'Dog And Pony Show': Community Reacts To MCPS Changes

ROCKVILLE, MD — The Montgomery County Board of Education voted on Thursday in favor of new school boundary lines, a move that will impact thousands of students in the region.

With a 7 to 1 vote, the board adopted a regional programming model and a recommendation to move students from Thomas S. Wootton High School to the Crown High School in Gaithersburg.

The measure, proposed by Montgomery County Public Schools Superintendent Thomas Taylor, will take effect for the 2027-2028 school year.

Related: See How The Community Reacted To The Vote

Board member Julie Yang was the only official to vote against Taylor's recommendation.

The vote marks the conclusion of two major boundary studies, the first of which relocates Wootton students to Crown High School and expands Damascus High School. The second study reopens Charles W. Woodward High School in North Bethesda and expands Northwood High School in Rockville.

The boundaries outlined for both studies impact dozens of elementary schools by changing their middle and high school assignments.

Officials have argued that the changes are needed to address overcrowding concerns, balance school enrollments, and provide a holding school where students can be temporarily held while renovation projects are carried out at their campuses.

Taylor has said that two-thirds of the district's schools require significant renovations.

With Thursday's vote, Wootton High School, which is about 3 miles from the Crown location, will serve as the holding school.

Jason Makstein, who runs the Moderately MOCO local news blog, told Patch that he was personally impacted by a boundary study when he was growing up.

He said he went from having a big friend base and participating in extracurriculars to completely starting over from scratch.

"I basically started high school with no friends, even though I went 13 years in MCPS without moving," he said. "I get goosebumps."

'Montgomery County History Is Forever Changed'

Dozens of concerned parents and community members attended the board meeting.

The room was notably tense, and jeers could be heard while security guards looked on from the sidelines.

Many opponents held "Save Wootton" signs and occasionally shouted "no" in response to remarks by board members.

When the final vote came down, many chanted "shame" and walked out of the room.

One person in attendance was Wendy Gao, who told Patch she was "really disappointed with the whole process."

"Decisions were premade," she said. "All this is a show."

For Gao, Thursday's vote carries serious weight going into the election season.

Related: Who's Running For Rockville?

"This is totally going to change my view in the election. I'm going to be out there making sure we do not have a board like this in the future," she said. "It affects the whole of Montgomery County. It's not affecting one, two, or three schools."

"Montgomery County history is forever changed," Gao said.

'Dog And Pony Show'

Following the measure's approval, the Community and Education Policy Alliance announced it would be challenging the board's measure legally.

In a statement, the group said the board failed to adequately analyze the impacts of the redrawn boundary lines.

CEPA member Claire Matta told Patch the vote was a "dog and pony show so they could check the box of community engagement."

The actions of the board members, she said, will have widespread impacts on the county.

Related: Who's Running For Bethesda-Chevy Chase?

"I think this area has really woken up and realized that our Board of Education, County Council, county executive really are deaf to our concerns," Matta said.

"It's time that we elect some people who are responsive."

The county will hold its primary on June 23. From the Board of Education to the County Council, multiple seats are up for grabs.

Next on the school district's agenda is a boundary study for elementary schools.

With enrollments on the decline, it could mean that some schools may either be repurposed or closed. These changes could take effect for the 2029-2030 school year.