Principal, Mr. Bertram Generlette
Assistant Principal, Mrs. Arienne Clark-Harrison
807 Daleview Drive
Silver Spring, MD 20901
301-431-7667
PrinciPal’s newsletter, #6
january 14 2016
Dear Montgomery Knolls Families,
Calendar of Events
January 2016
Friday, January 15th
Kindergarten Field Trip to College Park
Aviation Museum, 9:30 am- 1:00 pm
Monday, January 18th – HOLIDAY
OFFICES & SCHOOL CLOSED
Wednesday, January 20th
Head Start Field Trip to Imagination
Stage, 9:30 am – 12:30 pm
Monday, January 25th
Professional Day for Teachers
NO SCHOOL for Students
With winter weather upon us, it is very important that parents
follow the weather news and dress students appropriately. Unless the
weather is treacherous, raining, or ice/snow covered, we will make
every attempt to get outside for recess. To learn the various ways that
MCPS provides information for parents to learn about school closures,
delayed openings, and early dismissals due to inclement weather, please
see the Principal’s Newsletter, #5 of December 17, 2015 or visit
http://montgomeryschoolsmd.org/emergency/
Resources for Understanding the Budget and Encouraging Advocacy
In the words of our Interim Superintendent, Larry Bowers, “MCPS needs
full funding of its budget this year to prevent further cuts and to begin
reinvesting in education. Anything less than full funding would likely require
further cuts that could impact every school”. Mr. Bowers has proposed a Fiscal
Year 2017 Operating Budget which is intended to strengthen the school
system’s foundation, squeezed by eight years of difficult economic times. The
recommended budget increase is a modest 4.5 percent ($103 million), which
will pay for the same level of services for more than 2,500 new students and
includes limited investments to improve students’ literacy and math skills;
build the cultural proficiency of staff; foster stronger partnerships with the
community and families to support students; and better organize the district to
ensure every student is prepared for college and careers.
Five Education Budget Meetings, presented by Montgomery County
Councilmember Craig Rice, MCPS Interim Superintendent Larry Bowers, and
Montgomery College President DeRionne Pollard, are scheduled for February
and March. The meetings will take place from 6:30 to 8:00 p.m. at the
following locations:
 February 17, Montgomery College (Germantown Campus), BE Building,
Room 151, 20200 Observation Drive, Germantown
 February 24, Albert Einstein High School, 11135 Newport Mill Road,
Kensington
 March 9, Gaithersburg High School, 101 Education Blvd., Gaithersburg
 March 16, Col. Zadok Magruder High School, 5939 Muncaster Mill Road,
Rockville
 March 23, Thomas S. Wootton High School, 2100 Wootton Pkwy.,
Rockville
The County Executive will announce his Recommended FY 2017 Operating
Budget on March 15. In April, the County Council will hold public hearings
and approve the operating budget at the end of May.
Stay tuned & Stay involved!
Sincerely,
Mr. Generlette
Principal
Board of Education Hearing January 14 at 7pm
We need you - members of the MKPC community - to come out and support our schools at the Board of Education
(BOE) hearing about the Operations Budget. One of our parents, Mr. Juan Del Cid, will be presenting testimony.
Our Blair Cluster has many operational needs, such as more hours for translation services and more para-educator
hours. Come out and show the BOE we mean business!
January 14, Thursday, 7:00 p.m. at Carver Educational Services Center Auditorium, 850 Hungerford Drive,
Rockville.
PILOT Program for three-year-olds is preparing for our 10th year at
Montgomery Knolls Elementary School
Montgomery County Public Schools is looking for three-year-old children in the Montgomery Knolls Elementary School’s
geographical area who can benefit from an early learning preschool experience. This will be the tenth year for the PILOT
Program at Montgomery Knolls ES. We begin accepting applications on February 1st for the 2016-2017 school year.
Classes will begin in September 2016 and run through middle of June 2017 matching the holidays with the MCPS K-12
program calendar. The program is based on the same model as the Child Development classes located in MCPS high
schools. Children will be provided with a structured learning experience in a classroom program with age-appropriate
preschool activities. Students will work on developing the skills needed to address the MCPS PreKindergarten Curriculum
and data will be collected using the Early Childhood Observation Record, ECOR, a developmental observation system used
in MCPS. Children will be peers and friends with children who have disabilities and who will also be served in the
classroom. Classes will be taught by a certified teacher and assistant. The class size will be up to 13 children, including
six preschoolers with disabilities.
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Child must be age three to enroll in the program
Low fee for materials and supplies
Parent must provide transportation
Two mornings per week, 2 ½ hours each morning (Tues/Thurs or Wed/Fri)
Please contact Teacher Elisabeth Karlsson-Mitchell or Parent educator Tonya Williams-Walker at Montgomery Knolls
ES, Preschool Education Program, at
Montgomery Knolls.
301 431-7636
to apply for a space in the three-year-old PILOT class at
A Message from Interim Superintendent, Larry Bowers, about Immigration and Customs
Enforcement (ICE) Initiative
In recent days, news reports have featured a new initiative by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) that the
Washington Post described as a "large-scale effort to deport families fleeing violence in Central America." While as
a general matter, ICE treats schools as sensitive areas where arrests, interviews, searches and surveillance will not
occur, Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) administrators are closely monitoring the situation.
MCPS will continue to follow established procedures to ensure that our schools are safe places for all of our students
to learn, regardless of immigration status. Our staff should not take any actions that may discourage the
participation, or lead to the exclusion, of students based on immigration status. Supporting students and their
families is a priority for MCPS. Parents and guardians are encouraged to continue sending their children to school to
ensure they do not fall behind in their studies.
Yesterday, a joint statement by Montgomery County Executive Isiah Leggett and the County Council was released
on this issue. The statement is available on the county website in both English and Spanish. Please share the
statement with your staff and school community as appropriate. More information around this issue will be released
as it becomes available.