The recently proposed Crown Boundary Study options have caused significant concerns within our Bells Mill Elementary School community. The four new options presented divide our community into sections, where some Bells Mill students would attend Herbert Hoover Middle School, while others would attend Cabin John Middle School, before meeting back at Churchill High School. This division not only disrupts the community spirit we’ve built, but also raises practical and safety concerns that cannot be ignored.
UPDATE: On October 30, the MCPS Board of Education approved two new resolutions. These resolutions separate the boundary studies for Woodward and Crown. The new scope for Crown allows MCPS to revise and propose new maps for Crown, including scenarios as a holding facility, sharing these maps with the community, etc. Please read the resolution, which contains a lot of IF, THEN statements. Contrary to some views expressed yesterday in public testimony, this resolution DOES NOT DESIGNATE CROWN as a holding facility, it simply authorizes MCPS to explore it as an option, if approved by the state. The next BOE CIP (Capital Improvements Program) work sessions are scheduled for November 4 and 11 at 10am. The next opportunity for Public testimony is the Board Business Meeting on November 20, when they are slated to vote on the CIP. Please click here for slides from the October 30 BOE meeting.
What you can do:
Attend the Churchill Cluster community town hall with Board of Education Representative Julie Yang and Superintendent Dr. Thomas Taylor.
- Date: Tuesday, November 4, 2025
- Time: 6:30pm-8:30pm
- Location: Winston Churchill High School cafeteria (11300 Gainsborough Road, Potomac MD)
Join our WhatsApp group: https://chat.whatsapp.com/DcXgElhymsqBnG3YWsWjCT?mode=wwt
Fill out the MCPS Community Survey choosing Options C and D which keep all Bells Mill students at Cabin John. Furthermore, we encourage you to write in the notes/comments field to simply not split the Bells Mill community at all and to consider using Crown High School as a holding school for Damascus, Magruder, and Wootton High Schools during their necessary renovations. Sample language can be found here.
Spread the word around the community and share the survey link with others.
Attend Upcoming Boundary & Secondary Programs Analysis Engagement Sessions:
- Oct. 30, John F. Kennedy High School, 1901 Randolph Road, Silver Spring
- Nov. 6, Watkins Mill High School, 10301 Apple Ridge Road, Gaithersburg
- Nov. 10, Montgomery Blair High School, 51 University Blvd. East, Silver Spring
- Nov. 12, Rockville High School, 2100 Baltimore Road, Rockville
- Nov. 13, Winston Churchill High School, 11300 Gainsborough Road, Potomac
- Nov. 17, Paint Branch High School, 14121 Old Columbia Pike, Burtonsville
The sessions will have Spanish interpretation, as well as American Sign Language (ASL) support. They will also be recorded and posted online.
If you would like to email the Board of Education, please only email boe@mcpsmd.org and use the sample language found here.
PTA Boundary Study Information Session – view slides here from our meeting on Tuesday, October 21 at 6:30pm
Sign the petition for community awareness: https://tinyurl.com/BMESpetition
Questions? Email us at StopTheSplitBMES@gmail.com
