Politicks Me Off: Longest Government Shutdown Unnecessary, Spurred by Conservative Commentators
Esther Frances, Print Copy Editor
February 14, 2019
Over 800,000 federal employers spent 35 days either without work or working without pay as the longest government shutdown came to a temporary close Jan. 25. Even after agreeing to a short-term spending measure Dec. 18, President Trump decided to reverse this position and shut down the government Dec....
Forcing Students to Take Four Years of Math Doesn’t Add Up
Ben Kushner, Opinion Writer
February 13, 2019
Slowly pushing through a packed hallway, a sophomore lethargically walks to math class. After working hard in middle school, he is now in pre-calculus. Whether he is interested in the subject or not doesn’t really matter; he is still legally required to make this walk for two and a half more years. ...
MCPS Needs to Extend Recently Implemented Hazing Precautions
Editorial Board
December 21, 2018
In light of an incident at Damascus High School (HS) where members of the JV football team were allegedly sodomized with a broomstick as part of a hazing ritual, MCPS has finally begun addressing hazing and its severity as there have been minimal efforts to combat hazing in the past. The recent pre...
Administration’s Unprecedented Turnover Rate Harms Policies, People
Matthew Liu, Opinion Managing Editor
December 21, 2018
The Trump administration’s turnover rate for top officials has shattered records. As of the most recent standings, it is up to nine times as high as previous administrations at similar points in their presidencies. To combat this, President Donald Trump should reduce the turnover rate in his admini...
MCPS: Prioritize Student Health with Cleaner Drinking Water
Erin Bode, News Managing Editor
December 20, 2018
Greater amounts of attention are being given to students’ health as high levels of lead continue to be discovered in the schools’ water systems, including in water fountains. This past summer, testing of water quality in several Montgomery County schools showed that certain schools have elevated le...
Counselors Present to Classes, Discuss Suicide Prevention in Step Toward Better Mental Health
Emily Nagy, Editor-in-Chief
December 19, 2018
Suicide and the tragedies that accompany poor mental health are inescapable in society. No community is immune to these adversities which have created an increased awareness and incentive to educate the public. MCPS and RHS counseling have taken a step in the right direction by promoting mental health with...
MCPS Should Use State Accountability Report Cards to Help Improve Quality of All Schools
Zoe Moser, Editor-in-Chief
December 19, 2018
The Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) distributed new statewide report cards Dec. 4, and in response, MCPS proposed a new initiative to create an Equity Accountability Report to measure school success. The Equity Accountability Report will focus on specific racial and socioeconomic groups...
Students Need to Learn More About Paying for College, Alternate Options
Jack Uhl, Staff Writer
November 28, 2018
University tuition in 2018 is at an all-time high and the amount of debt students now face once graduating college is crippling. There was a time when students managed debt from student loans because they were likely to be hired into a well-paying job in a robust job market. Times have changed. Studen...
MCPS Made Right Choice Extending Spring Break
Michael Carvajal, Staff Writer
November 28, 2018
After Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan implemented an executive order in 2016 changing the length of Montgomery County Public Schools’ (MCPS) school year, spring break was cut short for the 2018-19 school year. Late last year, the governor agreed to offer five buffer days at the end of the school year to f...
Excused Absence Policy Promotes Student Civic Engagement
Editorial Board
November 28, 2018
The Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) Board of Education (BOE) passed a resolution Sept. 11 allowing students to be excused from school for participating in “civic engagement activities.” While this is a great opportunity to encourage social and political activism in students, it also allows for...
Elenna Mach, Editor in Chief
June 12, 2019
Sensitive student information stored on TotalRegistration.net may have been exposed due to a misconfiguration on the site’s Amazon S3 file storage device, which Total Registration...
MCPS Graduation Rate Drops for the Third Year in a Row
June 12, 2019
Its Academic Earns 3rd in D.C. Metro Finals
June 12, 2019