J.C. Parks Elementary School kindergarten teacher Arin Bonner prepares to hang a reading poster on her classroom wall during the first day back for Charles County Public Schools teachers on Tuesday, Aug. 21. School starts for students on Monday, Aug. 27. (Submitted photo)
LA PLATA, Md.—On Tuesday, 2,030 teachers filled the hallways and classrooms of Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) 35 schools and centers to start preparations for the 2012-13 school year. Students in grades kindergarten through 12 start the new school year on Monday, Aug. 27.
Students in the Three’s program, and category one and two prekindergarten students begin school on Tuesday, Sept. 4. Category three prekindergarten students start the new school year on Monday, Sept. 10.
Start and end times for Dr. Thomas L. Higdon, Mary B. Neal, J.C. Parks and Eva Turner elementary schools, and Matthew Henson Middle School are being adjusted for the 2012-13 school year. Changes take effect on Aug. 27.
The following are the time changes:
-- Dr. Thomas L. Higdon Elementary School’s start and end times change to 9:10 a.m. to 3:40 p.m., which is a 10-minute change from last year.
-- The new times for Mary B. Neal Elementary School are 8:15 a.m. to 2:45 p.m., which is a 15-minute change from last year.
-- Hours for J.C. Parks Elementary School change to 9:05 a.m. to 3:35 p.m. This is a 20-minute change from last year.
-- Eva Turner Elementary School will start at 8:45 a.m. and end at 3:15 p.m., which is a 25-minute change.
-- Matthew Henson Middle School will start at 8:30 a.m. and end at 3 p.m. This is a 15-minute change from last year.
The school system is also sponsoring a bus hotline for parents to call with questions about bus routes. Call 301-932-6655 to access the hotline. The hotline is available Aug. 23-24 from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., and Aug. 27-28 from 6 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Parents can access bus routes through the School Locator feature available on the CCPS website, http://www.ccboe.com/. School Locator is designed to allow the public to enter an address and see which three schools - elementary, middle and high - an address is zoned for. It also indicates if the address is eligible for bus transportation to a particular school, what the bus number is and where the closest bus stop to the address is located.
School Locator can be accessed at www2.ccboe.com/schoollocator/. Click on Launch Application (Public) to access the system. No password is needed.
As of Tuesday, the school system has hired 132 new teachers: 19 at the elementary school level, 35 special education and 78 at the middle and high school levels. Charles County Public Schools employs 3,430 people: 2,030 teachers, 241 administrators, 79 technical staff members and 1,080 support employees.
The school system anticipates schools to open next week with more than 26,800 students. For more information on the 2012-13 school year, and Charles County Public Schools, visit the school system website to view a copy of the Parent Handbook/Calendar posted at http://www2.ccboe.com/PDF/parent-handbook-calendar.pdf.
Source: Charles County Public Schools