Policy committee unanimously advances 2025–26 work plan to full board

The Montgomery County Public Schools Policy Management Committee voted unanimously Sept. 16 to move its 2025–26 work plan to the full Board of Education for approval. The committee approved the motion by voice/raise-of-hands and will present the plan at the next board meeting. Julie Yang, Policy Management Committee chair, called the vote after a brief presentation of the draft work plan. The work plan lays out the committee's schedule for technical amendments and new policies this year. It lists technical edits to FAA (educational facilities planning) and ACF (student misconduct/harassment), new policy work on background checks and program evaluation, and ongoing calendar development tied to state guidance and board policy IDA. Sally Davis, supervisor, Policy and Regulations Division, noted the committee will also complete tentative action on several items Oct. 16 and then post them for public comment. Committee members described the plan as a joint effort between board leadership, school system staff and legal services. "We work with our staff, our board staff, and the legal department staff, and with the collection of things that have been expressed throughout the year from board members," Yang said. Staff told the committee that some items are compliance-driven, others are technical updates, and still others are new policies prompted by system needs. The motion to forward the work plan was moved by Anew of Malu, student member of the board, and seconded by Brenda Wolf, board member for District 5; the committee recorded a unanimous vote to send the plan to the full board. No further committee-level conditions or amendments were attached to the vote. The full board will receive the work plan for consideration at its next scheduled meeting. Committee staff said specific draft timelines include tentative action and public comment windows for several items and that more detailed schedules and memos will accompany each item when it returns to the committee or the full board. The committee heard this item at the start of its Sept. 16 meeting; committee members asked procedural questions about how items are prioritized and whether policies should have regular review cycles. Staff said there is no fixed schedule for every policy and that prioritization is based on compliance needs, board requests and staff recommendations.