Dorchester County Public Schools -

Dorchester County Public Schools families, here’s an opportunity to help your child’s school! Head over to the DCPS website at www.dcps.k12.md.us, scroll down to the Student Benefits Form, and complete it for your family! The information from this form means increased funding to support instruction, student services, and programs like Community Schools, tutoring, and free meals for our students. It means increased technology funding for laptops and internet access, more scholarship opportunities for DCPS students, and even discounted fees associated with the college application process. Join us in investing in the future of our children and community by being sure to complete the Student Benefits Form for your family! #DCPS23NoMore #DCPSTeam15

There was a buzz in the air as the Bee Bus hit the road again last Friday, making stops in the neighborhoods served by Sandy Hill Elementary School! Various goodies were distributed to kiddos, and both staff and students were excited to see each other again after the summer break. Remember: grades 1 through 5 are back to school next Tuesday, September 3, with PreK-3, PreK-4, and Kindergarten following on Thursday, September 5! #DCPS23NoMore #DCPSTeam15

One of the great perks of being selected Dorchester County Public Schools Teacher of the Year is a new set of wheels to use, and here is Katelyn Blair, 2024-2025 Teacher of the Year, receiving a Honda HR-V! Once again, we welcomed Mike McCauley, General Manager of Hertrich Honda of Easton, to our back-to-school kickoff event on Friday to make the big delivery. A big THANK YOU to Hertrich Family of Automobile Dealerships for their long-standing support of the Teacher of the Year program at DCPS! #DCPS23NoMore #DCPSTeam15

What has 1600 eyes (some in the backs of their heads, it is said), a roar that can be heard in Baltimore, and a heart for kids as big as Dorchester County? It’s the entire staff of Dorchester County Public Schools when gathered, as happened today for the annual kickoff of the 2024-2025 school year! It was a morning of greeting work buddies, celebrating each other, a little impromptu dancing, and learning the importance of the number 15 – IYKYK! Thank you to keynote speaker Dr. J.T. Taylor of Purpose Pushers in Chesapeake, Virginia for helping us spark a transformation! #DCPS23NoMore #DCPSTeam15

These people are, in many ways, the faces of Dorchester County Public Schools – our office administrative professionals. Theirs are the voices you hear when calling the school, the faces you see when you arrive at the school office, and the hands that ensure the forgotten book or lunch or permission slip gets to the right place. Today they got together for a session of professional development in preparation for the new school year and were visited by Superintendent Dr. Jymil Thompson (there he is, in the back), who, as a former teacher and principal, knows how crucial their roles are to the smooth running of a school. Thanks for all you do for our schools, families, and kiddos! #DCPS23NoMore #DCPSTeam15

Welcome to the 2024-2025 school year! Dorchester County Public Schools will hold Open Houses for students and their families on Thursday, August 29. Middle and high schools will be open from 2:00 to 4:00, with elementary schools open from 3:00 to 5:00. This is a chance to meet your child’s teacher(s) and school administrative team, see classrooms, find out their new bus schedule, and more. School teams look forward to saying hello! #DCPS23NoMore #DCPSTeam15

It's not just our new teachers who are busy learning new things! Principals, Assistant Principals, experienced teachers, instructional coaches, and even the Superintendent have taken part in professional development sessions this past week. Here is one, learning about math – not how to do it, but how to improve instruction. The goal, always: the very best instruction for our kiddos! #DCPS23NoMore #DCPSTeam15

Thank you, Dorchester County business community, for ensuring our new teachers feel the love! The Dorchester Chamber of Commerce has, for several years, coordinated contributions to goodie bags for each new teacher to introduce newcomers to the County and thank all of them for their commitment to our students. We are grateful to the Chamber of Commerce members along with Bill Christopher, Robin Burton, and Thornette Lee for their huge effort with this. Mowbray’s Garden Center added to the fun with some gorgeous plants, used to decorate the venue before being adopted to good homes with our new staff. Dorchester County, this is what community looks like! <3 #DCPS23NoMore #DCPSTeam15

Our new DCPS teachers have turned students for this week, as they meet with content supervisors for training on curriculum and other helpful information related to their life in a DCPS classroom. We’re so glad you’re here! #DCPS23NoMore #DCPSTeam15

Introducing the 2024 cohort of new Dorchester County Public Schools teachers! Today was our Day One celebration when we officially welcomed teachers joining us for the new school year! Some are new to the profession, some are experienced but new to DCPS, some are DCPS veterans in a different capacity, but all are committed to doing their best for our Dorchester County kiddos. We are super excited they chose to teach with us! What familiar faces do you see? #DCPS23NoMore #DCPSTeam15

The regular monthly meeting of the Board of Education will be held on Thursday, August 15, 2024, at Dorchester Career and Technology Center, 2465 Cambridge Bypass in Cambridge, with the open session beginning at 6:00 pm, following the conclusion of the closed session. The agenda and related documents will be found online via Board Docs on the Dorchester County Public Schools website at www.dcps.k12.md.us. The public is welcome to attend the open session. If you are unable to attend but would like to submit comments electronically to be included in the minutes, email them to comments@dcpsmd.org by 2:00 pm on August 14. The meeting will be livestreamed at https://townhallstreams.com/towns/dorchesterboe.

How about those yummy, frosted muffins being held by DCPS Food Service staff Krista Wiles, dropped off as a ‘thank you’ from a thoughtful Mom for the Summer Meal bags she has been picking up for her kiddos each week! And this past week’s bags included fresh, juicy peaches for which we say a big ‘thank you’ to Heritage Orchard in Preston for their generosity! Friends, this is what community looks like! Bags containing five breakfasts and five lunches plus a half gallon of fresh, cold milk will be available for youngsters aged 18 and under for two more weeks: Thursday, August 15 and Thursday, August 22, from 10 to 11 am in the parking lot of C-SD - use the entrance off Maple Dam Road. Ms. Lisa and Ms. Arlene will be waiting for you! #DCPS23NoMore

Representatives of our AVID team were off in Baltimore this week, learning more strategies to help ensure students are College and Career Ready! AVID means Advancement Via Individual Determination and is an elective in our secondary schools aimed at polishing the scholastic skills of students who have the desire and willingness to work for academic success. The AVID Summer Institute completers include Denise Aldridge, Crystal Carpenter, Heidi Cohoon, Shay Lewis-Sisco, Leonard Mueller, John Prekrel, Joyce Reisch, Audrey Roberts, Sandy Shaw, Sydney Steeves, Pam Thomas, Jeff Thompson, and Stephen Williams. #DCPS23NoMore

Here's a first glimpse of some of Cambridge-South Dorchester High School’s Class of 2025 as seniors – it’s Senior Picture Day at C-SD! The Class of ’25 has come a long way but are on the home stretch now: it’s been 12 years since that first day of kindergarten, and now just 169 school days until graduation! #DCPS23NoMore

Summertime, and the living is easy, unless you’re a custodian with Dorchester County Public Schools! Our school custodial teams are working under a deadline to do the big jobs involved with a deep clean to ensure our schools are in their best shape for the return of staff and students. Here are just a few of them doing their thing! Thank you to all our custodians! #DCPS23NoMore

Say hello to both new faces and familiar faces now in new places! During this summer, DCPS has welcomed new administrators and supervisors through promotions and new hires as well as movement between schools. Mace’s Lane Middle School: Mr. Charles Treft has joined the school as Principal and Ms. Tana Ellis is the new Assistant Principal. Sandy Hill Elementary School: Dr. Amie Macbeth has joined the school as Assistant Principal. Choptank Elementary School: Mr. Brian Morley, formerly a teacher at Maple Elementary School, is now Assistant Principal with the Hummingbirds. Maple Elementary School: Ms. Kesha Cook, previously Assistant Principal at Choptank Elementary, has moved to the role of Assistant Principal at Maple Elementary. South Dorchester School: The school’s new principal is Ms. Patricia Prosser, most recently principal at Mace’s Lane Middle School. Central Office: Dr. Donald Boyd, formerly Supervisor of Strategic Initiatives (Blueprint) is now Director of Teaching and Learning. The new Supervisor of Finance is Ms. Tykeia Palmore, formerly Grants Administrator. Ms. Laurie Dale has been promoted to Chief Financial Officer. Ms. Kelsey Riordan has joined DCPS as Elementary Special Education Coordinator. Ms. Regenna Jalon (not pictured), formerly Supervisor of Student Services has been appointed Interim Director of Student Services. #DCPS23NoMore

Congratulations to Mr. Vaughn Evans for being named Best School Administrator in Dorchester/Talbot County by readers of Coastal Style magazine! Mr. Evans is currently principal of North Dorchester Middle School, but in his almost quarter century as an educator in Dorchester County he has been principal of Mace’s Lane Middle School (twice), New Directions Learning Academy, North Dorchester High School, Sandy Hill Elementary School, and Warwick Elementary School (twice). A graduate of North Dorchester High School, Mr. Evans earned B.S. and M.S. degrees from Bowie State University and has remained a loyal Bulldog as a Past President and Life Member of BSU National Alumni Association, as well as lending his leadership skills to various community organizations. Join us in three cheers for Mr. Evans! #DCPS23NoMore

Announcing the new opening and closing times for the 2024-25 school year! Please pay close attention as there are changes in most schools’ timings as we work towards consistency and equitable instruction time for all our students in all our schools. C-SDHS earliest drop-off 7:30, school begins 7:45, school ends 2:45, ½ day dismissal 11:45. DCTC earliest drop-off 7:30, school begins 7:45, school ends 2:35, ½ day dismissal 11:35. Mace’s Lane Middle School earliest drop-off 7:20, school begins 7:35, school ends 2:35, ½ day early dismissal 11:35. Maple Elementary School earliest drop-off 8:30, school begins 8:45, school ends 3:45, ½ day early dismissal 12:45. Sandy Hill Elementary School earliest drop-off 8:30, school begins 8:45, school ends 3:45, ½ day early dismissal 12:45. Choptank Elementary School earliest drop-off 8:30, school begins 8:45, school ends 3:45, ½ day early dismissal 12:45. South Dorchester School earliest drop-off 8:30, school begins 8:45, school ends 3:45, ½ day early dismissal 12:45. North Dorchester High School earliest drop-off 7:30, school begins 7:45, school ends 2:45, ½ day dismissal 11:45. North Dorchester Middle School earliest drop-off 7:25, school begins 7:40, school ends 2:40, ½ day dismissal 11:40. Hurlock Elementary School earliest drop-off 8:30, school begins 8:45, school ends 3:45, ½ day dismissal 12:45. Vienna Elementary School earliest drop-off 8:30, school begins 8:45, school ends 3:45, ½ day dismissal 12:45. Warwick Elementary School earliest drop-off 8:30, school begins 8:45, school ends 3:45, ½ day dismissal 12:45. #DCPS23NoMore

Twenty high school students from C-SD and North Dorchester had the fantastic opportunity this week to take part in a Shock Trauma field trip to the University of Maryland Medical Center in Baltimore, thanks to the support of the Eastern Shore Area Health Education Center (ESAHEC). The students, who all have an interest in a healthcare career, spent time in the Anatomy Lab, had a tour of the Shock Trauma unit at work, visited the Dr. Samuel D. Harris National Museum of Dentistry, and each gained a certificate by completing a Stop the Bleed training. But equally important were their opportunities to ask questions and have informal chats with Shock Trauma clinicians about their work and University of Maryland medical students about their courses and ambitions, all of whom were generous with their time. Accompanying the group were C-SD Career Coach Sandy Shaw, C-SD Community Liaison Tina Morris, and Caitlin Donahue-Vega and Damaris Bourland of the Eastern Shore Area Health Education Center. Thank you to ESAHEC Executive Director Lisa Widmaier and all involved in this wonderful hands-on opportunity! #DCPS23NoMore

Attention dual enrollment students! If you’re one of the 115 Dorchester County Public Schools 11th and 12th graders getting a head start on earning college credits at Chesapeake College for no charge (yay!), be sure to sign up for a New Student Orientation session! Sessions will be held: Wednesday, August 7, 6 pm, at Wye Mills Thursday, August 8, 6 pm, at the Cambridge Center Monday, August 12, 6 pm, via Zoom RSVP to save your place (or to get your Zoom link) at www.chesapeake.edu/de-nso. #DCPS23NoMore