Save Our Silver Spring Schools

In this plan, Eastern Middle School would become the largest in the county, hosting 1500 students, yet MCPS’s own Preferred Range of Enrollment for middle schools is 750-1200. What evidence supports creating such a large student body?

What student-teacher ratio does MCPS project for Sligo Middle School and Eastern Middle School? How will you ensure that the student experience at these very large middle schools will be equitable to the smaller middle schools in other parts of the county?

The current 3rd-grade cohort at SCES will be the last group of kids to attend SSIMS before the school closes. This cohort will be in the 7th grade when SSIMS closes. These students require French, Spanish, and English (Academy) teachers. These teachers, at the same time, need to be in their “new schools”. How is MCPS planning to keep the teachers in several locations? Or does this mean the kids at SSIMS will only have temp teachers? 

The last cohort at SSIMS (current 3rd-grade) will be split into two different schools, Eastern and Sligo MS, starting their 8th grade (their graduation year). Can you explain where the immersion programs will be located? Or how will kids be split? How can you guarantee the kids continue and stay together until 8th grade and graduate as ONE cohort? 

Will you commit to the complicated process of switching Sligo or Eastern to a block schedule to accommodate immersion? Without this schedule, students in these vulnerable transition years lose at least half of the immersion program. 

If the proposal to close SSIMS goes forward, how will MCPS work to ensure that the students who will be at SSIMS for the next four years have a positive middle school experience? School administrators and teachers are already reporting they will leave if the school plans to close. Our community is very concerned about teacher quality/retention between now and 2030.

The French Immersion program at SCES/SSIMS is the oldest in the country (52 years!) and ranks in the top 5% nationwide. It is designed as a K-8 program hosted at SCES and SSIMS.

Students in the Spanish Immersion program at Rolling Terrace Elementary School continue immersion at SSIMS.

These programs are made possible by a 90-minute block schedule, providing adequate time for writing, reading, speaking, and listening (totaling 720 min/week). Currently, by 9th grade, students can enroll in French level 4 and have the opportunity to take the AP exam, which helps them earn the Maryland Seal of Biliteracy.

Can MCPS ensure that students currently participating in the immersion program at SCES will be able to continue immersion via a block schedule throughout middle school?

How will MCPS continue immersion if students are between two different middle schools?

Will downtown Silver Spring students continue to have access to K-8 French and Spanish immersion?

What and where were the alternative holding school solutions explored by MCPS?

Will the proposed relocated SCES be built near its current location and can you ensure that the current SCES will be within its boundary?

Is a 2029 timeline feasible for the opening of a new SCES? 

Many of the potential SCES sites are either currently hosting child care centers or smaller than the current site. If a major reason to build a new school is for the Sligo Creek Elementary students to have more and better outdoor space, how will this be possible on a smaller site? 

If the boundary for SCES changes, some current students will likely be rezoned to East Silver Spring or New Hampshire Estates – both of which have worse FCI scores than SCES. Why should these community members trade in their walkable school for being rezoned to worse facilities?

MCPS data projects that by 2031-2032, the Downcounty Consortium will have 2,938 empty elementary school seats (calculations performed from pages 4-27 and 4-28 in the CIP). In addition, MCPS plans to begin implementation of the elementary boundary review the same school year that it plans to convert Sligo Creek to a holding school, 2029-2030. Why is MCPS spending $70.5 million for the express purpose of creating a holding school when the boundary study could create one through declining enrollment and natural attrition?

Given the lack of any secondary education holding schools, why would MCPS not choose a more central and accessible location?

What kind of work was done by MCPS to try to identify alternative sites for SCES and SSIMS in the downtown Silver Spring area? Did MCPS engage with the county government to discuss alternative sites for SCES and SSIMS? Were any organizations that own large pieces of land consulted? 

Have you considered using Woodward as a temporary holding school once Northwood students vacate?  

Why is the proposed CIP at odds with the Thrive Montgomery 2050 plan for thriving, walkable communities?

Given the dramatic increase in bussing this proposal would create, has MCPS performed a traffic study to determine the plan’s impact on traffic and pedestrian safety in the neighborhood where SCES/SSIMS are located? 

Was the location of SSIMS and SCES in a residential neighborhood factored into the decision to turn them into holding schools? Previous MCPS holding schools have been located on much larger roads that can handle dramatic increases in bus traffic, such as Northwood on University and Woodward on Old Georgetown Road.

We know of previous temporary holding schools being created because of declining population (old Northwood) and/or new construction (Woodward). Has MCPS ever closed an at-capacity, walkable neighborhood school with beloved teachers and thriving programs before to turn it into a holding school? 

MCPS was in close contact with MTA throughout the Purple Line planning process, which included detailed plans regarding safety of the stop at Dale and Wayne Ave. Yet, MCPS cites the Purple Line as an underlying factor in support of the school closure plan. What specifically about these safety precautions does MCPS now question?

The Purple Line and related infrastructure represent billions in public investment intended to make downtown Silver Spring more accessible, walkable, and livable. What does the Purple Line and the Montgomery County Action Committee for Transit say about MCPS’s characterization of the stop at Dale and Wayne as unsafe? What do they say about the fact that the schools’ proximity to the stop is to blame, at least in part, for their closure?  

Why did MCPS not adhere to its own policies on community engagement prior to announcing this proposal? 

Is this proposal fiscally responsible? How did MCPS determine the cost estimates for renovations and new building projects?

How are the enrollment projections determined and why is there such a large discrepancy between projections submitted by MCPS in 2024 and 2025?

What efforts, if any, were made for a middle school boundary study before the decision to simply disperse SSIMS students to other middle schools, rather than constructing a new MS to accommodate the approximately 1,000 SSIMS students? 

MCPS has stated that this plan is “an investment in Silver Spring”. How does dividing the SSIMS population and eliminating the only downtown middle school benefit this community?

The CIP is spending additional money to expand two middle schools (Eastern MS and Sligo MS). Can we see cost data on fixing SSIMS and a second holding school on the entire SCES/SSIMS footprint, to have both a local SSIMS and a holding school?

At the October 14 BoE meeting, Superintendent Taylor said that the new building plans would have to be tempered by “modesty” and that the rebuilt schools would have fewer “bells and whistles.” Could we get some examples of what might qualify as bells and whistles? To what building features, amenities, or functions will our children no longer have access? 

What is the back up plan if the county cannot or will not fund the aspects of the CIP related to SSIMS and SCES? Will SCES and SSIMS receive any investment if the CIP budget decreases, while MCPS continues to indicate issues with these school facilities? 

The SSIMS PTSA has identified over 50 errors with their school’s facility condition assessment. This has been communicated to MCPS, but they have not corrected the report. This many errors in just one assessment calls into question the validity of all of the reports, and by extension, the entire foundation for the CIP. Why should we trust these assessments and make very significant financial and educational decisions based on them before they have been evaluated for accuracy?