Around Maryland

If endless buffets, getting fancied up for a captain’s ball or waiting to see what animal shape the bath towels have been folded into is your idea of fun on the seas, then the Pride of Baltimore II’s guest crew program is probably not your thing. But, if you want to work alongside a crew, haul lines, furl sails, stand watch in the dead of the night and help with maintenance of a tall ship whose design dates to the 18th century, then you’ve found your people.

More than 130,000 are heading back to class at Prince George’s County Public Schools Monday. For many of them, that means new bus routes and bell schedules. PGCPS said that the majority of schools are seeing no change or only a 15 minute change in their start and end times, but 16% of schools are seeing a shift anywhere from 16 to 45 minutes.

Third-graders struggling to read won’t necessarily be held back, according to an updated draft literacy policy from the Maryland State Board of Education. The policy initially mandated that students unable to read at grade level would repeat the third grade, but the revised version allows families to seek a waiver that would permit their students to move into the fourth grade.

The Maryland State Department of Education’s (MSDE) draft literacy policy aims to establish a framework to support students and teachers. Yet, the conversation around this policy has been dominated by the issue of retention. By doing so, we are overlooking its broader intent: creating a robust support system.f

As the 2024-25 academic year begins at Baltimore County Public Schools, drivers should watch out for school buses that are newly installed with safety cameras. BCPS launched a new program Monday, the first day of school, that equipped all school buses with interior and exterior automated cameras to discourage drivers from passing while blinking, red lights are on.

Howard County public schools opened for the new school year Monday with a new superintendent, Bill Barnes, who officially took on his new role July 1. In an interview earlier this month, Barnes said his first 90 days on the job will be characterized by a focus on transportation, budgeting, human resources, learning, strategic vision, implementing the multibillion-dollar Blueprint for Maryland’s Future education reform legislation, and diversity, equity and inclusion.

Before school bells ring Monday morning in Montgomery County, Maryland, the public school system held its 5th annual Back-to-School Fair at Westfield Wheaton Mall on Saturday. A big section of the mall’s parking garage was used as space for the fun and games, immunizations and health checks. Meanwhile, row after row of tables bearing useful information were staffed by personnel ready to answer any questions by students and families.

A new summer nutrition program that one advocate called a “game-changer” reached 586,734 children this summer, 43,000 more than state officials had expected, according to recent numbers from the Maryland Department of Human Services. But officials said there is still time to sign up for the program, and were encouraging families to do so before the Aug. 31 deadline, in order to get $120 per child for grocery assistance.

The University of Maryland, College Park joined a new national program this year that allows colleges and universities to privately sponsor and resettle academically qualified refugee students. UMD is one of 17 higher education institutions across the country to enroll refugee students in Welcome Corps on Campus, which launched in July 2023. One such student will attend the school this year.