Make MCPS Facilities A Priority
Make MCPS Facilities A Priority
The Issue
Dear County Councilmembers,
I am urging you to make renovating/rebuilding/renewing MCPS facilities a priority in your budget. Our children are the future of our county, and if they can’t learn in the buildings they are legally required to be in, we all lose.
Two-thirds of our schools need major repairs. That’s 157 facilities out of 238. Forty HVAC systems are not functioning. 40!!!
In case you are not following this issue closely, here is an alphabetical list of the schools that need repairs/rebuilds/renovations/renews immediately:
Elementary Schools
Burning Tree
Cedar Grove
Cloverly
Cold Spring
Goshen
Highland View
Greenwood
Lake Seneca
Oakland Terrace
Piney Branch
Rolling Terrace
Strathmore
Twinbrook
Watkins Mill
Middle Schools
Banneker
Eastern
Gaithersburg
Newport Mill
Redland
Silver Spring International (SSIMS)
Sligo
White Oak
High Schools
Damascus
Magruder
Sherwood
Wootton
These are the schools being proposed for this CIP cycle:
Burning Tree ES
Cold Spring ES
Highland View ES
Piney Branch ES
Sligo Creek ES
Eastern MS
Sligo MS
Damascus HS
These are the other schools that should be fixed this cycle as well, if there was more in the budget:
Cedar Grove ES
Cloverly ES
Greenwood ES
Highland ES
Lake Seneca ES
Oakland Terr ES
Rolling Terr ES
Strathmore ES
Watkins Mill ES
Banneker MS
Gaithersburg MS
Newport Mills MS
Redland MS
White Oak MS
Magruder HS
Wootton HS
We need $521.4 million in HVAC and roof replacements and $303.8 million in infrastructure renewal projects. Our current CIP (Capital Improvement Plan) budget is $1.76 billion. We need $5.15 billion to do the needed repairs. Dr. Thomas Taylor, Superintendent of MCPS, very fairly has requested $2.704 billion to tackle a few of the schools at a time. Now, I know these numbers are alarming, but the conditions our children are learning in are MORE alarming.
Unfortunately, I am unable to attach my photos here, but you would see black mold, exposed corroded pipes, leaks in ceiling tiles, broken floor tiles, lots of mold on the ceiling, hanging wires, and lights that don’t work. What isn’t captured is the horrible smell of mold and instant headache you get walking in the classrooms. If you have breathing conditions, do not forget your inhaler! You will need it! I know I do!
Councilmembers, please approve more than Dr. Taylor is asking. We have a superintendent who is willing to put the work in. Let’s give him the tools he needs to do his job.
Our schools are filled with mold, sewage, corroded and leaking pipes, rodents (dead and alive) and their droppings, nonfunctional HVAC systems, fire alarms that don’t work, toilets you can’t flush, science vents that don’t turn on, broken asbestos floor and ceiling tiles, and lockers you can’t keep your belongings in because you end up bringing mold from the school home to your residence. If these schools were residential dwellings, these places would be condemned, and you would be fined as landlords for uninhabitable conditions. How can you expect our children and our teachers to perform in these conditions? If you think I’m exaggerating, I encourage you to walk through any of these schools listed. It is WORSE than you think.
I know this is overwhelming, and we can’t afford it all at once. I suggest that you look at the FCI ratings and focus on the schools that have the worst interior infrastructure first. Mold and broken fire alarms should be at the top of your list. Plumbing should be next, and then HVAC, etc. Major systems need to work, and air needs to be SAFE to breathe. If it’s not, you cannot use the building. It’s that simple.
As a county resident and a mother of children in your schools, I cannot be complacent in your negligence. You MUST fix these conditions NOW! You wonder why enrollment is down. Let’s start here. I ask that you reprioritize the county budget and put MCPS and its facilities at the top. You are putting these kids (and teachers) in direct danger every single school day.
As inflation increases and the budget allocated to the CIP decreases every year, our conditions worsen. Deterioration does not pause and wait for the budget to catch up. As you worry about banning gas appliances and eradicate plastic bags, our children are getting sick at school. And it’s all PREVENTABLE! This situation is unacceptable. I cannot stress enough that you have complete control over the ability to fix this problem. Please show the people who elected you that you deserve to keep your positions. It lies in your hands.
Pitting one school against another is UNACCEPTABLE, unnecessary, and NOT a solution. We shouldn’t have to fight each other for what should be there to begin with. ALL of our children deserve clean air to breathe and bathrooms they’re not terrified to use. These are basic human rights. You preach equity and inclusion. Congratulations. You have failed every single MCPS student. Fix it. And fix it now.
Recent news articles:
https://www.fox5dc.com/news/families-pack-school-board-meeting-over-mcps-boundary-changes
Petitions:
339
The Issue
Dear County Councilmembers,
I am urging you to make renovating/rebuilding/renewing MCPS facilities a priority in your budget. Our children are the future of our county, and if they can’t learn in the buildings they are legally required to be in, we all lose.
Two-thirds of our schools need major repairs. That’s 157 facilities out of 238. Forty HVAC systems are not functioning. 40!!!
In case you are not following this issue closely, here is an alphabetical list of the schools that need repairs/rebuilds/renovations/renews immediately:
Elementary Schools
Burning Tree
Cedar Grove
Cloverly
Cold Spring
Goshen
Highland View
Greenwood
Lake Seneca
Oakland Terrace
Piney Branch
Rolling Terrace
Strathmore
Twinbrook
Watkins Mill
Middle Schools
Banneker
Eastern
Gaithersburg
Newport Mill
Redland
Silver Spring International (SSIMS)
Sligo
White Oak
High Schools
Damascus
Magruder
Sherwood
Wootton
These are the schools being proposed for this CIP cycle:
Burning Tree ES
Cold Spring ES
Highland View ES
Piney Branch ES
Sligo Creek ES
Eastern MS
Sligo MS
Damascus HS
These are the other schools that should be fixed this cycle as well, if there was more in the budget:
Cedar Grove ES
Cloverly ES
Greenwood ES
Highland ES
Lake Seneca ES
Oakland Terr ES
Rolling Terr ES
Strathmore ES
Watkins Mill ES
Banneker MS
Gaithersburg MS
Newport Mills MS
Redland MS
White Oak MS
Magruder HS
Wootton HS
We need $521.4 million in HVAC and roof replacements and $303.8 million in infrastructure renewal projects. Our current CIP (Capital Improvement Plan) budget is $1.76 billion. We need $5.15 billion to do the needed repairs. Dr. Thomas Taylor, Superintendent of MCPS, very fairly has requested $2.704 billion to tackle a few of the schools at a time. Now, I know these numbers are alarming, but the conditions our children are learning in are MORE alarming.
Unfortunately, I am unable to attach my photos here, but you would see black mold, exposed corroded pipes, leaks in ceiling tiles, broken floor tiles, lots of mold on the ceiling, hanging wires, and lights that don’t work. What isn’t captured is the horrible smell of mold and instant headache you get walking in the classrooms. If you have breathing conditions, do not forget your inhaler! You will need it! I know I do!
Councilmembers, please approve more than Dr. Taylor is asking. We have a superintendent who is willing to put the work in. Let’s give him the tools he needs to do his job.
Our schools are filled with mold, sewage, corroded and leaking pipes, rodents (dead and alive) and their droppings, nonfunctional HVAC systems, fire alarms that don’t work, toilets you can’t flush, science vents that don’t turn on, broken asbestos floor and ceiling tiles, and lockers you can’t keep your belongings in because you end up bringing mold from the school home to your residence. If these schools were residential dwellings, these places would be condemned, and you would be fined as landlords for uninhabitable conditions. How can you expect our children and our teachers to perform in these conditions? If you think I’m exaggerating, I encourage you to walk through any of these schools listed. It is WORSE than you think.
I know this is overwhelming, and we can’t afford it all at once. I suggest that you look at the FCI ratings and focus on the schools that have the worst interior infrastructure first. Mold and broken fire alarms should be at the top of your list. Plumbing should be next, and then HVAC, etc. Major systems need to work, and air needs to be SAFE to breathe. If it’s not, you cannot use the building. It’s that simple.
As a county resident and a mother of children in your schools, I cannot be complacent in your negligence. You MUST fix these conditions NOW! You wonder why enrollment is down. Let’s start here. I ask that you reprioritize the county budget and put MCPS and its facilities at the top. You are putting these kids (and teachers) in direct danger every single school day.
As inflation increases and the budget allocated to the CIP decreases every year, our conditions worsen. Deterioration does not pause and wait for the budget to catch up. As you worry about banning gas appliances and eradicate plastic bags, our children are getting sick at school. And it’s all PREVENTABLE! This situation is unacceptable. I cannot stress enough that you have complete control over the ability to fix this problem. Please show the people who elected you that you deserve to keep your positions. It lies in your hands.
Pitting one school against another is UNACCEPTABLE, unnecessary, and NOT a solution. We shouldn’t have to fight each other for what should be there to begin with. ALL of our children deserve clean air to breathe and bathrooms they’re not terrified to use. These are basic human rights. You preach equity and inclusion. Congratulations. You have failed every single MCPS student. Fix it. And fix it now.
Recent news articles:
https://www.fox5dc.com/news/families-pack-school-board-meeting-over-mcps-boundary-changes
Petitions:
339
The Decision Makers
Petition created on November 23, 2025