[{"_1":2,"_124":-5,"_125":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76,88,100,112],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6589463,"mediaKeyId","5575116-095eaaa4783e4a688a3a8a74f948f098","parentId",5575116,"title","Votes at a glance: Charles County Board approves minutes, vision, and strategic metrics; support for Senate Bill 75 fails","audioSeconds",1503,"startMs",11162000,"endMs",12665000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=5575116-095eaaa4783e4a688a3a8a74f948f098&start=11162&end=12665","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5575116-095eaaa4783e4a688a3a8a74f948f098/thumbnail_11162000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6589463/Maryland/Votes-at-a-glance-Charles-County-Board-approves-minutes-vision-and-strategic-metrics-support-for-Senate-Bill-75-fails","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6589463-43286dfcacc637a873d27ec494de8a69/orig.mp4?Expires=1771146386&Signature=hnTPjTPWFl2JdoNcYvpomHxl1bsjog9eLvdzmUxBGJKQuSrHBtWGARm5iC7lQbnrYKDlAxti9C-q37jE331-QUKZD2D8lXWx~K2A-NTNyDq1nSTJBZ~58nbCKXtUvDBWDeTG~rTuP2EXYVW-DSXc1lFP29KiZ8HECoEnGITG8eUsPjKaOwSHvw~2QwqOX0pqQhc~k17beCL0Q1Qj2VbZFiIlb9mLFhQcUqL5NRR9eaf2uCvfDGA-L4tEkPKXzY7Q2tLHyjZeXe84YgvywfkOeKLTExOHf199EL4vEuslRS6g3re4P15oRlbf6cFtdILWxbhIuWVpK6bjOrAnK2hFBg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Charles County Public Schools","date","2025-08-13T16:15:11.343Z","article","The Board of Education of Charles County completed routine business Aug. 12 with a series of votes on minutes, personnel items and governance documents. Key outcomes:

- Minutes and routine approvals: The board approved minutes for the June 10 board meeting, the June 23 retreat meeting and the June 23 work session, and approved a personnel report as presented during the meeting’s action items.

- Vision and metrics: The board voted to adopt a revised district vision statement and the board metrics developed at the June retreat. Staff will publish the strategic plan and an interactive public dashboard linking the board goals, superintendent performance indicators and school improvement metrics.

- Recurring resolutions and proclamations: The board approved recurring recognition items listed for the year; several additional proposed proclamations (such as military spouse recognition and sign‑language/deaf awareness items) will return as future agenda items after staff prepares draft language and confirms translation/format needs.

- Senate Bill 75 (legislative matter): A motion was introduced to ask the county commissioners to support a state bill (Senate Bill 75) that would permit a juvenile court to require parents to participate in certain mediation and counseling when a child is before the court. The motion was made and seconded, but the board noted it did not reach the six votes the board determined would be required for that action and the motion therefore did not carry.

How the board handled edits: At least one resolution drafted for the meeting was approved subject to grammatical and formatting corrections before final posting.

Ending: Several votes were unanimous or passed with broad support in open session. The board chair clarified that the earlier legislative motion failed because the required threshold (six votes) was not reached.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Board Meeting - August 12, 2025","oneSentenceSummary","At its Aug. 12 meeting the board approved multiple minutes packages, adopted a revised vision and board metrics and accepted a strategic plan framework; a proposed board statement supporting state Senate Bill 75 failed for lack of the required votes.","taxTitle","Charles County Public Schools, School Boards, Maryland","taxId",14205,"location","Maryland","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6589468,"Parents and committee urge more intentional board visits to special‑education classrooms",248,7632000,7880000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5575116-095eaaa4783e4a688a3a8a74f948f098&start=7632&end=7880","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5575116-095eaaa4783e4a688a3a8a74f948f098/thumbnail_7632000.jpg","/articles/6589468/Maryland/Parents-and-committee-urge-more-intentional-board-visits-to-specialeducation-classrooms","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6589468-73b46b8ee45dd49ac5554038a07d9f20/orig.mp4?Expires=1771146386&Signature=O52X1Es4tUh7CI4SIdZVEgQlTQ9d3TrKXM-w5PBb4sSd4pm5QGDm9zjXBu1zaFQlf1OiGckVdWfvSdjnPqy2~iFvXHIgW8znu-HnAIQ35EKzIizjjdaL5mctL0Jdt7fu9NmLYKC-vusE4-ecn3HviuTXdqzJv006C8UqP6kCienVXY8VfIaHR6Cnd8NwuB-ZBxh0U7~yEmCtUqoABkMRIdtPcwEawKSct6xGpD6gCnHo5Hn3Gpoh4JocJdDvVOLBTL0CujYcLC0t0c8WzqRV4OI-M2R3HPIQ6prrvZYcn1QVKxDKMkaclSnlyi9gqoxJtx0D3cJfDCPTuv1hWLtl5w__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Two public commenters and a representative of the Special Education Citizens Advisory Committee (EACC) urged the Charles County Board of Education on Aug. 12 to make special‑education programs a priority during school visits and to strengthen staff training and long‑term supports for students with disabilities.

Public forum comments: A parent described a breakdown in implementation for a child during the transition from middle to high school, saying that protections on paper — such as 504 accommodations and individualized education plan (IEP) supports — were not consistently applied in practice. The parent asked the district to respond to an email she had sent with details and called for clearer, family‑facing tools and navigation to help parents understand processes and rights.

EACC request: Patrice Kelly, speaking for the Special Education Citizens Advisory Committee, told the board the EACC estimates roughly 3,600 students receive special education services in the district and asked board members to visit special‑education classrooms, therapy rooms and resource spaces during their school tours. “When you walk into those rooms, you are telling every student and staff member you are seen, you are heard, you are valued, and you belong,” Kelly said.

Why it matters: Board members and staff agreed the board should see special‑education practice firsthand. Several board members said they would prioritize those classrooms during fall school visits and affirmed a need for district staff to provide clearer explanations of how schools implement plans and how parents can work with teachers and administrators when concerns arise.

Next steps: District teaching‑and‑learning leaders and the superintendent said they would follow up with parents who raised specific cases and asked EACC to propose details for how board visits could be structured to benefit students and staff.

Ending: Speakers emphasized listening to families’ real experiences and using board visits to identify where policy, training and practice diverge.","Speakers at public forum and an EACC representative urged the board to include special‑education classrooms and therapy spaces on school visits and to improve staff training and implementation for 504 and IEP protections during transitions to higher grades.",{"_33":89,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":90,"_41":91,"_43":92,"_45":93,"_47":94,"_49":95,"_51":96,"_53":97,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":98,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":99,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6589472,"Board adopts revised vision statement and metrics; district unveils 2025–29 strategic plan priorities",595,4247000,4842000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5575116-095eaaa4783e4a688a3a8a74f948f098&start=4247&end=4842","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5575116-095eaaa4783e4a688a3a8a74f948f098/thumbnail_4247000.jpg","/articles/6589472/Maryland/Board-adopts-revised-vision-statement-and-metrics-district-unveils-202529-strategic-plan-priorities","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6589472-c286300996e42ac2db2b71f9265d950d/orig.mp4?Expires=1771146386&Signature=mPEFwnoeuByjBcMA4sdLyj71xWrN5uxDyuq5eq5toAalfdVZpN46XeBduLWjOpv6OxrF7DhuJ18bWBFZWSsU9CaZ8-JtMzSAbN97H25~NsW5dKnhoL-af-Fpbg8XOe9LHCMiO9fGx6ZT7Wr5Z6~yIho4lQolkPaMsDsop-qSFzdZYfKwy6blAsB2sNavcQ4aTu9uNUyZg1P5YGIF0-5PN7zO-cl0wZlNMT7RwhbIDbWwDohyhm0CI7TmNVbb3REB9~sBzOSIp9glQlC~fcRoQeeJY~oUSgT~KlkLlX6WK-M7YXubEV2tOJ4iTjZIrt0GzvbxZ~5X14quIkupxS0Kug__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Charles County Board of Education on Aug. 12 approved a revised district vision and a set of board goals tied to a newly drafted 2025–29 strategic plan that senior staff will use to guide work for the coming school year.

What the board approved: The board voted to approve a proposed revised vision statement that emphasizes an inclusive, safe, equitable and rigorous global learning environment \"where every student and staff member is empowered to thrive.\" The board also endorsed five governance goals developed at a June retreat: improved board governance, annual policy impact reviews tied to student outcomes, coherence across superintendent performance indicators, strategic plan and board goals, stronger budget oversight and a higher share of meeting time devoted to student‑outcome data.

Strategic plan framework: School district staff presented a four‑goal strategic plan to the board that aligns with the vision and the board goals: 1) college and career readiness (including AP, dual enrollment and CTE expansion); 2) safe, inclusive and healthy learning environments; 3) attract, develop and retain a diverse and effective workforce; and 4) strengthened family and community partnerships. The plan sets measurable aims — for example, annual percentage improvements on state assessments and I‑Ready benchmarks, increases in AP enrollment and targets for equitable extracurricular participation.

Why it matters: The board asked staff to make the plan coherent across governance, superintendent performance indicators and school improvement efforts. Superintendent Navarro told the board she will launch a public website and interactive dashboard at the district 'state of the schools' event this fall so the public can track metrics that link district strategy, board goals and superintendent indicators.

Next steps: Staff said they will publish the plan, set instructional benchmarks and revisit board metrics twice this year. The board also asked for an easy public landing page that aggregates the district strategic plan, superintendent performance indicators and board metrics so community members can see how the pieces align.

Ending: Board members described the June retreat and follow‑up as a “hard, valuable” exercise in self‑evaluation. The district will report progress to the board twice during the school year and will present additional implementation details at upcoming meetings and community events.","The board approved a revised vision and a set of five board goals after a June retreat and adopted a strategic plan framework focused on student outcomes, safety and inclusion, workforce development and family engagement for 2025–29.",{"_33":101,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":102,"_41":103,"_43":104,"_45":105,"_47":106,"_49":107,"_51":108,"_53":109,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":110,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":111,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6589477,"Charles County lays out $431/sq ft construction baseline, seeks state funds for La Plata renovation and kindergarten additions",178,3236000,3414000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5575116-095eaaa4783e4a688a3a8a74f948f098&start=3236&end=3414","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5575116-095eaaa4783e4a688a3a8a74f948f098/thumbnail_3236000.jpg","/articles/6589477/Maryland/Charles-County-lays-out-431sq-ft-construction-baseline-seeks-state-funds-for-La-Plata-renovation-and-kindergarten-additions","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6589477-6fad61b5d049e6ef49aebc1a341de9d3/orig.mp4?Expires=1771146386&Signature=EkhlBoqAKanBZdC0tXs3Oa6Nyhc5jf3HFJMnHQFhuV25YeIlsrZPtHckgsSArbC~eb31zxASWExMmJnK6wypRoXrFoHvRR-39H4jllfwftAd53JE6dNwD2X-Gb~X-F-bIItIWW5PYWYG~zrknsTYJ5iFFZdGNjo4zr0vbnohCJEX~jxf2xxwg0Tt2hW63w6sQfE~HPhZUDDMU4Eeda-rKoqbMwFKmv2-P-2-hyIP2avk6LdnuGbPfUf10W420CtcGwetAK-2RGYjD4zS6DKm82kRLfLmf1jpkOQ65OTaXYNMSRZDZ7L~2BiJeqvbofg5TZluZ5~5ePy5iHckkhdIXw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Charles County Public Schools officials on Aug. 12 presented the system’s five‑year capital improvement program (CIP), asking the Interagency Committee on Public School Construction for funding for 29 projects including a renovation and addition at La Plata High School and kindergarten additions at multiple elementary schools.

Why it matters: The CIP sets the district’s requests for state construction funding and helps the county plan local matching dollars. District staff said the Interagency’s new construction cost guidance for the cycle uses $431 per square foot for renovations and $513 per square foot for new schools, and that the state’s cost‑share for building brick‑and‑mortar projects rose to 66% for FY28.

Major projects highlighted: Mike Heim, chief of operations and supporting services, told the board the district is in design for a proposed renovation and addition to La Plata High School, which he said needs updates and capacity to address growth; the district is planning to add roughly 300–400 seats there. Heim also said the district seeks construction funding for a kindergarten (K) addition at Thomas Higdon Elementary; projects at Wade and J.C. Parks were already in progress and Higdon — if funded — would leave Mitchell Elementary as the only remaining school without a K addition in the same planning area.

Relocatable classrooms and immediate needs: Heim said St. Charles High School is exceeding its state‑rated capacity and the system is installing an 8‑unit modular building on site; assembly was underway, with water and electrical connections still to be finished prior to students occupying the units. He described a need for infrastructure projects — boilers, chillers, cooling towers and switchgear — to address aging systems across the district.

State funding and timing: Heim said the IAC will give a projected allocation in three phases (75% in November, 90% in February, final in May) and that the district anticipates near‑$8.9 million in CIP allocations on average but expects additional funding from the Enrollment Growth and Relocatable Classroom (EGRC) fund this cycle, estimating it could receive as much as $6 million from that source — up from roughly $1.2 million last year.

Local process notes: Heim reviewed the report’s five‑year project list and noted that projects early in the list are those the district hopes to fund soon. He stressed that state approval for a new high school requires surrounding schools to be close to capacity, which factors into the district’s timing for new middle‑school or high‑school projects.

Ending: Heim said the county has been a strong local partner on funding and that projects already underway — including modular classrooms and phased open‑space enclosures at older schools — will continue while the district awaits the IAC’s projected allocations later in the fiscal year.","Chief of operations presented the school system’s five‑year capital improvement plan to the board, highlighting La Plata High School renovation and capacity addition (300–400 seats) and proposed kindergarten additions; district expects a higher state cost share for FY28 and anticipates extra enrollment‑growth funding.",{"_33":113,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":114,"_41":115,"_43":116,"_45":117,"_47":118,"_49":119,"_51":120,"_53":121,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":122,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":123,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6589481,"Charles County Public Schools issues guidance on classroom uses of artificial intelligence",1005,855000,1860000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5575116-095eaaa4783e4a688a3a8a74f948f098&start=855&end=1860","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5575116-095eaaa4783e4a688a3a8a74f948f098/thumbnail_855000.jpg","/articles/6589481/Maryland/Charles-County-Public-Schools-issues-guidance-on-classroom-uses-of-artificial-intelligence","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6589481-37de2384fba607a87d92f7c54fa1ee8c/orig.mp4?Expires=1771146386&Signature=KAVHElthuE02J47M2ik1M4Ad~1yVo3ZiP7N1dh-JJ0eTHnVas35ZmCrGDAAolk4XRaAAEDe9SIUVdo~1j9BRdwcf8rAF7KtCSqqglMXnF4CEt5Ug-XbCelpjHx8Oocih~pjO2FI7jQzGJK2W-gSRtg4ZyyIx2ZxM2IrmyLqGlExCketD6WN07NXHw~NbGzSO5JyNdk0EHFpMgbBFSEQcStlWfKfKTtZt7DaSroUVgm2Z5qqhZtxoOz43XrnfGOuYu2qcbx6~QTbLQYUjtZBiPjkvr04xGR6kxOD4OkU12N-3tyCgJ~OdathL9kBEG1RYhvSMon1lnON8Hq8iReCxUA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Charles County Public Schools officials on Aug. 12 presented district guidance on artificial intelligence intended to let teachers and students use AI tools while limiting privacy, bias and academic‑integrity risks.

The guidance, developed by a task force led by Charmaine Thompson, chief of instructional technology, and Laura Bennett, executive director of IT strategy, lays out permitted and prohibited uses for staff and students and emphasizes that AI should supplement — not replace — human judgment.

Thompson said the district was given a board charge to study AI and produce guidance because Maryland has not yet issued statewide rules and because tools such as ChatGPT and intelligent tutoring systems are already in use. “This is guidance. It’s not policy,” Thompson told the board. “We do have the opportunity to grow as these tools matriculate and mature.”

Why it matters: The guidance attempts to balance classroom benefits — personalized practice, accessibility supports for multilingual or special‑education students, and time savings on administrative tasks — with clear safeguards against harms officials emphasized in the presentation: student data exposure, biased or misleading outputs and overreliance on automated grading.

What the guidance says: Laura Bennett, who convened the task force, said the document prohibits putting personally identifiable information or internal district documents into public, third‑party generative AI systems unless the vendor has an explicit data‑use agreement with the district. “No use of PII is supposed to be put into any sort of AI that is not controlled by us,” Bennett said. The guidance also states that automated decisions must not replace human judgment — for example, an AI-generated rubric can inform a grade but should not set the final grade without teacher review.

Classroom application and limits: Kevin Lowndes, chief of teaching and learning, described how the guidance will be applied by content area. Elementary classrooms will prioritize foundational skills and limit screen time; grades 4–5 will begin responsible‑use instruction; secondary teachers will get subject‑specific help and professional learning. Lowndes said instructional specialists will speak with teachers during pre‑service week about how to apply the guidance when designing lessons.

Detection and academic integrity: District staff cautioned against overreliance on AI detectors. Bennett and Lowndes said tools that score writing as ‘‘AI generated’’ can misflag clear student writing or writing by non‑native English speakers. The district will ask teachers to use investigative steps — interviewing students about drafts and requesting prewriting documents — before imposing disciplinary outcomes.

Training and rollout: Thompson and Bennett outlined multiple training strands the district has offered since January 2024 — webinars for educators, sessions for parents and support‑staff briefings — and said the guidance will be distributed to teachers, parents and students with further professional learning to follow.

Board and student reaction: Student representatives told the board they see both harms and benefits. The student board member said many peers use AI to shortcut assignments and worried about erosion of critical thinking. Other board members urged the district to pursue tools that reduce teacher administrative burden and to consider an ‘‘emergent technologies’’ policy later if needed; Thompson recommended evolving the guidance first so it can be updated more quickly than a board policy.

Next steps: District staff said the guidance will be finalized, published and paired with training materials and AI literacy benchmarks. They also said they will seek feedback from student leaders and teacher groups as the tools and policy environment change.

Ending: District officials asked the public and educators to treat the guidance as iterative. “We should be leveraging it and learning how to use it and teaching our kids the good and bad of AI,” Thompson said. School leaders plan to start training during pre‑service and to revisit the guidance as state and national standards evolve.","District technology and curriculum officials presented an emergent-technologies guidance document advising controlled, human‑reviewed uses of AI by staff and students and recommending training, age-appropriate limits and data‑privacy safeguards ahead of the Aug. 25 school year start.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Votes at a glance: Charles County Board approves minutes, vision, and strategic metrics; support for Senate Bill 75 fails

Parents and committee urge more intentional board visits to special‑education classrooms

Board adopts revised vision statement and metrics; district unveils 2025–29 strategic plan priorities

Charles County lays out $431/sq ft construction baseline, seeks state funds for La Plata renovation and kindergarten additions

Charles County Public Schools issues guidance on classroom uses of artificial intelligence