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