By Evelyn San Miguel ‘26

I’ve spent a lot of time finding out about the behind-the-scenes of this county. Before I ever began writing for The Warrior my sophomore year, I’d already heard about and witnessed a lot of it. From shoddy buildings to nightmare administrators, I noticed a disturbing trend within MCPS that I owed my education to. My first article was no walk-in-the-park. Covering Farquhar’s sexual harassment scandal of monumental proportions — one that illuminated MCPS’ long history of systematic failures that protected its central office and let students and teachers drown beneath the weight — I would come to realize that one could not trust the school system to hold itself accountable. 

From then on, I dedicated myself to investigating and reporting on MCPS and Sherwood, and the stories and human beings that lay dormant beneath a stifling system. I would cross paths with incredible people, people who’ve dedicated their lives to the difficult task of being a public school teacher. They will forever be some of the best people I’ve ever met, and I owe everything I’ve learned to each of them. I heard the stories of unfairness, injustice, incompetence that was pervasive throughout the county, and The Warrior finally gave me something to do about it. I knew as soon as I wrote my first piece, that this is what I would be dedicating my career to: exposing our flaws, so that we may strive toward progress. 

Our teachers are bearing a burden heavier than the world, balancing a student body that is increasingly encumbered by sociopolitical pressures and the learning loss of the pandemic alongside a county that hardly pretends to listen to them. Over the years, support from the county for educators has rotted beyond recognition, and inconsistent policies have brought this once dignified county to disrepair. 

Across my education I’ve noticed a devastating trend: that our leaders in the ivory tower are scared. Too scared to make policy where it matters, too scared to have hard conversations about what’s important — whether it’s a solidified policy on AI or protecting sexual abusers over their own staff — leaving our teachers and students flailing to define what their classrooms should look like in this modern age. I can’t count the amount of times over my twelve years here that I heard my teachers discussing the lack of support they felt from our county. The success of our staff reflects the success of our students. What the county fails to realize is that their precious test scores and statistics will never truly improve if our teachers are suffocating under a system that fails to stand by them. 

Coming out of each tragedy, each failure, each stumble, MCPS must recognize that communication is key. More often than not, central office continuously demonstrated inconsistency in communication, offering placating measures and gestures that sometimes ended up hurting or burdening others in the process, acting as a bandaid over a bullet wound. While the sentiment is correct in its intention, the county chose instead to move forward with policies that prioritized censorship and bulldozing staff instead of promoting effective communication. No matter the intent behind it, the most recent demand by central office that a school-level administrator must review the newspaper prior to print is egregious and equates to censorship. Enacted by our Chief of Schools, the policy not only deliberately stifles student voices but is a poorly disguised strong-armed attempt to placate without truly amending. If the county would like to claim they want to support the community, make amends for past mistakes, and failed apologies, they should be making legitimate steps to do so that go beyond the PR move to cover their backs from parents and the press.

I would like to make it abundantly clear that I am forever grateful for the education I have received here in MCPS. I do appreciate the efforts made in pursuit of positive change, but as is often the case, I’ve found myself longing for much more. As a student, I should have always been the priority of this county, but consistently it did not feel that way. Above all, I deeply care for the students and staff that have built a legacy of excellence and passion for education that I got to witness every day here at Sherwood, despite the obstacles they faced along the way. I’ve interviewed dozens of teachers and staff as a writer at The Warrior, and I can’t express enough gratitude for the precious conversations that shaped my worldview. I’ve not only become a better writer, but more importantly a better listener. As I prepare to forge a path beyond Sherwood, I hope MCPS keeps progressing — and strives for something better than this.