPS ትምህርት ቤት የአየር ንብረት ዳሰሳን በመመለስ ባለ 5-ኮከብ ትምህርት ቤት ለመሆን በሚወስደው መንገድ ላይ TPMSን መርዳት ትችላለህ። አስተያየቶችዎ እንደሚነበቡ አረጋግጣለሁ!
በአካዳሚክ፣ በግንኙነት እና በአጠቃላይ እርካታ ላይ ያለዎትን ልምድ እና ሃሳብ ከትምህርት ቤትዎ እና ከድስትሪክቱ ጋር ያካፍሉ። የማስተማር ስራችንን ለማሻሻል እና ትምህርት ቤቶቻችንን እና ወረዳችንን ለሁሉም ተማሪዎች፣ ሰራተኞች እና ቤተሰቦች የበለጠ ምቹ ቦታ ማድረግ እንፈልጋለን።
የዳሰሳ ጥናቶች አሁን በስምንት ቋንቋዎች ይገኛሉ፡-
እንግሊዝኛ | ስፓኒሽ | ፈረንሳይኛ | ቻይንኛ | ቬትናምኛ | Amharic | ኮሪያኛ | ፖርቹጋልኛ
የዳሰሳ ጥናቱን ለማጠናቀቅ፣ የልጅዎን የተማሪ መታወቂያ ቁጥር ይጠየቃሉ። ይህንን በPreentVUE → የተማሪ መረጃ ውስጥ ማግኘት ይችላሉ።
የእርስዎ ምላሾች ሚስጥራዊ ናቸው-የተማሪ መታወቂያው ግቤትዎን ከትክክለኛው ትምህርት ቤት ጋር ለማገናኘት ብቻ ጥቅም ላይ ይውላል። የእርስዎ ግቤት አስፈላጊ ነው!
November 2025 PTSA Monthly Meeting Notes
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.
Blue Devil Digest for Week of November 17, 2025 (PTSA Weekly Newsletter)
boletín informativo en español / ጋዜጣ በአማርኛ
Volunteers Needed: Bring Soup &/or Pie for Parent Teacher Conferences on Nov 24
We’ve been creating a little tradition for Parent Teacher Conferences by bringing Soup &/or Pie to our teachers and staff to keep them going during the long day! Thanks for making this day such a big success!
New MCPS calendar survey available
MCPS is conducting a second survey to help guide decisions for the 2026-27 school calendar. Survey responses are due by November 30.
The survey asks about three different options, all of which have the same spring break (March 26 to April 2).
- Draft A would start school Aug. 31 and end on June 23.
- Draft B would start school Aug. 24 and end on June 15.
- Draft C would start school Aug. 24 and end on June 16. This option starts winter break one day earlier than Drafts A&B.
Here’s your chance to tell MCPS what you think:
Https://forms.gle/Jg3P9eQEMaByftu47
MCPS School Climate Survey
In our November PTSA Meeting we discussed the School Improvement plan and how it works, and raised ideas for improvement opportunities. Something we learned in this meeting is that the school relies on information from the MCPS School Climate Survey to help formulate its plan for improvement.
In the past, this survey was only provided in the spring. This year they are putting this survey out in the fall to get early feedback that the school can take action on, and again in the spring to see how well the school did. You can help TPMS on it’s path to become a 5-star school by answering the MCPS School Climate Survey. I assure you that your comments will be read!
Share your experiences and thoughts on academics, communication and overall satisfaction with your school and the district. We want to improve our teaching and make our schools and district a more welcoming place for all students, staff and families.
Surveys are now available in eight languages:
English | Spanish | French | Chinese | Vietnamese | Amharic | Korean | Portuguese
To complete the survey, you will be asked for your child’s student ID number. You can find this in ParentVUE → Student Information.
Your responses are confidential—the student ID is used only to connect your input to the right school. Your Input Matters!
Thank You Triumph House for helping make our Membership Drive a Success!
Last Wednesday, the PTSA provided special treats for students in Triumph House, the winners of this year’s PTSA membership drive. A big thank you to the PTSA’s Membership Chair Heather Brown-Palsgrove for making this possible!
Se necesitan voluntarios: Traiga sopa y/o pastel para las reuniones de padres y maestros del 24 de noviembre.
Hemos creado una pequeña tradición para las reuniones de padres y maestros: ¡traer sopa y/o pastel a nuestros maestros y personal para que tengan energía durante la larga jornada! ¡Gracias por hacer de este día un gran éxito!
Inscríbase aquí: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/30E0C4DA4AC28A4F49-53167012-soup#/
Nueva encuesta sobre el calendario de MCPS disponible.
MCPS está realizando una segunda encuesta para ayudar a tomar decisiones sobre el calendario escolar 2026-27. Las respuestas a la encuesta deben enviarse antes del 30 de noviembre.
La encuesta pregunta sobre tres opciones diferentes, todas con las mismas vacaciones de primavera (del 26 de marzo al 2 de abril).
- El plan A comenzaría las clases el 31 de agosto y terminaría el 23 de junio.
- El plan B comenzaría las clases el 24 de agosto y terminaría el 15 de junio.
- El plan C comenzaría las clases el 24 de agosto y terminaría el 16 de junio. Esta opción adelanta las vacaciones de invierno un día con respecto a los planes A y B.
Aquí tienes la oportunidad de compartir tu opinión con MCPS: https://forms.gle/Jg3P9eQEMaByftu47
Encuesta sobre el Clima Escolar de MCPS
En nuestra reunión de la PTSA de noviembre, hablamos sobre el plan de mejora escolar y su funcionamiento, y propusimos ideas para oportunidades de mejora. Aprendimos que la escuela se basa en la información de la Encuesta sobre el Clima Escolar de MCPS para formular su plan de mejora.
Anteriormente, esta encuesta solo se realizaba en primavera. Este año, se realizará en otoño para obtener comentarios tempranos que permitan a la escuela tomar medidas, y nuevamente en primavera para evaluar los resultados. Puedes ayudar a TPMS a convertirse en una escuela de 5 estrellas respondiendo la Encuesta sobre el Clima Escolar de MCPS. ¡Te aseguro que leeremos tus comentarios!
Comparte tus experiencias y opiniones sobre el rendimiento académico, la comunicación y tu satisfacción general con la escuela y el distrito. Queremos mejorar nuestra enseñanza y hacer de nuestras escuelas y distrito un lugar más acogedor para todos los estudiantes, el personal y las familias.
Las encuestas están disponibles en ocho idiomas:
Inglés | Español | Francés | Chino | Vietnamita | Amárico | Coreano | Portugués
Para completar la encuesta, se le pedirá el número de identificación estudiantil de su hijo/a. Puede encontrarlo en ParentVUE → Información del estudiante.
Sus respuestas son confidenciales; el número de identificación estudiantil se utiliza únicamente para conectar su información con la escuela correspondiente. ¡Su opinión es importante!
¡Gracias a la Residencia Triumph por contribuir al éxito de nuestra campaña de captación de socios!
El miércoles pasado, la PTSA ofreció obsequios especiales a los estudiantes de la Residencia Triumph, ganadores de la campaña de captación de socios de este año. ¡Muchas gracias a la Coordinadora de Membresía de la PTSA, Heather Brown-Palsgrove, por hacerlo posible!
በጎ ፈቃደኞች ያስፈልጋሉ፡ ህዳር 24 ላይ ለወላጅ አስተማሪ ኮንፈረንስ ሾርባ እና/ወይን ይዘው ይምጡ
ለወላጅ መምህር ኮንፈረንስ ሾርባ እና/ወይን ለአስተማሪዎቻችን እና ሰራተኞቻችን በረጅም ቀን እንዲቀጥሉ በማድረግ ትንሽ ባህል እየፈጠርን ነው! ይህን ቀን ትልቅ ስኬት ስላደረጉ እናመሰግናለን!
እዚህ ይመዝገቡ፡ https://www.signupgenius.com/go/30E0C4DA4AC28A4F49-53167012-soup#/
አዲስ የMCPS የቀን መቁጠሪያ ዳሰሳ አለ።
ለ2026-27 የትምህርት ቤት አቆጣጠር ውሳኔዎችን ለመምራት MCPS ሁለተኛ የዳሰሳ ጥናት እያካሄደ ነው። የዳሰሳ ጥናት ምላሾች እስከ ህዳር 30 ድረስ መጠናቀቅ አለባቸው።
ጥናቱ ሦስት የተለያዩ አማራጮችን ይጠይቃል፣ ሁሉም ተመሳሳይ የፀደይ ዕረፍት አላቸው (ከመጋቢት 26 እስከ ኤፕሪል 2)።
ረቂቅ ሀ ነሀሴ 31 ትምህርት ይጀምራል እና ሰኔ 23 ያበቃል።
ረቂቅ ለ ነሀሴ 24 ይጀምራል እና ሰኔ 15 ያበቃል።
ረቂቅ ሲ ትምህርት ነሀሴ 24 ይጀምራል እና ሰኔ 16 ላይ ያበቃል። ይህ አማራጭ የክረምት ዕረፍት የሚጀምረው ከድራፍት A&B አንድ ቀን ቀደም ብሎ ነው።
የሚያስቡትን ለMCPS ለመንገር እድሉ ይኸውና፡-
ኤችቲትፕስ://forms.gle/Jg3P9eQEMAByftu47
የMCPS ትምህርት ቤት የአየር ንብረት ዳሰሳ
በህዳር PTSA ስብሰባ የትምህርት ቤት ማሻሻያ እቅድ እና እንዴት እንደሚሰራ ተወያይተናል፣ እና የማሻሻያ እድሎችን ሀሳብ አንስተናል። በዚህ ስብሰባ ላይ የተማርነው ነገር ቢኖር ትምህርት ቤቱ የማሻሻያ እቅዱን ለመንደፍ ከMCPS ትምህርት ቤት የአየር ንብረት ዳሰሳ በተገኘ መረጃ ላይ የተመሰረተ መሆኑን ነው።
ቀደም ባሉት ጊዜያት ይህ የዳሰሳ ጥናት የቀረበው በፀደይ ወቅት ብቻ ነበር. በዚህ አመት ትምህርት ቤቱ እርምጃ ሊወስድበት የሚችለውን ቀደምት ግብረመልስ ለማግኘት እና በፀደይ ወቅት ትምህርት ቤቱ ምን ያህል ጥሩ እንደነበረ ለማየት ይህንን የዳሰሳ ጥናት በልግ ላይ እያደረጉ ነው። የMCPS ትምህርት ቤት የአየር ንብረት ዳሰሳን በመመለስ ባለ 5-ኮከብ ትምህርት ቤት ለመሆን በሚወስደው መንገድ ላይ TPMSን መርዳት ትችላለህ። አስተያየቶችዎ እንደሚነበቡ አረጋግጣለሁ!
በአካዳሚክ፣ በግንኙነት እና በአጠቃላይ እርካታ ላይ ያለዎትን ልምድ እና ሃሳብ ከትምህርት ቤትዎ እና ከድስትሪክቱ ጋር ያካፍሉ። የማስተማር ስራችንን ለማሻሻል እና ትምህርት ቤቶቻችንን እና ወረዳችንን ለሁሉም ተማሪዎች፣ ሰራተኞች እና ቤተሰቦች የበለጠ ምቹ ቦታ ማድረግ እንፈልጋለን።
የዳሰሳ ጥናቶች አሁን በስምንት ቋንቋዎች ይገኛሉ፡-
እንግሊዝኛ | ስፓኒሽ | ፈረንሳይኛ | ቻይንኛ | ቬትናምኛ | Amharic | ኮሪያኛ | ፖርቹጋልኛ
የዳሰሳ ጥናቱን ለማጠናቀቅ፣ የልጅዎን የተማሪ መታወቂያ ቁጥር ይጠየቃሉ። ይህንን በPreentVUE → የተማሪ መረጃ ውስጥ ማግኘት ይችላሉ።
የእርስዎ ምላሾች ሚስጥራዊ ናቸው-የተማሪ መታወቂያው ግቤትዎን ከትክክለኛው ትምህርት ቤት ጋር ለማገናኘት ብቻ ጥቅም ላይ ይውላል። የእርስዎ ግቤት አስፈላጊ ነው!
የአባልነት መንዳት ስኬታማ እንዲሆን ስለረዱት ትሪምፍ ሃውስ እናመሰግናለን!
ባለፈው ረቡዕ፣ PTSA በዚህ አመት የPTSA አባልነት አንፃፊ አሸናፊ ለሆኑት በትሪምፍ ሃውስ ውስጥ ለተማሪዎች ልዩ ህክምና ሰጥቷል። የPTSA አባልነት ሊቀመንበር ሄዘር ብራውን-ፓልስግሮቭ ይህን ስላደረጉት ትልቅ ምስጋና አቀርባለሁ!
Blue Devil Digest for Week of November 10, 2025 (PTSA Weekly Newsletter)
boletín informativo en español / ጋዜጣ በአማርኛ
REMINDER: Monthly PTSA Meeting is November 11 at 7 pm in person in the TPMS Cafeteria
Reminder that tomorrow, Tuesday, Nov 11, from approximately 7-8:15 we will be hosting an in-person PTSA meeting in the TPMS cafeteria. This will be interactive and full of opportunities for input on our School’s (yearly) Improvement Plan. Find out how the school is ‘graded’ and how you can make a difference in how it improves itself! This meeting is designed for both parents/caregivers, AND importantly, your student! SSL hours will be given. Looking forward to seeing you there!
Soup and Pie for Teachers
Let’s treat our wonderful staff to a soup and pie dinner during the upcoming teacher-caregiver conferences on November 24. Please sign up to donate food and/or to help staff the dinner. The teachers have a very short dinner break so drop off your donations in the front office by 2:30pm on Monday, Nov. 24. Soups and other items may also be dropped off the night before or morning, please email Alisa O’Brien at alisaobrien10@yahoo.com for the address. We also appreciate the soups delivered in a crock pot/similar hot pot as we will not be able to heat up the soup. Crock pots can be picked up after the dinner by 6 pm or email Alisa to arrange a different pick up time. Thank you!
Upcoming Community Events
- Sunday, 11/17 – Workshop: Special Education Transition Services for students entering HS
PRECORDATORIO: La reunión mensual de la PTSA es el 11 de noviembre a las 7 p. m. en persona en la cafetería de TPMS.
Les recordamos que mañana, martes 11 de noviembre, de 7 a 8:15 p. m. aproximadamente, tendremos una reunión presencial de la PTSA en la cafetería de TPMS. Esta será interactiva y ofrecerá muchas oportunidades para aportar ideas al Plan de Mejora (anual) de nuestra escuela. ¡Descubran cómo se evalúa a la escuela y cómo pueden contribuir a su mejora! Esta reunión está dirigida tanto a padres/tutores como, muy importante, a sus hijos/as. Se otorgarán horas de servicio comunitario. ¡Los esperamos!
Sopa y pastel para los maestros
Invitemos a nuestro maravilloso personal a una cena de sopa y pastel durante las próximas reuniones de maestros y tutores el 24 de noviembre. Por favor, inscríbanse para donar comida o para ayudar a preparar la cena. Los profesores tienen un descanso para cenar muy corto, así que por favor, dejen sus donaciones en la oficina principal antes de las 2:30 p. m. del lunes 24 de noviembre. También pueden dejar sopas y otros alimentos la noche anterior o por la mañana; para obtener la dirección, escriban a Alisa O’Brien a alisaobrien10@yahoo.com. Agradecemos que entreguen las sopas en una olla de cocción lenta o similar, ya que no podremos calentarlas. Pueden recoger las ollas de cocción lenta después de la cena, antes de las 6 p. m., o escribir a Alisa para coordinar otra hora de recogida. ¡Gracias!
Próximos eventos comunitarios
- Domingo 17 de noviembre – Taller: Servicios de transición de educación especial para estudiantes que ingresan a la preparatoria
ማሳሰቢያ፡- ወርሃዊ የPTSA ስብሰባ ህዳር 11 ከቀኑ 7 ሰአት ላይ በአካል በ TPMS ካፌቴሪያ
ነገ፣ ማክሰኞ፣ ህዳር 11፣ ከ7-8፡15 አካባቢ በአካል የPTSA ስብሰባ በTPMS ካፍቴሪያ እንደምንዘጋጅ አስታውስ። ይህ መስተጋብራዊ እና በት/ቤታችን (ዓመታዊ) የማሻሻያ እቅድ ላይ ግብአት የሚሆኑ እድሎች የተሞላ ይሆናል። ትምህርት ቤቱ እንዴት ‘ደረጃ እንደተሰጠው’ እና እንዴት እራሱን እንደሚያሻሽል ለውጥ ማምጣት እንደሚችሉ ይወቁ! ይህ ስብሰባ የተዘጋጀው ለሁለቱም ወላጆች/ተንከባካቢዎች፣ እና በአስፈላጊ ሁኔታ፣ ለተማሪዎ! የኤስኤስኤል ሰዓቶች ይሰጣሉ። እዚያ ለማየት በጉጉት እጠብቃለሁ!
ሾርባ እና ኬክ ለአስተማሪዎች
በኖቬምበር 24 በሚደረጉት የአስተማሪ-ተንከባካቢ ኮንፈረንስ ላይ ድንቅ ሰራተኞቻችንን በሾርባ እና በፓይ እራት እናስተናግዳቸው። እባክዎን ምግብ ለመለገስ እና/ወይም የእራቱን ሰራተኞች ለመርዳት ይመዝገቡ።መምህራኑ በጣም አጭር የእራት እረፍት ስላላቸው ሰኞ፣ ህዳር 24 ከቀኑ 2፡30 በፊት ልገሳዎን በፊት ቢሮ ውስጥ ያኑሩ። ሾርባዎች እና ሌሎች ነገሮች ከሌሊቱ በፊት ወይም ጠዋት ላይ ሊጣሉ ይችላሉ፣ እባክዎን ለአድራሻው Alisa O’Brien በ alisaobrien10@yahoo.com ይላኩ። እንዲሁም ሾርባውን ማሞቅ ስለማንችል በሸክላ ድስት/በመሰል ትኩስ ድስት ውስጥ የሚቀርቡትን ሾርባዎች እናደንቃለን። የሸክላ ማሰሮዎች ከእራት በኋላ በ 6 ሰዓት ላይ ማንሳት ይችላሉ ወይም የተለየ የመልቀሚያ ጊዜ ለማዘጋጀት አሊሳን በኢሜል ይላኩ ። አመሰግናለሁ!
መጪ የማህበረሰብ ክስተቶች
- እሑድ፣ 11/17 – አውደ ጥናት፡ ወደ HS ለሚገቡ ተማሪዎች የልዩ ትምህርት ሽግግር አገልግሎት
Blue Devil Digest for Week of November 3, 2025 (PTSA Weekly Newsletter)
boletín informativo en español / ጋዜጣ በአማርኛ
NEXT PTSA MEETING: November 11 at 7 pm in person in the TPMS Cafeteria
This meeting is going to be fun and a great way to meet others in the school community! Come workshop this year’s School Improvement Plan with Principal Martin and Principal Intern Loznak. Gathering input from the Maryland Report Card and the community, the school creates a plan each year. Learn what’s in it and how you can contribute to shaping it through this interactive workshop designed for parents, caregivers and students! SSL hours will be provided.
Agenda includes:
- Student Panel
- Updates on upcoming events
- The monthly budget update – it’s quick, I promise!
- Workshopping the School Improvement plan
- Q&A
MCCPTA resolution: Resolved to slow down the programming analysis
On October 30th, TPMS’s PTSA parent organization, MCCPTA, voted in favor of a resolution demanding that MCPS slow down the programming analysis to give more time for input, feedback, and assurance that the project can be successfuly executed.
- Read the Resolution
- Read the article about it in Bethesda Magazine
- Learn more about the programming analysis
October Highlights – MCPS NAACP Parents’ Council
Here are some key takeaways from the October MCPS NAACP Parents’ Council meeting. Thank you for your continued partnership and dedication to supporting all students!
- Equity & Leadership: Dr. Nyah Hamlett, Chief of Equity and Engagement, shared her vision for a stronger MCPS built on authentic leadership, equity, and collaboration.
- MECCA Business Learning Institute (MBLI): MCPS’s first charter school will focus on business, leadership, and entrepreneurship for middle school students.
- Six-Region Program Model: Beginning in 2027–2028, MCPS will adopt a new regional model to ensure equitable access to academic programs countywide.
- Career Advising & Academic Support: Expanded career advising for grades 6–12 and new tutoring opportunities through the George B. Thomas Learning Academy are underway.
- Field Trip Funding: A new Maryland bill will fund transportation and entry fees for cultural museum field trips. Schools will receive application forms soon.
Upcoming Community Events
- Sunday, 11/9 – at the Kensington Park Library – “Can’t Look Away”
- Special Screening of “Can’t Look Away”, a documentary about the dark side of social media on youth. Students can earn 3 SSL hours for attending. Find out more MCCPTA here. Or register through MCPL.
- Sunday, 11/17 – Workshop: Special Education Transition Services for students entering HS
PRÓXIMA REUNIÓN DE LA PTSA: 11 de noviembre a las 19:00 h, presencial en la cafetería de TPMS.
¡Esta reunión será divertida y una excelente oportunidad para conocer a otros miembros de la comunidad escolar! Acompáñanos en el taller sobre el Plan de Mejora Escolar de este año con el director Martin y el subdirector Loznak. Recopilando información del Informe de Calificaciones de Maryland y de la comunidad, la escuela elabora un plan cada año. Descubre su contenido y cómo puedes contribuir a su desarrollo a través de este taller interactivo diseñado para padres, tutores y estudiantes. Se otorgarán horas de servicio comunitario (SSL).
Agenda:
- Panel de estudiantes
- Información sobre próximos eventos
- Actualización del presupuesto mensual: ¡rápida, lo prometo!
- Taller sobre el Plan de Mejora Escolar
- Preguntas y respuestas
Resolución de MCCPTA: Se decide ralentizar el análisis del programa
El 30 de octubre, la asociación de padres y maestros de TPMS, MCCPTA, votó a favor de una resolución que exige a MCPS ralentizar el análisis del programa para disponer de más tiempo para recibir aportaciones, comentarios y garantizar la correcta ejecución del proyecto.
- Lea la resolución
- Lea el artículo al respecto en la revista Bethesda
- Más información sobre el análisis del programa
Resumen de octubre – Consejo de Padres de la NAACP de MCPS
Aquí les presentamos algunos puntos clave de la reunión de octubre del Consejo de Padres de la NAACP de MCPS. ¡Gracias por su continua colaboración y dedicación al apoyo de todos los estudiantes!
- Equidad y liderazgo: La Dra. Nyah Hamlett, Jefa de Equidad y Participación, compartió su visión para un MCPS más sólido, basado en un liderazgo auténtico, la equidad y la colaboración.
- Instituto de Aprendizaje Empresarial MECCA (MBLI): La primera escuela chárter de MCPS se centrará en negocios, liderazgo y emprendimiento para estudiantes de secundaria.
- Modelo de programa de seis regiones: A partir del ciclo escolar 2027-2028, MCPS adoptará un nuevo modelo regional para garantizar el acceso equitativo a los programas académicos en todo el condado.
- Asesoramiento profesional y apoyo académico: Se está implementando un programa ampliado de asesoramiento profesional para los grados 6 a 12 y nuevas oportunidades de tutoría a través de la Academia de Aprendizaje George B. Thomas.
- Financiamiento para excursiones: Un nuevo proyecto de ley de Maryland financiará el transporte y las entradas para excursiones a museos culturales. Las escuelas recibirán los formularios de solicitud próximamente.
Próximos eventos comunitarios
- Domingo 9 de noviembre – Biblioteca de Kensington Park – “Can’t Look Away”
- Proyección especial de “Can’t Look Away”, un documental sobre el impacto negativo de las redes sociales en la juventud. Los estudiantes pueden obtener 3 horas de crédito estudiantil (SSL) por asistir. Para más información, visite MCCPTA aquí o regístrese a través de MCPL.
- Domingo 17 de noviembre – Taller: Servicios de transición de educación especial para estudiantes que ingresan a la preparatoria
ቀጣይ የPTSA ስብሰባ፡ ህዳር 11 ከቀኑ 7 ሰአት ላይ በአካል በTPMS ካፌቴሪያ
ይህ ስብሰባ አስደሳች እና በትምህርት ቤት ማህበረሰብ ውስጥ ከሌሎች ጋር ለመገናኘት ጥሩ መንገድ ይሆናል! ከርዕሰ መምህር ማርቲን እና ከርእሰመምህር ኢንተር ሎዝናክ ጋር የዘንድሮ የትምህርት ቤት ማሻሻያ እቅድ አውደ ጥናት ይምጡ። ከሜሪላንድ የሪፖርት ካርድ እና ከማህበረሰቡ ግብአት በማሰባሰብ ትምህርት ቤቱ በየአመቱ እቅድ ያወጣል። ለወላጆች፣ ለአሳዳጊዎች እና ለተማሪዎች በተዘጋጀው በዚህ በይነተገናኝ አውደ ጥናት በውስጡ ምን እንዳለ እና እሱን ለመቅረጽ እንዴት አስተዋፅዖ ማድረግ እንደሚችሉ ይወቁ! SSL ሰዓቶች ይቀርባሉ.
አጀንዳ የሚከተሉትን ያጠቃልላል
- የተማሪ ፓነል
- በመጪ ክስተቶች ላይ ዝማኔዎች
- ወርሃዊው የበጀት ማሻሻያ – ፈጣን ነው, ቃል እገባለሁ!
- የትምህርት ቤት መሻሻል እቅድ አውደ ጥናት
- ጥያቄ እና መልስ
የMCCPTA ጥራት፡ የፕሮግራም አወጣጥን ትንተና ለማዘግየት ተፈቷል።
ኦክቶበር 30 ላይ፣ የTPMS የPTSA ወላጆች ድርጅት MCCPTA፣ MCPS የፕሮግራሚንግ ትንታኔን እንዲዘገይ ለግብአት፣ ለአስተያየት እና ፕሮጀክቱ በተሳካ ሁኔታ መከናወኑን ለማረጋገጥ ተጨማሪ ጊዜ እንዲሰጥ የሚጠይቅ ውሳኔ ደግፏል።
የጥቅምት ድምቀቶች – የMCPS NAACP የወላጆች ምክር ቤት
ከጥቅምት MCPS NAACP የወላጆች ምክር ቤት ስብሰባ አንዳንድ ቁልፍ ንግግሮች እዚህ አሉ። ሁሉንም ተማሪዎች ለመደገፍ ስላደረጉት ትብብር እና ትጋት እናመሰግናለን!
- ፍትሃዊነት እና አመራር፡ ዶ/ር ኒያህ ሃምሌት፣ የፍትሃዊነት እና የተሳትፎ ሀላፊ፣ በትክክለኛ አመራር፣ ፍትሃዊነት እና ትብብር ላይ ለተገነባው ጠንካራ MCPS ራዕያቸውን አጋርተዋል።
- የMCCA ቢዝነስ መማሪያ ኢንስቲትዩት (MBLI)፡ የMCPS የመጀመሪያ ቻርተር ትምህርት ቤት ለመካከለኛ ደረጃ ተማሪዎች በንግድ፣ በአመራር እና በስራ ፈጠራ ላይ ያተኩራል።
- የስድስት ክልል ፕሮግራም ሞዴል፡ ከ2027–2028 ጀምሮ፣ MCPS በካውንቲ አቀፍ የአካዳሚክ ፕሮግራሞች ፍትሃዊ ተደራሽነትን ለማረጋገጥ አዲስ ክልላዊ ሞዴል ይወስዳል።
- የሙያ ማማከር እና የአካዳሚክ ድጋፍ፡ ከ6-12ኛ ክፍል የተስፋፋ የሙያ ምክር እና በጆርጅ ቢ. ቶማስ የመማሪያ አካዳሚ በኩል አዲስ የማስተማር እድሎች በመካሄድ ላይ ናቸው።
- የመስክ ጉዞ የገንዘብ ድጋፍ፡ አዲስ የሜሪላንድ ሂሳብ ለባህል ሙዚየም የመስክ ጉዞዎች የመጓጓዣ እና የመግቢያ ክፍያዎችን ይደግፋል። ትምህርት ቤቶች የማመልከቻ ቅጾችን በቅርቡ ይቀበላሉ።
መጪ የማህበረሰብ ክስተቶች
- እሑድ፣ 11/9 – በኬንሲንግተን ፓርክ ቤተመጻሕፍት – “ራቅን ማየት አይቻልም”
- በወጣትነት ላይ ስላለው የማህበራዊ ሚዲያ ጨለማ ገጽታ የሚገልጽ ዘጋቢ ፊልም የ”ራቅ ብሎ ማየት አይቻልም” ልዩ የማጣሪያ ፊልም። ተማሪዎች ለመገኘት 3 SSL ሰዓቶች ማግኘት ይችላሉ። ተጨማሪ MCCPTA እዚህ ያግኙ። ወይም በMCPL በኩል ይመዝገቡ።
- እሑድ፣ 11/17 – አውደ ጥናት፡ ወደ HS ለሚገቡ ተማሪዎች የልዩ ትምህርት ሽግግር አገልግሎት
Blue Devil Digest for Week of October 27, 2025 (PTSA Weekly Newsletter)
boletín informativo en español / ጋዜጣ በአማርኛ
Last call to send us your input on the MCPS Boundary and Programming Analysis!
At our recent PTSA Meeting we presented an overview of the MCPS Boundary and Programming Analysis, we also created a blog page with linked information about this on our site and a whatsapp group for this topic.
We also shared that our parent organization MCCPTA has drafted a resolution to demanding MCPS take more time for the programming analysis to take place. MCCPTA is seeking input and feedback on this resolution. To better serve TPMS families, we’ve created a form for you to share your thoughts on this resolution, and any other feelings you may have about the programming and boundary study you think we should know. We will vote on the resolution based on your feedback.
- Learn more about the MCPS boundary and programming analysis and MCCPTA position
- Read the full MCCPTA resolution
- Give us your feedback on the resolution and/or the programming analysis
November 11 at 7 pm in the TPMS Cafeteria is our next PTSA meeting
Mark your calendar for the next PTSA Meeting. We’ll be holding this one in person to workshop this year’s School Improvement Plan. Each year using input from the Maryland Report Card and the community, the school creates a plan. Learn what’s in it and how you can contribute to shaping it through this interactive workshop designed for parents, caregivers and students! SSL hours will be provided.
Feedback Needed: PTSA membership drive
Thanks to all of you, we met 100% of our PTSA membership goal with our membership drive that ended 10/1.
- Please help us improve the 2026 membership drive by providing your feedback on this year’s drive – click here to take the survey!
- If you haven’t already, join PTSA today! Although the membership drive is over, we still welcome new PTSA members all year.
Needed: One volunteer needed for budget audit
We need 1 more volunteer to do a review of the PTSA budget from last year l, as a requirement to keep our PTSA in good standing. This is a one-time commitment of a few hours. Please email beccaj@gmail.com if you’d be willing to do this.
Interested in Safe Routes to School and Traffic Safety?
Traffic, pedestrian and bike safety is incredibly important to our school community. The PTSA has many ideas on advocacy, but not enough bandwidth to take action. If this is a passion of yours, please contact beccaj@gmail.com to help us work on this important issue.
Upcoming Community Events
- Sunday, 11/9 – at the Kensington Park Library – “Can’t Look Away”
- Special Screening of “Can’t Look Away”, a documentary about the dark side of social media on youth. Students can earn 3 SSL hours for attending. Find out more MCCPTA here. Or register through MCPL.
¡Último llamado para enviarnos sus comentarios sobre el Análisis de Límites y Programación de MCPS!
En nuestra reciente reunión de la PTSA, presentamos un resumen del Análisis de Límites y Programación de MCPS. También creamos una página de blog con información vinculada al tema en nuestro sitio web y un grupo de WhatsApp sobre este tema.
También compartimos que nuestra organización matriz, MCCPTA, ha redactado una resolución para exigir que MCPS dedique más tiempo al análisis de programación. MCCPTA busca comentarios y sugerencias sobre esta resolución. Para servir mejor a las familias de TPMS, hemos creado un formulario para que compartan sus opiniones sobre esta resolución y cualquier otra opinión que tengan sobre el estudio de programación y límites que consideren que deberíamos conocer. Votaremos sobre la resolución con base en sus comentarios.
- Obtenga más información sobre el análisis de límites y programación de MCPS y la postura de MCCPTA.
- Lea la resolución completa de MCCPTA.
- Comparta sus comentarios sobre la resolución o el análisis de programación.
El 11 de noviembre a las 7 p. m. en la cafetería de TPMS es nuestra próxima reunión de la PTSA.
Apunten en su calendario la próxima reunión de la PTSA. La realizaremos presencialmente para un taller sobre el Plan de Mejora Escolar de este año. Cada año, utilizando las aportaciones del Informe de Calificaciones de Maryland y la comunidad, la escuela crea un plan. ¡Aprenda qué contiene y cómo puede contribuir a su desarrollo a través de este taller interactivo diseñado para padres, cuidadores y estudiantes! Se proporcionarán horas de SSL.
Se necesitan comentarios: Campaña de membresía de la PTSA
Gracias a todos ustedes, alcanzamos el 100 % de nuestra meta de membresía de la PTSA con nuestra campaña de membresía que finalizó el 1 de octubre.
- Ayúdennos a mejorar la campaña de membresía de 2026 compartiendo sus comentarios sobre la campaña de este año. ¡Hagan clic aquí para participar en la encuesta!
- Si aún no lo han hecho, ¡únanse a la PTSA hoy mismo! Aunque la campaña de membresía ya terminó, seguimos dando la bienvenida a nuevos miembros de la PTSA durante todo el año.
Se necesita: Un voluntario para la auditoría presupuestaria.
Necesitamos un voluntario más para revisar el presupuesto de la PTSA del año pasado, como requisito para mantenerla al día. Este compromiso es único y requiere unas pocas horas. Si está dispuesto a colaborar, envíe un correo electrónico a beccaj@gmail.com.
¿Le interesan las Rutas Seguras a la Escuela y la Seguridad Vial?
La seguridad vial, peatonal y ciclista es fundamental para nuestra comunidad escolar. La PTSA tiene muchas ideas para promover la causa, pero no la suficiente para actuar. Si esto le apasiona, comuníquese con beccaj@gmail.com para ayudarnos a trabajar en este importante tema.
Próximos eventos comunitarios
- Domingo, 9/11 – en la Biblioteca de Kensington Park – “Can’t Look Away”
- Proyección especial de “Can’t Look Away”, un documental sobre el lado oscuro de las redes sociales en la juventud. Los estudiantes pueden obtener 3 horas de SSL por asistir. Más información sobre MCCPTA aquí. O regístrese a través de MCPL.
የመጨረሻ ጥሪ በMCPS የወሰን እና የፕሮግራም አወጣጥ ትንተና ላይ ያለዎትን አስተያየት ለመላክ!
በቅርቡ በPTSA ስብሰባችን የMCPS የወሰን እና የፕሮግራም አወጣጥ ትንተና አጠቃላይ እይታ አቅርበናል፣ እንዲሁም በጣቢያችን ላይ ስለዚህ ጉዳይ የተገናኘ መረጃ የያዘ የብሎግ ገጽ እና ለዚህ ርዕስ የዋትስአፕ ቡድን ፈጥረናል።
እንዲሁም የወላጅ ድርጅታችን MCCPTA የፕሮግራም አወጣጥ ትንተናው እንዲካሄድ MCPS ተጨማሪ ጊዜ እንዲወስድ የሚጠይቅ ውሳኔ እንዳዘጋጀ አጋርተናል። MCCPTA በዚህ ውሳኔ ላይ ግብዓት እና አስተያየት እየፈለገ ነው። TPMS ቤተሰቦችን በተሻለ ሁኔታ ለማገልገል፣ በዚህ ውሳኔ ላይ ያለዎትን ሀሳብ እና ስለ ፕሮግራሚንግ እና የወሰን ጥናት ሊኖሮት የሚችሉትን ሌሎች ስሜቶች የሚያካፍሉበት ቅጽ ፈጥረናል። በአስተያየትዎ ላይ በመመስረት በውሳኔው ላይ ድምጽ እንሰጣለን።
- ስለ MCPS የወሰን እና የፕሮግራም አወጣጥ ትንተና እና የMCCPTA አቋም የበለጠ ይወቁ
- ሙሉውን የMCCPTA መፍትሄ ያንብቡ
- በውሳኔው እና/ወይም በፕሮግራም አወጣጥ ትንተና ላይ ያለዎትን አስተያየት ይስጡን።
ህዳር 11 ከቀኑ 7 ሰዓት ላይ በTPMS ካፌቴሪያ የሚቀጥለው የPTSA ስብሰባችን ነው
ለሚቀጥለው የPTSA ስብሰባ የቀን መቁጠሪያዎን ምልክት ያድርጉ። ይህንን በአካል በዚህ ዓመት የትምህርት ቤት ማሻሻያ ዕቅድ አውደ ጥናት እናካሂዳለን። በየዓመቱ ከሜሪላንድ የሪፖርት ካርድ እና ከማህበረሰቡ ግብዓት በመጠቀም ትምህርት ቤቱ እቅድ ይፈጥራል። በውስጡ ያለውን እና ለወላጆች፣ ለተንከባካቢዎች እና ለተማሪዎች በተዘጋጀው በዚህ በይነተገናኝ አውደ ጥናት አማካኝነት እንዴት አስተዋጽኦ ማድረግ እንደሚችሉ ይወቁ! የSSL ሰዓቶች ይቀርባሉ።
ግብረመልስ ያስፈልጋል፡ የPTSA የአባልነት ድራይቭ
ለሁላችሁም እናመሰግናለን፣ 10/1 በሆነው የአባልነት ድራይቭ የPTSA የአባልነት ግባችን 100% አሳክተናል።
- እባክዎ በዚህ አመት ድራይቭ ላይ አስተያየትዎን በመስጠት የ2026 የአባልነት ድራይቭን ለማሻሻል ያግዙን – የዳሰሳ ጥናቱን ለመውሰድ እዚህ ጠቅ ያድርጉ!
- እስካሁን ካላደረጉት፣ ዛሬውኑ የPTSA አባል ይሁኑ! የአባልነት ዘመቻው ቢጠናቀቅም፣ ዓመቱን ሙሉ አዳዲስ የPTSA አባላትን እንቀበላለን።
አስፈላጊ፡ ለበጀት ኦዲት አንድ በጎ ፈቃደኛ ያስፈልጋል
የPTSA ን በጥሩ ሁኔታ ለማቆየት እንደ መስፈርት፣ ባለፈው ዓመት የPTSA በጀት ግምገማ ለማድረግ አንድ ተጨማሪ በጎ ፈቃደኛ ያስፈልገናል። ይህ ለጥቂት ሰዓታት የሚቆይ የአንድ ጊዜ ቁርጠኝነት ነው። ይህንን ለማድረግ ፈቃደኛ ከሆኑ እባክዎን beccaj@gmail.comን በኢሜል ይላኩ።
ወደ ትምህርት ቤት እና ለትራፊክ ደህንነት ደህንነቱ የተጠበቀ መንገዶችን ይፈልጋሉ?
የትራፊክ፣ የእግረኛ እና የብስክሌት ደህንነት ለትምህርት ቤታችን ማህበረሰብ እጅግ በጣም አስፈላጊ ነው። PTSA ስለ ተሟጋችነት ብዙ ሀሳቦች አሉት፣ ነገር ግን እርምጃ ለመውሰድ በቂ የመተላለፊያ ይዘት የለውም። ይህ የእርስዎ ፍላጎት ከሆነ፣ በዚህ አስፈላጊ ጉዳይ ላይ እንድንሰራ ለመርዳት beccaj@gmail.comን ያነጋግሩ።
መጪ የማህበረሰብ ክስተቶች
- እሑድ፣ 11/9 – በኬንሲንግተን ፓርክ ቤተመጻሕፍት – “ራቅን ማየት አይቻልም”
- በወጣትነት ላይ ስላለው የማህበራዊ ሚዲያ ጨለማ ገጽታ የሚገልጽ ዘጋቢ ፊልም የ”ራቅ ብሎ ማየት አይቻልም” ልዩ የማጣሪያ ፊልም። ተማሪዎች ለመገኘት 3 SSL ሰዓቶች ማግኘት ይችላሉ። ተጨማሪ MCCPTA እዚህ ያግኙ። ወይም በMCPL በኩል ይመዝገቡ።
Blue Devil Digest for Week of October 20, 2025 (PTSA Weekly Newsletter)
boletín informativo en español / ጋዜጣ በአማርኛ
Send us your input on the MCPS Boundary and Programming Analysis
Last week at our PTSA Meeting we presented an overview of the MCPS Boundary and Programming Analysis, we also created a blog page with linked information about this on our site and a whatsapp group for this topic.
We also shared that our parent organization MCCPTA has drafted a resolution to demanding MCPS take more time for the programming analysis to take place. MCCPTA is seeking input and feedback on this resolution. To better serve TPMS families, we’ve created a form for you to share your thoughts on this resolution, and any other feelings you may have about the programming and boundary study you think we should know. We will vote on the resolution based on your feedback.
- Learn more about the MCPS boundary and programming analysis and MCCPTA position
- Read the full MCCPTA resolution
- Give us your feedback on the resolution and/or the programming analysis
Oct 2025 PTSA Monthly Meeting Minutes
If you missed last week’s PTSA meeting, please find the General Meeting minutes and slides posted here.
Read the October 2025 meeting minutes
Feedback Needed: PTSA membership drive
Thanks to all of you, we met 100% of our PTSA membership goal with our membership drive that ended 10/1.
- Please help us improve the 2026 membership drive by providing your feedback on this year’s drive – click here to take the survey!
- If you haven’t already, join PTSA today! Although the membership drive is over, we still welcome new PTSA members all year.
Needed: Two volunteers needed for budget audit
We need 2 more volunteers to do a review of the PTSA budget from last year l, as a requirement to keep our PTSA in good standing. This is a one-time commitment of a few hours. Please email beccaj@gmail.com if you’d be willing to do this.
Upcoming Community Events
- Saturday, 10/25, 10am-2pm – Wheaton – Montgomery County Racial Equity and Social Justice Town Hall Meeting.
- Conversations with Subject matter experts on topics such as health, education, immigration, housing and economic opportunity, and community safety. Find out more.
- Sunday, 10/26, 4-6pm – Rockville – xMinds Fundraiser
- xMinds is dedicated to improving education for autistic students in Montgomery Country. Find out more.
- Sunday, 11/9 – at the Kensington Park Library – “Can’t Look Away”
- Special Screening of “Can’t Look Away”, a documentary about the dark side of social media on youth. Students can earn 3 SSL hours for attending. Find out more MCCPTA here. Or register through MCPL.
Envíenos sus comentarios sobre el Análisis de Límites y Programación de MCPS
La semana pasada, en nuestra reunión de la PTSA, presentamos un resumen del Análisis de Límites y Programación de MCPS. También creamos una página de blog con información vinculada al tema en nuestro sitio web y un grupo de WhatsApp sobre este tema.
También compartimos que nuestra organización matriz, MCCPTA, ha redactado una resolución para exigir que MCPS dedique más tiempo al análisis de programación. MCCPTA solicita comentarios y sugerencias sobre esta resolución. Para servir mejor a las familias de TPMS, hemos creado un formulario para que compartan sus opiniones sobre esta resolución y cualquier otra opinión que tengan sobre el estudio de programación y límites que consideren que deberíamos conocer. Votaremos sobre la resolución con base en sus comentarios.
- Obtenga más información sobre el análisis de límites y programación de MCPS y la postura de MCCPTA.
- Lea la resolución completa de MCCPTA.
- Envíenos sus comentarios sobre la resolución o el análisis de programación.
Actas de la Reunión Mensual de la PTSA de octubre de 2025
Si se perdió la reunión de la PTSA de la semana pasada, puede encontrar las actas y diapositivas de la Asamblea General publicadas aquí.
Lea las actas de la reunión de octubre de 2025
Necesitamos comentarios: Campaña de membresía de la PTSA
Gracias a todos, alcanzamos el 100 % de nuestra meta de membresía de la PTSA con nuestra campaña de membresía que finalizó el 1 de octubre.
- Ayúdenos a mejorar la campaña de membresía de 2026 compartiendo sus comentarios sobre la campaña de este año. ¡Haga clic aquí para participar en la encuesta!
- Si aún no lo ha hecho, ¡únase a la PTSA hoy mismo! Aunque la campaña de membresía ya terminó, seguimos dando la bienvenida a nuevos miembros de la PTSA durante todo el año.
Se necesitan dos voluntarios para la auditoría presupuestaria.
Necesitamos dos voluntarios más para revisar el presupuesto de la PTSA del año pasado, como requisito para mantenerla al día. Este compromiso es único y requiere unas pocas horas. Si está dispuesto a colaborar, envíe un correo electrónico a beccaj@gmail.com.
Próximos eventos comunitarios
- Sábado, 25/10, 10:00 a. m. a 2:00 p. m. – Wheaton – Reunión comunitaria sobre equidad racial y justicia social en el condado de Montgomery.
- Conversaciones con expertos en la materia sobre temas como salud, educación, inmigración, vivienda y oportunidades económicas, y seguridad comunitaria. Más información.
- Domingo, 26/10, 4:00 p. m. a 6:00 p. m. – Rockville – Recaudación de fondos de xMinds
- xMinds se dedica a mejorar la educación de los estudiantes con autismo en el condado de Montgomery. Más información.
- Domingo, 9/11 – en la Biblioteca de Kensington Park – “Can’t Look Away”
- Proyección especial de “Can’t Look Away”, un documental sobre el lado oscuro de las redes sociales en la juventud. Los estudiantes pueden obtener 3 horas de SSL por asistir. Más información sobre MCCPTA aquí. O regístrese a través de MCPL.
በMCPS Boundary and Programming Analysis ላይ የእርስዎን አስተያየት ላኩልን።
ባለፈው ሳምንት በPTSA ስብሰባችን የMCPS የወሰን እና የፕሮግራም ትንተና አጠቃላይ እይታን አቅርበናል፣በጣቢያችን ላይ ስለዚህ ጉዳይ የተያያዘ መረጃ ያለው ብሎግ ገጽ እና ለዚህ ርዕስ የዋትስአፕ ቡድን ፈጠርን።
እንዲሁም የእኛ እናት ድርጅታችን MCCPTA MCPS ለፕሮግራም አወጣጥ ትንተና ተጨማሪ ጊዜ እንዲወስድ ለመጠየቅ ውሳኔ እንዳዘጋጀ ተጋርተናል። MCCPTA በዚህ የውሳኔ ሃሳብ ላይ ግብአት እና ግብረ መልስ ይፈልጋል። የTPMS ቤተሰቦችን በተሻለ ሁኔታ ለማገልገል፣ በዚህ የውሳኔ ሃሳብ ላይ ያለዎትን ሀሳብ እና ስለፕሮግራም አወጣጥ እና የድንበር ጥናት ሊኖሮት በሚችል ማንኛውም ሌላ ስሜት ላይ እንዲካፈሉ ቅጽ ፈጥረናል። በአስተያየትዎ መሰረት በውሳኔው ላይ ድምጽ እንሰጣለን.
- ስለ MCPS ድንበር እና ፕሮግራሚንግ ትንተና እና የMCCPTA አቀማመጥ የበለጠ ይወቁ
- ሙሉውን የMCCPTA ጥራት ያንብቡ
- በውሳኔው እና/ወይም በፕሮግራም ትንታኔ ላይ አስተያየትዎን ይስጡን።
ኦክቶበር 2025 የPTSA ወርሃዊ የስብሰባ ደቂቃዎች
ያለፈው ሳምንት የPTSA ስብሰባ አምልጦዎት ከሆነ፣ እባክዎ እዚህ የተለጠፉትን የጠቅላላ ስብሰባ ደቂቃዎች እና ስላይዶች ያግኙ።
ግብረመልስ ያስፈልጋል፡ የPTSA አባልነት ድራይቭ
ለሁላችሁም አመሰግናለሁ፣ 100% የPTSA አባልነት ግባችንን በ10/1 በተጠናቀቀው የአባልነት ጉዞ አሳካን።
- እባክዎ በዚህ አመት ድራይቭ ላይ የእርስዎን አስተያየት በመስጠት የ2026 የአባልነት ድራይቭን እንድናሻሽል ያግዙን – የዳሰሳ ጥናቱን ለመውሰድ እዚህ ጠቅ ያድርጉ!
- እስካሁን ካላደረጉት ዛሬ PTSAን ይቀላቀሉ! ምንም እንኳን የአባልነት ጉዞው ቢያልቅም፣ ዓመቱን ሙሉ አዲስ የPTSA አባላትን እንቀበላለን።
የሚያስፈልግ፡ ለበጀት ኦዲት ሁለት በጎ ፈቃደኞች ያስፈልጋሉ።
PTSAን በጥሩ ሁኔታ ለማቆየት እንደ መስፈርት ካለፈው ዓመት የ PTSA በጀት ለመገምገም 2 ተጨማሪ በጎ ፈቃደኞች እንፈልጋለን። ይህ ለጥቂት ሰዓታት የአንድ ጊዜ ቁርጠኝነት ነው። ይህን ለማድረግ ፍቃደኛ ከሆንክ እባክህ beccaj@gmail.com ኢሜይል አድርግ።
መጪ የማህበረሰብ ክስተቶች
- ቅዳሜ፣ 10/25፣ 10am-2pm – Wheaton – የሞንትጎመሪ ካውንቲ የዘር እኩልነት እና ማህበራዊ ፍትህ የከተማ አዳራሽ ስብሰባ።
- እንደ ጤና፣ ትምህርት፣ ኢሚግሬሽን፣ የመኖሪያ ቤት እና የኢኮኖሚ እድል እና የማህበረሰብ ደህንነት ባሉ ርዕሰ ጉዳዮች ላይ ከርዕሰ ጉዳይ ባለሙያዎች ጋር የተደረገ ውይይት። የበለጠ እወቅ።
- እሑድ፣ 10/26፣ 4-6pm – Rockville – xMinds Fundraiser
- xMinds በሞንትጎመሪ ሀገር ውስጥ ላሉ ኦቲዝም ተማሪዎች ትምህርትን ለማሻሻል ቁርጠኛ ነው። የበለጠ እወቅ።
- እሑድ፣ 11/9 – በኬንሲንግተን ፓርክ ቤተመጻሕፍት – “ራቅን ማየት አይቻልም”
- በወጣትነት ላይ ስላለው የማህበራዊ ሚዲያ ጨለማ ገጽታ የሚገልጽ ዘጋቢ ፊልም የ”ራቅ ብሎ ማየት አይቻልም” ልዩ የማጣሪያ ፊልም። ተማሪዎች ለመገኘት 3 SSL ሰዓቶች ማግኘት ይችላሉ። ተጨማሪ MCCPTA እዚህ ያግኙ። ወይም በMCPL በኩል ይመዝገቡ።
October 2025 PTSA Monthly Meeting Minutes
October 14, 2025 | Parent Teacher Student Association (PTSA) General Meeting Minutes
Meeting slides: 2025.10 – PTSA General Meeting
Link to meeting minutes from last General Membership Meeting: 2025.09.09 | PTSA General Meeting Minutes
Attendees:
TPMS PTSA Board: Erin Martin, Summer Smith, Emily Modde, Jesse Loznak, Chris Campbell, Becca Jones-Albertus, Heather Brown – Palsgrove, Monisha Shah, Mic Murphy, and Ramata Diop.
At 7:18 there were 76 members participating in the Zoom call, including the Board, community members, and students.
Meeting Minutes
Welcome
Chris Campbell, VP of Communications, opened the meeting and welcomed members of the TPMS community and students. He encouraged people to use the chat to ask questions, and members of the Board will do their best to answer them during the meeting. He outlined the meeting agenda and reintroduced the Board to the community. Chris noted that we still need a VP for Fundraising (if you are interested, please reach out to TPMS.PTA.president@gmail.com).
Upcoming Events
There are many events offered at TPMS. For the most up-to-date information, check out the school calendar here: https://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/schools/takomaparkms/calendar-index/ :
Upcoming TPMS events:
October
October 16: Vaccination Clinic (2:00 pm – 8:00 pm)*
October 16: MOCOCAP Career Advising Lesson*
October 17: No School
October 20: No School
October 22: Cross Country Meet @TPMS (3:30 pn)
October 24: Last day to submit assignments
October 27 – 29: Grade 7 Finance Park Simulation
October 30: Grade 8 Annapolis Field Trip
October 31: End of Marking Period 1
*more info on these events here: https://app.smore.com/n/gjwx6
November
November 5: Student photo make-up day
November 12: Next PTSA meeting IN PERSON
November 17: SpED workshop on Transition Services workshop
TBD: Parent Teacher Conferences
Information on Survey Data From the Last PTSA Meeting.
Emily Modde, PTSA President, presented the survey data we collected during our last meeting. She presented ranked survey results of what members wanted from the PTSA:
- Upcoming events and key issues at TPMS
- Updates from Ms Martin and the school administration
- Upcoming changes in MCPS
- Opportunities to share ideas and concerns for the PTSA
- Spaces to build connections with other TPMS families
- Volunteer opportunities at TPMS
- Discussions on community needs
- General parenting education
Additional topics that were brought to the PTSA include (note these are not in rank order):
- Mental Health topics (eg.emotional changes)
- Understanding how the DCC works for HS
- Insights into curriculum (esp if changes)
- Technology issues – too many platforms, how do we use them?!
- Boundary and Programming study
- Enrichment opportunities
- Bus Sched / Transportation issues
- SSL opportunities: How parents can help
- Ensuring an inclusive environment, and school culture, building community
- Resources for the unexpected needs created from recent DC area disruptions
- Online and media safety
Emily noted that during this PTSA meeting we will discuss some of the topics and we have left time at the end for open questions/answers. As we continue to meet, the PTSA Board will continue to cover topics that are important to our community. If you have additional ideas, please reach out: TPMS.PTA.president@gmail.com.
Putting the “S” in PTSA
Monisha Shah, Co-Executive VP, explained that the Board really heard from our members at our last meeting that we should really engage the “S – Student” in PTSA and make that partnership stronger. One of our first steps is to work with the Principal’s Advisory Council (Council) to bring their voices to the PTSA. The Board will also reach out to other groups at the school and other students who have individually joined the PTSA.
Mr. Loznak, Principal Intern, said that the Council students have been working on how to make STRIVE time better. Mr. Joznak welcomed the students who joined the meeting tonight. He asked a few students why they wanted to be members of the Council. Bralin said that he wanted to join the Council because he has ideas that will make school better including adding sports teams to make school more fun. Anushka wanted to join the Council to have a close knit group to work with Ms. Martin and Mr. Loznak to share ideas to help improve the school. She’s excited to work directly with them on issues that can only be fixed by students. She also said that as a current student, she’s excited to help students for many more years at TPMS.
Mr. Loznak then asked about the mission of the Council. What is it that student members want to get out of this and what do they want the Council to do? Saron said that her mission was for students to get their voices heard, especially related to STRIVE. She said it’s important to make sure everyone is included. Khaia said her main idea of what the Council is for is to understand the unique backgrounds of students and to bring everyone together to make decisions – that many people should be involved in decisions being made at the school. She said that as an 8th grader who has been at the school for 2 years, she has a view on how to make the school better.
Mr. Loznak presented the last question to the Council Students: what ideas do you have for putting “S: in PTSA: Chloe said that the biggest idea discussed at the last Council meeting was to add bigger activities at the school. Things like expanding the selling of merch and lanyards. She said that a lot of students don’t have time to buy things before school starts. She added that things like pep rallies, poms/dance, food trucks, and general student excitement for school sports events would be great. STRIVE themes could also be incorporated, including wearing House colors or sitting with your House. She also mentioned fundraisers and prizes for winning including a day of doing House activities on a day that isn’t normally a STRIVE day or spending the day one-on-one with a teacher. Elliot said there are multiple ways to incorporate student’s voices into the PTSA and these activities would benefit students. For example, if students have an interest they join an after school activity. They join because they are interested in something. For the PTSA, there needs to be a reason why they should join. He said that the voices of students need to be more present in the PTSA. He also mentioned that for many students, SSL hours are an important reason why they show up and get involved. He suggested making sure that students know about what the PTSA does and that they can. Willa said that there is a lot of important information that is shared with students, but it’s sometimes hard to process it. For example, there is a lot of important information brought to students in STRIVE, but there isn’t a place to process it. She would like to see more interaction. Mr. Loznak said they will continue to work with the Council and will report back in the future. He thanked the student who came to talk today.
Ms. Martin also thanked the students who joined the meeting and offered the Board and community feedback. For some context, she said that the staff does a lot of planning for students – instruction, afterschool activities, and other activities. The default is to engage with adults and we hope that things hit well with students. Things are happening for them, but also to them and their voice hasn’t been part of the process. The dive and passion for the Council is to get their views and hear their voices. The big areas include: “S” in PTSA; STRIVE advisory – making it more engaging; collecting ideas and feedback on what’s happening in the building (one takeaway from the Council students’ applications was “adults are old and don’t know how to work the channels that kids can relate to”); and looking for their voices to elevate the planning process for activities. Emily thanked everyone for their ideas and being here tonight.
Membership Drive Update
Heather Brown-Palsgrove, VP of Membership, shared that we met our fundraising goal by 100%. Our membership goal was four times our previous fundraising goals and we met it! Heather thanked Rahel Allison, TPMS mom, who gave her advice on how to better run the campaign. Heather also thanked others who helped us reach our goal. The PTSA now makes up 20% of the TPMS population. She presented slides on who our members are (teachers and staff; parents and caregivers; students). We also did a friendly competition with the Houses to see who could sign up the most members. Triumph House won!
Please use this form to give us feedback on how the fundraising campaign went from your perspective. Feedback form. brownpalsgrovefamily@gmail.com can yo add the form?
Budget Update
Mic Murphy, Treasurer, presented the 2025-2026 budget update. He presented what will be supported by PTSA this year:
- Mini-grants to Teachers and Staff to Enrich Curriculum
- Welcome Picnic Potluck
- 6th Grade Outdoor Ed Reptile Man
- 7th Grade Family Winter Social
- 8th Grade Family Winter Social
- 8th Grade Promotion Dance
- 8th Grade Promotion
- Student Dances
- 3x Heritage Month Enrichment Performances
- International Multicultural Night Event
- Books & Basketball Community Building Event
- We Shine Night
- Speakers and Presenters
- Music Program
- Teacher & Staff Appreciation Events and Meals
- Teacher & Staff Professional Development Augmentation Materials
- …And A Whole Lot More!
He also presented our expense categories and a high level on the major PTSA incomes and expenses.
Income (money the PTSA brings in)
Member Donations
- Our largest source of income. Successful 2025 membership drive reduces pressure on fundraising. Thank you members!
Fundraising
- e.g., Silent Auction, Bake Sales.
- Still need to raise ~$6k to meet budget target
Program Revenue
- e.g., Books and Basketball, 8th Grade dance
Grants and Reimbursements
Expenses (money the PTSA spends)
PTA Objectives
- This is where the bulk of spending goes to ~$13k budgeted for 25-26
- e.g., Mini-grants, staff appreciation, Music Department, staff development
Event Sponsorship
- About ~$9k budgeted for event sponsorship
- e.g., Heritage Month performances, Outdoor Ed (Reptiles), Student dance, welcome picnic and lots more.
PTA Expenses
- Operating expenses. E.g., Insurance, Website, software etc.,
- Organizational expenses. E.g., bank fees
- Fundraising expenses.
Mic then gave an overview of the 2025-2026 budget:
Summer Smith, PTSA Secretary, asked for someone to propose we pass the 2025-2026 PTSA Budget. Becca Jones-Albertus (Co-Executive VP) proposed the budget be passed. Chris Campbell (VP of Communications) seconded the motion. Summer then asked members to give a “green check – yes” reaction if they agreed we should pass the budget. She then asked if anyone objected using the “X – no” react button or to come off mute to verbally object. At the time of the vote, there were 70 members of the PTSA, including members, the Board, and students. There were no objections, and the 2025-2026 budget passed.
PTSA Board Needs
Becca Jones-Albertus, Co-Executive VP, presented current open roles:
- Financial Review: Need 3 volunteers for review of PTSA finances due in October
- VP of Fundraising
- Grant Writer
Please contact Becca if you are interested in any of these roles (beccaj@gmail.com)
Boundary and Programming Study Information
Emily opened the discussion of the Boundary Study. The TPMS Board strongly encourages everyone to do their own research on this complex topic. Please see the slides (listed at the top of this document for details on what was presented. In addition, please visit the TPMS PTSA website for documents, discussions, and more.
Emily said there is currently an ongoing Boundary Study. This is because there are two new schools opening in MCPS and there needs to be a decision on where students will go. The final decision will happen in Spring 2026.
There is also another analysis being conducted in MCPS, the Academic Programming Analysis (Analysis). The Analysis will create six regions each with 4 to 5 high school clusters in each. Right now we have three regions, and TPMS is part of the Down County Consortium (DCC). The new Analysis will end the DCC. According to MCCPS, the Analysis is intended to increase access to services to all students across the county. There is currently an issue that some students are able to attend popular schools with highly sought after programs. According to MCCPS, the Analysis will redistribute these programs across the county and offer more students access to these programs. There is also a plan to update the admission process so students can change tracks during high school, if needed. Originally the Boundary Study stood alone. On October 3, the Analysis was attached to the boundary study.
A few things that the Board has noted: the Boundary Study went through three rounds of review, included many comment periods, and occurred over a year. The Academic Programming Analysis came out of the boundary study (from what we can tell). The Analysis has had no public review or comment. This means that families, students, principals, staff, and others, have not been part of the process.
From our review and others, there are some key pieces of information missing from the Analysis:transportation analysis (how will students move throughout the county); staffing analysis (how will some schools scale up staff, while others scale down staff); financial analysis (what will this cost and how will it be paid for); and feasibility (how will the changes ensure that the quality of programming is maintained in every school). In addition: these decisions impact all our families with students who are part of MCCPS (we all have a vested interest in these decisions); there is no requirement that changes to academic programming be done concurrently with boundary changes (why now, why so fast?); while there is general acknowledgement that exploring changes to programming for better access and admissions movement is good – it needs more time to be designed, shaped, and feasibility of implementation understood (again, why so fast?).
Liz Ryan, TPMS MCCPTA Delegate offered some context on who she is, the role she plays, and what we are looking for from families. Every elementary, middle, and high school in MOCO has a PTA/PTSA. Each of these PTA/PTSA is a hyper local group of people who are focused on their school. They roll up to the MCCPTA which operates much like local PTA/PTSAs with monthly meetings that focus on issues that impact all schools in MOCO. MCCPTA, like our PTSA, is made up of community people who are volunteering their time (they are NOT MCPS). In addition, MCCPTA advocates at the county level for all students and on behalf of local PTA/PTSAs. Liz emphasized that MCCPTA and local PTA/PTSAs have a strong voice. We are the largest parent/guardian/teacher organization and one of the largest public education stakeholders in the county. This is why we are asking for your involvement and attention to this important change being proposed for our schools.
What are we asking of you? MCCPTA is proposing a resolution to MCPS to basically ask for more time. A resolution is “a position statement on a particular issue either for or against. It must be approved by the Delegates Assembly and be consistent with MCCPTA’s guiding principles. Anyone within MCCPTA or within any local PTA/PTSA unit can put forth a call for a resolution.”
So what does the current MCCPTA resolution say? Well, it’s long and complicated (please read it yourself here: MCCPTA Draft Resolution: More Time for Programs Analysis). It basically asks MCPS to slow down the process and give students, families, staff, more time to provide input and understand what is going to change.
Why are we asking for more time? According to MCCPTA, MCPS does not have a strong record of success with regional programs. In addition, there is a lack of a comprehensive proposal being put to the community. For example, the information MCPS has shared to date lacks: full cost analyses, stated educational outcomes and metrics for “success,” regional programs transportation study, curriculum development, robust staffing and training plan, safeguards to ensure each region will have comparable programs with equivalent quality, evidential data to support the regional interest level in the chosen programs, and plan to ensure proportionate seat availability between regions. Further, MCCPTA says that MCPS has not appropriately engaged students, staff, and community stakeholders for input and feedback and that there are questions around procedures related to BOE policies and MCPS regulations (more info: Resolution FAQs).
What’s next? From October 3 – October 28: Delegates engage their communities (this meeting and more information to come from our PTSA Board), solicit feedback, and submit proposed revisions to resolution language. October 29: Delegates Assembly meeting @ 7PM where all local PTA Presidents, Delegates, and MCCPTA Board of Directors are invited to review the resolution language and vote on the resolution.
What happens if the motion is passed? If it passes, it will have the weight of the full MCCPTA. The MCCPTA will then have a large backing to formally ask MCPS Superintendent, Board of Education, and the County Council to pause the study. Note bringing it to the County Council is not something that usually happens (they are being included because they are the ones who will have to fund the BOE). There’s a good chance this will make the news and generate press.
What else? Even with so much uncertainty, it is thought that current 8th graders will be able to complete whatever program they attend as 9th graders. However, the resources that are allocated to those schools will change. The schools will lose critical funding as resources are reallocated. One thing that most of us want is to ensure students across the county can access classes that not all students currently have access to. We want all the great things that MCCPS has to offer to be available to everyone. That’s why the MCCPTA is asking for more time to make sure critical questions are answered.
What now? We, as a Board, know this is a lot. We hope we have given you a high level of the basis of what is going on. We encourage families to review the proposals, watch presentations from MCPS, and get involved. We provide all links to all the information we have on our website, and encourage you to do what is right for your families.There are additional webinars scheduled, information and dates can be found in links on our website. https://www.tpmspta.org/mcps-boundary-programming-study/
Please provide us feedback so we can make sure TPMS PTSA thoughts are being brought to the MCCPTA. We created a new WhatsApp group for discussion around this important topic.
Liz added that there is no current plan for how the new schools will be allocated. In addition, there would be no more magnet program at TPMS, and there is no replacement for the DCC. A lot of the confusion is because there is no full plan. During the MCCPS Meetings, the MCCPS Board controls the questions they are answering. It is thought they are doing this so they can control the narrative. This means that it’s hard to understand what the true questions are coming from the community. Someone asked in the chat about the impact of ARS. Ms. Martin said that she doesn’t have any additional besides what is being given to the community.
Open Q&A with Ms. Martin and the PTSA
Emily asked if there were any other topics that people wanted to discuss. One member said that their family has been impacted at Wood Middle School, with the tragic death of a student last week. She asked if there was any discussion of this at the principal level. Ms. Martin said that principals are working to support the school. No additional guidance has been provided around student transition from home to school and back. She said that the TPMS administration team and Emily have been working with The City of Takoma Park Police to assess the situation at the school. Last week, instead of walk and roll to school day, the school took a more thoughtful approach on how students get to school. One difficulty is having one parking lot with two access points where everyone comes together. Ms. Martin said they continue to find solutions for our community as students come and go to school. Another member asked about the preference survey for HS for 8th grade. The message says before you open, make sure you read this. Emily said that she thinks you can complete the form many times, and Ms. Martin said to check with the counselor.
At 8:32 Emily closed the meeting. She thanked everyone for attending and said all information will be shared tomorrow.