Related Entries: ABA, ABC, ABC-RA, ACA, ACD, ACG, ACG-RA, ACG-1
RB, DNA, ECM, ECM-RA, FAA-RA, FKB, JEE, JEE-2
RA 3
4
Responsible Office: Chief Operating Officer 5
Department of Facilities Management 6
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8
Long-range Educational Facilities Planning 9
10
11
A. PURPOSE 12
13
To affirm the Montgomery County Board of Education’s 14
commitment to continuing to provide high-quality facilities 15
that support the educational programming needed to 16
ensure that every Montgomery County Public Schools 17
(MCPS) student is well-prepared for success 18
19
To establish an educational facilities planning process that 20
effectively anticipates MCPS educational facility needs and 21
establishes a framework for making equitable and fiscally 22
responsible facility decisions in an uncertain 23
future, while considering instructional program 24
priorities and the impact of under- or overutilized 25
facilities on the educational program 26
27
To promote public understanding of MCPS educational 28
From Policy FKB
From MGT report
Attachment C
facilities planning processes and provide opportunities for 29
stakeholders to engage in, inform, and respond to those 30
processes 31
32
To coordinate MCPS facilities planning processes 33
with those of other units of local governments and 34
municipalities in Montgomery County 35
36
B. BACKGROUND 37
38
Long-range eEducational facilities planning is essential to 39
identify the infrastructure needed to ensure success for 40
every student. The Montgomery County Board of Education 41
(Board) has a primary responsibility to plan for school 42
educational facilities that address changing enrollment 43
patterns and sustain high-quality MCPS educational programs 44
while effectively responding to changes in student 45
enrollment, educational programming, and physical plant 46
infrastructure. in accordance with the policies of the Board. 47
The Board fulfills this responsibility through the facilities 48
planning process. 49
50
BC. ISSUE 51
52
1. MCPS is among the largest school systems in the country 53
in terms of enrollment. MCPS and serves a county that 54
encompasses of approximately 500 square miles, and is 55
made up of communities of varying . The full range of 56
From MGT report
Attachment C
population density, ranging from rural to urban. , is 57
present in the county. Montgomery County has 58
experienced continuing development of 59
commercial and residential centers, as well as 60
significant changes in its transportation infrastructure 61
over the past few decades – all of which impact student 62
enrollment. Since 1984, enrollment has increased where 63
new communities have formed, as well as in established 64
areas of the county where turnover of houses has 65
occurred. 66
67
1.2. The ability of Sschool facilities to meet the needs of 68
educational programming also changes over time. 69
The Board is continuously challenged to provide 70
appropriate spaces for educational programming 71
and services and to maintain safe, secure, and healthy 72
learning and working environments for students and 73
staff, while responding to aging structures and building 74
systems at a reasonable cost. 75
76
MCPS maintains all school facilities at consistently 77
high operational levels to maximize the life-78
span of existing physical plant assets through 79
the coordinated scheduling of building system 80
maintenance, repairs, and replacements. While building 81
codes and advances in construction technology have 82
vastly increased the expected life span of structures 83
and building systems built or installed over time, the 84
From MGT
report
From
Policy
FKB
From
Policy
FKB
Attachment C
Board requires an educational facilities planning 85
process to determine when maintenance is no longer 86
viable for an educational facility or its component 87
building systems, and systemic replacement or a major 88
capital project is required Aging of the physical plant 89
requires a program of maintenance, renovation, and 90
revitalization/expansion, in accordance with Board 91
Policy FKB, Sustaining and Modernizing Montgomery County 92
Public Schools (MCPS) Facilities. Acquiring new sites, 93
designing new facilities, and modifying existing 94
facilities to keep current with educational programming 95
needs. is essential. This policy provides the framework 96
to coordinate planning for capital improvements. 97
98
3. Enrollment in MCPS is constantly changing. The 99
fundamental goal of educational facilities planning is 100
to provide a sound educational environment for amid 101
changing student enrollment, variations in . The number 102
of students, their geographic distribution of students 103
across schools, and the effects of racial, ethnic, and 104
other socioeconomic and demographic diversity on 105
educational programming. characteristics of this 106
population all impact facilities planning. Enrollment 107
changes are driven by a wide variety of factors including 108
the strength of the economy and employment rates; 109
policies set by federal, state, and local governments; 110
fluctuations in the housing market driven by residential 111
development and other changes in land use patterns; 112
Attachment C
shifting trends in household composition; fluctuating 113
birth rates; and movement within the school system and 114
into the school system from other parts of the United 115
States and the world. 116
The LREFP policy describes how the school system 117
responds to educational and enrollment change; the rate 118
of change; its geographic distribution; and the racial, 119
ethnic, and socioeconomic diversification of enrollment. 120
121
CD. POSITION 122
123
The Board requires an educational facilities planning process 124
that includes the following elements: ongoing analyses of 125
student enrollment projections, educational facilities and 126
building systems; stakeholder engagement and input into 127
facility decision-making; and a decision-making framework 128
that generates responsive options and leads to equitable and 129
fiscally responsible and educationally sound decisions, in 130
compliance with all local, state, and federal requirements. 131
LREFP will be in accordance with all federal, state, and local 132
laws and regulations. 133
134
The Long-range Educational Facilities Planning (LREFP) This 135
policy guides the educational facilities planning process. 136
MCPS is challenged continually to anticipate and plan for 137
facilities in an efficient and fiscally responsible way to 138
meet the varied educational needs of MCPS students with 139
consideration of environmental sustainability. The process 140
Attachment C
is designed to promote public understanding of MCPS 141
educational facilities planning processes for Montgomery 142
County Public Schools (MCPS) and to ensure that there are 143
sufficient opportunities for input from parents/guardians, 144
students, staff, community members and organizations, local 145
government agencies, and municipalities. to identify and 146
communicate their priorities and concerns to the 147
superintendent of schools and the Board. 148
149
1. Facility planning starts with an analysis of student 150
enrollment projections; educational program 151
requirements; facility utilization rates; school site 152
size; capacity calculations; the impact of county 153
planning as well as trends in development, land use, 154
transportation, and housing patterns; and Key Facilities 155
Indicators as described in section D.1.c below. 156
157
a) Student enrollment projections take into 158
consideration shifting demographics, while 159
projected educational program requirements take 160
into consideration existing and new program 161
offerings. 162
163
b) School site size and capacity calculations comply 164
with established guidelines adopted as 165
part of the Board review of the 166
superintendent of schools’ recommended 167
Capital Improvements Program. 168
From Policy FKB
Attachment C
169
c) Key Facilities Indicators are facility 170
characteristics that influence the 171
learning and working experience, such as 172
safety, security, and accessibility requirements; 173
indoor environment conditions; program 174
and space relationships; building 175
quality; as well as infrastructure and 176
asset data, and other relevant 177
characteristics. 178
179
d) The Key Facilities Indicators approach is used to 180
identify and provide a basis for prioritizing 181
options responsive to changing facility 182
needs. A schedule of county-wide 183
systemic replacement projects and major 184
capital projects at specific schools shall be 185
adopted and revised as appropriate as part of the 186
Board review of the superintendent of schools’ 187
recommended Capital Improvements Program based on 188
the analysis described above. These options may 189
include – 190
191
(1) county-wide systemic replacement 192
projects required to sustain schools 193
in good condition and extend their 194
useful life, such as replacement of heating, 195
ventilation, air conditioning, and mechanical 196
From Policy FKB
From Policy FKB
From Policy FKB
From Policy FKB
Attachment C
systems, roofs, and numerous other building 197
and infrastructure projects; and 198
199
(2) major capital projects which 200
include facility-specific projects 201
to add capacity; renovate, adapt, 202
repurpose, or replace existing facilities; or 203
reuse or upgrade existing space in other 204
facilities as appropriate. 205
206
e) Facility planning also includes analyses of non-207
capital strategies to address capacity requirements 208
and facility needs, which may include, as 209
appropriate – 210
211
(1) adjustments of capacity through non-capital 212
strategies to increase enrollment at under-213
capacity schools and/or incentivize transfers 214
from over-capacity schools, which may include, 215
but are not limited to – 216
217
(a) boundary changes, or 218
219
(b) geographic student choice assignment 220
plans (such as consortia); and/or 221
222
(2) school closures and/or consolidations in the 223
event of declining enrollment levels. 224
From Policy FKB
Attachment C
225
2. Such analyses inform the Capital Improvements Program, 226
which is the mechanism through which the Board requests 227
funding from the Montgomery County Council and the state 228
of Maryland for county-wide systemic replacement 229
projects and major capital projects. 230
231
a) The six-year Capital Improvement Programs includes 232
the following elements: 233
234
(1) Data on enrollment projections, educational 235
programming, available school capacity 236
county-wide, and facility utilization levels 237
238
(2) Proposed county-wide systemic replacement 239
projects as set forth in section D.1.e)(1) 240
241
(3) Proposed new facilities and major capital 242
projects as set forth in section D.1.e)(2) 243
244
b) The Educational Facilities Master Plan is prepared 245
by the superintendent of schools each June and 246
summarizes all decisions by the Montgomery County 247
Council on requests submitted in the Capital 248
Improvements Program. 249
250
3. Longer-term planning: The Board utilizes a longer-term 251
(i.e., beyond the six-year Capital Improvements Program 252
Attachment C
interval) scenario planning framework to inform the 253
development of the Capital Improvements Program and 254
identify facility options that allow MCPS to innovate 255
and align with advances in pedagogy and educational 256
programming; and are responsive to enrollment 257
projections, facility utilization rates, and analyses of 258
available school capacity and nontraditional sites. 259
260
4. As permitted by overall district facility and capacity 261
requirements, holding facilities may be 262
designated for the purpose of temporarily 263
relocating student populations to facilitate 264
major capital projects. 265
266
E. STAKEHOLDER INPUT 267
268
The long-range facilities planning process will continue to: 269
1. Plan for utilization of schools in ways that 270
are consistent with sound educational 271
practice and consider the impact of facility 272
changes on educational program and related 273
operating budget requirements and on the community. 274
275
1. The superintendent of schools shall direct staff to 276
develop options for selecting sites for new schools, 277
changing school boundaries, establishing geographic 278
student choice assignment plans, closing or 279
consolidating schools, and such other facility-related 280
Addressed in sections D,
D.1, D.2, and D.3,
From Policy FKB
Attachment C
issues as identified by the superintendent of schools. 281
282
2. Staff-developed options put forward for community input 283
will reflect a range of approaches to advance the 284
factors set forth in section G below and provide a 285
rationale that demonstrates the extent to which any 286
recommendation advances those factors. 287
288
23. Establish processes designed to obtain input by engaging 289
in a discussion among a broad variety of stakeholders 290
and utilizing opportunities for input from the public 291
and relevant staff members, iIn accordance with Board 292
Policy ABA, Community Involvement: , for the capital 293
improvements program and the facilities planning 294
activities listed below: 295
296
a) The superintendent of schools shall gather input 297
from multiple stakeholders representing a broad 298
variety of perspectives for the purpose of advising 299
the superintendent of schools regarding the impact 300
on the community of staff-developed options 301
described above. 302
303
b) The superintendent of schools will direct staff to 304
conduct broad outreach using multiple strategies 305
for obtaining community input which may include, 306
but are not limited to, systemwide committees, 307
focus groups, task forces, work groups, roundtable 308
Attachment C
discussion groups, surveys, technologically-309
facilitated communications, and/or other planning 310
sessions, such as charrettes that are designed for 311
collaboration among all interested or impacted 312
parties and provides information and feedback to 313
staff. 314
315
4. After gathering feedback through the 316
stakeholder process, the superintendent 317
of schools develops recommendations to 318
be presented to the Board along with a summary of 319
stakeholder input. Recommendations of the 320
superintendent of schools are made available to the 321
public, affected school communities, and other 322
stakeholders as appropriate. 323
324
a) Selection of school sites 325
c) Boundary changes 326
d) Geographic student choice assignment plans (such as 327
consortia) 328
f) School closures and consolidations 329
b) Facility design 330
e) General enrollment, demographic, and facility 331
related issues that are explored through roundtables and 332
other community input processes. 333
334
3. Provide a six-year capital improvements 335
program and educational facilities master 336
Addressed in section
D.2
Adapted from
Regulation FAA-RA
Attachment C
plan which include enrollment projections, educational 337
program needs, and available school capacity countywide, 338
and identify— 339
a) when new schools and additions will be needed to 340
keep facilities current with enrollment levels and 341
educational program needs; 342
b) funds for systemic maintenance and replacement 343
projects to sustain schools in good condition and 344
extend their useful life; 345
c) a schedule to revitalize/expand older 346
school buildings in order to continue 347
their use on a cost-effective basis, and 348
to keep facilities current with educational program 349
needs; 350
d) when school closures and consolidations are 351
appropriate due to declining enrollment levels; and 352
e) facility utilization levels, capacity 353
calculations, school enrollment size guidelines, 354
and school site size (adopted as part of the Board 355
review of the superintendent of schools’ 356
recommended CIP). 357
358
F. Board of Education deliberations and public hearings 359
360
4.1. recognizes that Based on further analysis of the factors 361
considered through the stakeholder input process, the 362
Board may, by majority vote, identify one or more 363
alternatives to the superintendent of schools’ 364
Addressed in section
D.1.e
Attachment C
recommendations. Alternatives put forward by the Board 365
will advance one or more of the factors set forth in 366
section G below. Staff will develop options consistent 367
with the alternatives identified. for school 368
boundaries or geographic student choice assignment plans 369
for review; 370
371
2.d) allows time for tThe Board will allow time to hold public 372
hearings and solicit written testimony on the 373
recommendations of the superintendent of schools and 374
Board identified alternatives for site selection, school 375
boundaries, or geographic student choice assignment 376
plans, or school closings or consolidations.; and 377
378
3.e) recognizes that tThe Board has the discretion to adopt 379
minor modifications to the superintendent of schools’ 380
recommendation or Board-identified alternatives if, by 381
a majority vote, the Board has determined that such 382
action will not have a significant impact on an option 383
for site selection, school boundaries, or geographic 384
student choice assignment plans, or school closings or 385
consolidations that has received public review. 386
387
G. Factors to be considered 388
389
1. When developing recommendations for the Board, the 390
superintendent of schools will provide a rationale for 391
each recommendation that demonstrates the extent to 392
Attachment C
which any recommendation advances the factors below. 393
While each of the factors will be considered, it may not 394
be feasible to reconcile each and every recommendation 395
with each and every factor. 396
397
8. Provide for articulation in school assignments by: 398
399
a) Traditional Student Assignments 400
401
Structure high schools for Grades 9-12 and, where 402
possible, creating straight articulation for 403
clusters composed of one high school, and a 404
sufficient number of elementary and middle schools, 405
each of which sends its students, including special 406
education and ESOL students, to the next higher 407
level school in that cluster. 408
409
b) Student Choice Assignment Plans 410
411
In cases where students participate in 412
a student choice assignment plan (e.g., 413
consortium) to identify the school they wish to 414
attend, articulation patterns may vary from the 415
straight articulation pattern that is desired in 416
traditional student assignment. 417
418
2. Factors to be considered in selecting sites for new 419
schools, changing school boundaries, or establishing 420
Elements of these sections
are addressed in section G.2.b) – d)
below
Attachment C
geographic student choice assignment plans 421
422
6. Provide a process for changing school boundaries and 423
establishing geographic student choice assignment plans 424
that— 425
a) solicits input at the outset of the process 426
consistent with Board Policy ABA, Community 427
Involvement; 428
b) considers four main factors in development of 429
school boundaries, student choice assignment plans, 430
and ways to address other facility issues 431
including— 432
a) dDemographic characteristics of student 433
population, 434
435
Analyses of options take into account the impact of 436
various options on the overall populations of 437
affected schools. Options should 438
strive to promote the creation of a 439
diverse student body in each of the 440
affected schools. Demographic data 441
showing the impact of various options 442
include the following: racial/ethnic composition 443
of the student population, the socioeconomic 444
composition of the student population, the level of 445
English language learners, and other reliable 446
demographic indicators and participation in 447
specific educational programs. 448
Adapted from
Regulation
FAA-RA
Attachment C
449
2b) gGeographyic proximity of communities to schools, 450
451
In accordance with MCPS’ emphasis on community 452
involvement in schools, options should, unless 453
otherwise required, take into account 454
the geographic proximity of communities 455
to schools, as well as articulation, 456
traffic, and transportation patterns 457
and topography. In addition, options should 458
consider, at a minimum, not only schools within a 459
high school cluster but also other adjacent 460
schools. 461
462
3c) sStability of school assignments over time, 463
464
Options should result in stable assignments for as 465
long a period as possible. Student reassignments 466
should consider recent boundary or 467
geographic student choice assignment 468
plan changes, and/or school closings and 469
consolidations that may have affected 470
the same students. 471
472
4d) fFacility utilization; 473
474
School boundary and geographic student choice 475
assignment plans should result in facility 476
Adapted from
Regulation
FAA-RA
Adapted from
Regulation
FAA-RA
Attachment C
utilizations in the 80 percent to 100 477
percent efficient range over the long 478
term, whenever possible. Shared use of 479
a facility by more than one cluster may 480
be the most feasible facility plan in some cases, 481
taking into consideration the impact of the 482
resulting articulation pattern on the community. 483
Plans should be fiscally responsible to minimize 484
capital and operating costs whenever feasible. 485
486
4. Site selection 487
488
In addition to the foregoing factors, when 489
evaluating potential new school sites, 490
including nontraditional sites, and those 491
acquired through dedication or purchase and 492
placed in the Boards inventory, the following factors 493
should be considered: the geographic location relative 494
to existing and future student populations and existing 495
schools; size in acreage; topography and other 496
environmental characteristics; availability of 497
utilities; physical condition; availability and timing 498
to acquire, and cost to acquire, if private property. 499
500
4. Provide for the Board to hold public hearings and solicit 501
written testimony on the recommendations of the 502
superintendent of schools. 503
504
Adapted from
Regulation
FAA-RA
Adapted from
Regulation
FAA-RA
Attachment C
5. Facility design 505
506
Provide a process for Educational facility designs shall 507
consider community input and that— 508
a) ensures provide for a safe and secure environment,; 509
d) demonstrates in alignment with principles of 510
environmental stewardship,; and 511
b) is consistent with current educational program 512
needs as well as; 513
c) includes community input; 514
e) anticipateds future program needs. 515
516
76. Provide a The process for closing and consolidating 517
schools that shall meets the requirements of COMAR 518
(Chapter 13A)Maryland law and the provisions of this 519
policy. 520
521
9H. Provide forThe Board may approve a different and/or condensed 522
process and time schedule, developed by the superintendent of 523
schools and in accordance with applicable state or county 524
requirements, for making recommendations to the Board 525
regarding the capital improvements program and the facility 526
planning activities listed above, including but not limited 527
to selecting sites for new schools, changing school 528
boundaries, and establishing geographic student choice 529
assignment plans, and closing or consolidating in the event 530
that the Board determines that unusual circumstances exist. 531
532
Attachment C
DI. DESIRED OUTCOMES 533
534
1. AThe educational facilities planning LREFP process that 535
will deliver high quality educational facilities to all 536
students by – 537
538
a) identifyingies the infrastructure and other 539
available options necessary to deliver high quality 540
educational facilities to all students, 541
542
b) responding to current and projected conditions, and 543
544
545
c) incorporatinges the input of parents/guardians, 546
students, as appropriate, staff, and the community 547
and, as appropriate, students 548
549
1.d) taking a balanced approach to decisions to 550
maintain, upgrade, renovate, or replace building 551
systems and facilities. 552
553
2. The Board expects all recommendations and decision 554
making regarding selecting sites for new schools, 555
changing school boundaries, establishing geographic 556
student choice assignment plans, or closing or 557
consolidating schools, to take into account the equity 558
implications of Board Policy ACA, Nondiscrimination, 559
Equity, and Cultural Proficiency. 560
Attachment C
561
23. The superintendent of schools will develop regulations 562
with student, staff, community, and parentalstakeholder 563
input to guide implementation of this policy. 564
565
EJ. REVIEW AND REPORTING 566
567
1. The annual June publication of the Educational 568
Facilities Master Plan will constitute the 569
official reporting on facility planning 570
processes and . This document will reflect all 571
facilities actions taken during the year by the Board 572
and approved by the Montgomery County Council. The 573
Master Plan will project and will include the enrollment 574
and utilization of each school, approved projects to 575
sustain MCPS educational facilities in good condition, 576
and/or schools and sites that may be involved in future 577
activities to adjust capacity through major capital 578
projects or other non-capital strategies. and identify 579
schools and sites that may be involved in future planning 580
activities. 581
582
2. This policy will be reviewed in accordance with 583
the Board policy review process. 584
585
586
Related Sources: Code of Maryland Regulations §13A.01.05.07 and 587
§13A.02.09.01-.03 588
From Policy FKB
From FKB From Policy FKB
Attachment C
589
Policy History: Adopted by Resolution No. 257-86, April 28, 1986; 590
amended by Resolution No. 271-87, May 12, 1987; amended by 591
Resolution No. 831-93, November 22, 1993; amended by Resolution 592
No. 679-95, October 10, 1995; amended by Resolution No. 581-99 593
September 14, 1999; updated office titles June 1, 2000; updated 594
November 4, 2003; amended by Resolution No. 268-05, May 23, 2005; 595
amended by Resolution 282-14, June 17, 2014; amended . 596
Attachment C