SMCPS Redistricting

Public Meeting September 25th

The FY26 budget negotiation between the County Commissioners and Board of Education followed the typical pattern. The BOE required additional funds, but the Commissioners pushed back. Cuts to the budget were proposed by the school system if they didn’t get the required funding. Members of the public packed a school auditorium to reinforce their support for school funding. In the end, the Commissioners provided additional funding and a mandate voiced by Commissioner President Guy. “I want to see some cuts in schools. And if you’ve got to redistrict, that’s just the way it is.” 

In recent months, the BOE approved updates to policy JCAA - School Boundary Advisory Committee, now titled JCAA - School Boundary Realignment. Changes streamlined language and removed details like specificity about advisory committee members. The policy’s associated regulation outlines its purpose–to review redistricting proposals and offer comments. The school system’s Division of Supporting Services prepares a timeline and recommendations on Advisory Committee Structure for the Superintendent. The committee is co-chaired by the system’s Chief Operating Officer (COO), Mike Watson, and the Director of Capital Planning (DCP_, Kim Howe. Superintendent Smith has said other members would include staff, students, parents, and community members in affected areas.

SMCPS Slide: Background on Cannon Washington, Inc.

A contract award was approved for the Facility Utilization and School Boundary Study (FUSBS). Cannon Washington, Inc., a consulting firm based in Arlington, will be paid $199,860 for their services. There’s also a $48K contingency amount should the BOE choose to engage additional services. The firm completed a Facility Utilization Study in 2022 for St. Mary’s County public Schools. The consulting firm will look at the county’s growth, planned developments, the Comprehensive Plan update, among other data, said DCP Kim Howe. When asked by BOE Chair Karin Bailey, Howe confirmed the consultant would assess funding impacts for any actions proposed.

SMCPS Slide: Cannon Washington’s experience

Back in July, Howe briefed the BOE on the 2025 Educational Facilities Master Plan, a document required by the State to make funding decisions. Howe noted that current enrollment levels don’t support capacity projects–like expansions or new schools. State funding for capacity projects “requires half of the student enrollment to be in place when the project is submitted and the remaining enrollment” ready to attend by the project’s completion. To secure State funding for a new high school, the system would need to be 600+ high school students over capacity now, with the potential for up to 600 more students ready to enroll when the new school is completed. Those numbers are based on State rated capacity.

High school enrollment peaked in 2023, but has fallen for the past two years, as seen in the graphic below. School capacity has been mitigated by modernization and expansion projects. If SMCPS built a new high school today, the cost would be around $140M–a number the county cannot afford on its own.

SMCPS Chart: Light blue line—4th HS—shows high school enrollment would need to be closer to 7000.

Cannon Washington’s study will assess “functional space in all facilities,” recommend “utilization and school boundary change options,” and report fiscal/operational impacts. The agency will also manage community engagement while facilitating public-facing presentations throughout the process. Superintendent Scott Smith, at the BOE’s August 27th meeting, announced a REDISTRICTING WEBSITE where information is already available about public participation and the timeline.

Two community forums will be held to start, with the first scheduled for September 25th at 6PM at the Forrest Career & Technology Center. After the forum, Community Survey 1 will open online and remain open until October 6th. No official timeline has been released, but a draft schedule was presented to the BOE at their July 30th meeting. The process will conclude in April 2026 with notification of changes to be implemented in for school year 2026-2027.

SMCPS Slide: Possible Redistricting Timeline

A Community Engagement Team, composed of high school students, parents/guardians, and staff representing each public school in the district, selected by invitation from school principals, will share opportunities for engagement “through school, community, and social media resources,” according to the website. There has been no word on the appointment of a School Boundary Advisory Committee. 

SMCPS Charts show current flow of students.

Right now, everything is on the table. Mike Watson, COO, previewed redistricting considerations for the BOE in April. One idea was to create contiguous school districts to reduce splitting student classes from one level to another. For example, rather than rising 6th graders from Evergreen Elementary splitting between Esperanza and Leonardtown Middle Schools, all students would go to Esperanza. Banneker Elementary would go to Margaret Brent Middle rather than splitting with Leonardtown Middle. High school populations will likely become more even as well. Leonardtown High School has around 2,200 students, with Chopticon and Great Mills at around 1500 each. 

SMCPS Slide

Because the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future requires funding to follow the student, redistricting must also consider the operational budget of each school and what funding is available for staff. That could mean staff realignments. Other effects might be increased class sizes due to facility consolidation, combining bus routes, changes to school start times, academies, and programmatic offerings. School attendance waivers, which allow students to attend a school outside of their district, may no longer be honored. 

Attend on September 25th to get involved in the process.