Over the summer, MCPS welcomed a fresh face in leadership: Superintendent Thomas Taylor, who replaced Monifa McKnight. With a vision to elevate our educational environment, he has outlined goals that aim to foster student achievement and community engagement. However, it is imperative that Taylor prioritizes critical issues that threaten a successful and supportive learning environment: school safety, maintenance of school buildings, and county-wide access to mental health support services. A safe, well maintained school is as essential to learning as it is creating a healthier, more secure atmosphere for everyone.

Threatening behavior and violence in schools has become an increasingly frequent occurrence throughout the county. This alarming rise should spark urgent discussion about the underlying causes of this violence, particularly mental health issues among students. To target the students’ safety directly, Taylor needs to push for additional funding to add more security personnel in schools. On Sherwood’s website, the staff page lists one Security Leader and three Security Assistants, which is clearly inadequate at a high school with 1,700 students in a building that often is described as a maze. MCPS also needs clearer protocol and staff training on how to deal with incidents of threats, bullying, and fights. Ideally, conflicts between students can be identified and de-escalated before they result in violence. When a fight does occur, however, it should be more clear what are the consequences for those students. When students are sharing videos of a fight in the hallways as if it is entertainment, the administration should counter with clear messaging about unacceptable behavior in a high school. MCPS also should permit schools to punish students for fighting and other threatening behaviors. As the new superintendent, Taylor should support an approach in which there should be mediation and counseling but also disciplinary consequences for actions that jeopardize students’ safety.

Students’ mental health is a persistent issue throughout the county and for years there have been initiatives and policy changes that have aimed to help provide resources for struggling students. These resources are long overdue for an update, and they need to focus on providing the student with the most support possible throughout their entire school day, rather than just providing a place for a student to ‘talk it out’. Implementing a policy that allows for a student to connect with a counselor if they are struggling and allows the student to work on a plan with their counselor alongside their teachers reduce the toll that mental health struggles have on motivation. It is crucial that a student feels completely supported by their school when struggling; otherwise, they are less likely to seek help. By prioritizing mental health initiatives, Taylor can foster a more compassionate and supportive educational atmosphere.

Building maintenance is another serious issue that has impacted schools across the county. Dysfunctional bathrooms, dirty classrooms, and lack of temperature control are just some of the issues commonplace at Sherwood. Creating a policy that would ensure frequent check-ins on building maintenance in every school in the county is the most important step in ensuring safe, clean, and functioning buildings. Hiring more janitorial staff is also necessary in order to maintain an inviting and pleasant school environment every single day. Without a maintained building, the atmosphere of a school is not going to be supportive to students and staff.

As Taylor settles into the pivotal role of superintendent, it is necessary that he prioritizes addressing the intertwined issues of student safety, mental health, and building maintenance within our schools. Efforts in these areas are essential to an approach to education that prioritizes the well-being of every student, building a foundation that fosters both safety and learning, ensuring that all MCPS schools become spaces where all students can thrive.