Parents and students urge board to keep Wooten open, criticize plan to relocate students to Crown Farm

Dozens of students, parents and community leaders told the Montgomery County Board of Education on March 9 that they oppose Superintendent Taylor’s recommendation to relocate Wooten High School students to the new Crown Farm site and urged the board to keep Wooten in the FY27–FY32 capital improvement program.

The most pointed testimony came from current Wooten students who said a move would sever longstanding mentoring and feeder relationships and disrupt student supports. "Wooten is more than a building to me. It is a community," said Sly Wu, a 10th‑grade student identified in prerecorded testimony. Wu said converting Wooten into a holding school and permanently moving students would “take away” mentorship ties with Frost Middle School and undermine students’ sense of identity.

Supporters of the superintendent’s plan defended the proposed relocation as a safety and fiscal move. A parent who identified themselves as Wonu, representing the Field Crown community, told the board that relocating to Crown Farm would be a "critical safety intervention" after a February incident and urged the board to use project savings to strengthen security and pedestrian infrastructure. That speaker said MCPS estimates that about 718 students would be walkers at the new Crown site and asked the board to work with the county Department of Transportation on protected walk zones.

Why the debate matters

The board's decision will shape which schools appear in the six‑year CIP and how limited capital dollars are allocated. Opponents of the relocation questioned several core elements of MCPS's analysis: the enrollment projections used to justify consolidation, the district's definition of "walkable" for the Crown site, and apparent discrepancies in renovation cost estimates for Wooten cited in public presentations.

Multiple speakers pointed to shifting cost figures presented to the board: testimony referenced earlier community estimates of tens of millions for essential repairs and a later figure presented by district staff that placed full renovation costs much higher. Several speakers asked the board to require a comparative, transparent feasibility and life‑cycle cost analysis before approving any relocation.

Safety and walkability

Parents and students pressed the board on safety for children designated as walkers under the relocation plan. "Crossing a highway to get to school is not walkability," one prerecorded speaker said, listing high‑speed roads that would be on the walk routes to Crown Farm. Opponents asked the district for formal transportation and pedestrian safety studies before finalizing any long‑term reassignment.

MCPS response and next steps

District staff and Board members said they will provide additional materials at upcoming work sessions, including longer‑term enrollment trends and project cost detail. The board is scheduled to take final action on the superintendent's recommended FY27–FY32 CIP and boundary recommendations at its business meeting on March 26.

The hearing made clear the depth of community feeling: supporters of Wooten’s preservation framed the issue as one of neighborhood stability and equity, while supporters of the superintendent’s recommendation framed the Crown option as an immediate safety and fiscal measure. The board did not take a vote during the hearing; it will consider community testimony as it prepares for the March 26 decision.