Parents, students and local officials urge Montgomery County to restore Magruder renovation and halt school closures
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Summary
Dozens of parents, students and officials told the county council during the FY27 capital budget hearing that Magruder High School’s repeated delays and removal from the CIP endanger student safety and equity; speakers asked the council to restore Magruder to the queue or fund immediate repairs.
Dozens of parents, students and community leaders urged the Montgomery County Council to restore Magruder High School to the capital improvements program and to fund immediate repairs, saying years of deferred maintenance have produced safety hazards and broken promises to the community.
Kristen Quinn, testifying on behalf of neighbors, said Magruder has a facility condition index of 64% and called it “the most depleted high school in the county.” She warned that prolonged neglect amplifies inequities and asked the council to prioritize full modernization or a rebuild.
Parents and students described recent and recurring failures inside the school. Matthew Bealer recounted that “the auditorium ceiling had partially collapsed” during a performance and said that incident reflected “decades of deferred maintenance.” Charlotte Norell, an eight-year-old student, told the council, “Providing a safe building for their kids is the most basic thing any local government supposed to do.”
Speakers pushed the council to accept several specific remedies: place Magruder in the CIP immediately following Damascus, allocate funds for the required studies, or commit capital for critical repairs rather than repeatedly deferring the project. Testimony repeatedly cited past schedule slips (examples mentioned: 2027, then 2029) and the removal of Magruder from the current CIP list.
Parents emphasized the human impact of delays: crowded, unsafe classrooms, mold and HVAC failures, inaccessible parking and a lack of ADA-compliant facilities. Dina Blaustein said the community fears a pattern in which promised renovations never arrive and noted the long-term effect on students who “will suffer most from continued delays.”
Several witnesses asked the council to use a holding-school strategy (moving a school temporarily to an alternate campus during a rebuild) to expedite a full modernization while minimizing disruption. Others urged the council to commit to interim repairs and studies if immediate full funding is not possible.
The public hearing closed without a vote; the council recessed until the evening session. The council has not announced any formal action on Magruder as a result of this hearing.
