Staff from Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) told members of a county council committee Friday that serious incidents including weapons possession and fights are decreasing in schools, but more work and technology are needed to reduce the number of incidents.
Marcus Jones, MCPS chief of safety and security, and Peter Moran, MCPS chief of schools, reported to members of the education and culture committee those serious incidents decreased about 2% from the previous school year.
Fights and suspensions are down, but use of drugs and controlled substances, including vaping, are on the rise, Moran said.
Altogether, there have been 7,603 serious incidents as of Jan. 9 as compared to 7,543 incidents during the same time last year.
Concerning bomb threats, “This year, I think we’ve turned that corner. The bomb threats have definitely declined,” said Jones, who previously was the county’s police chief.
According to Moran, serious incidents are very varied and could include Friday morning’s incident at Albert Einstein High School in which HVAC equipment malfunctioned as well as medical issues.
MCPS currently is working on a different template for reporting that would list specific types of incidents. The goal is to be more transparent, Moran said.
MCPS also hopes to increase transparency by the way it communicates serious incidents. A principal sending a letter that tends to be vague about the particular incident is not a way to reassure students, teachers and parents, Moran said.
“Most people aren’t even going to read the letter,” he said, suggesting school officials need to meet with those affected.
In other action, MCPS currently is adding wiring and other equipment to enable vape sensors to be installed in every high school bathroom. That work should be completed next month, Jones said.
The sensors will notify officials when students are vaping. A noise component also will let school officials know when a great many students are gathered in one bathroom.
A vocal alarm won’t go off, but school administrations will be notified, Jones said.
Besides vaping sensors, MCPS officials are looking into purchasing entry doors that include sensors when they are open. Jones expects the new doors will be installed by the start of the coming school year.
“We are getting very close to going live,” he said.
Jones said some of the reason security and safety are improving are that more teachers are manning the hallways throughout the day and teachers and administrators are working on building relationships with students in an effort to reduce issues and punishments.
“We are moving in the right direction,” Moran said.
Also discussed at the committee meeting was MCPS’ attendance policy. Councilmember Kristin Mink criticized the current policy, which she says allows students to just come and go, especially around lunchtime.
MCPS is working on an updated attendance policy, which Moran said should more closely connect attendance, grades and conduct. That policy will be presented to the Board of Education during April, Moran said, noting it will appear similar to attendance policies of many years ago.
Councilmember Will Jawando, who chaired the committee meeting, noted that currently, students “could technically be marked present but miss half the day, which is not something we want.”
