Monday, May 18, 2026

Community, staff invited to upcoming BCPS Superintendent search forums

The search for a new BCPS Superintendent to succeed Dr. Myriam Rogers (who will retire on July 1) has begun.

This week, the community and BCPS staff are invited to forums to share the priorities, leadership qualities, and characteristics they want to see in a new superintendent, as well as their thoughts, hopes, and concerns for BCPS. The Board of Education of Baltimore County and Ray and Associates LLC, the executive search firm retained by the Board, will use the information gathered to identify, recruit, and evaluate superintendent candidates.

The following superintendent search forums will be held:

Monday, May 18, at the Milford Mill Academy cafeteria, 3800 Washington Ave., Windsor Mill 21244

4:30-6 p.m.: BCPS Staff Session
6:30-8 p.m.: Public Session

Wednesday, May 20, at the Red House Run Elementary School cafeteria, 1717 Weyburn Ave., Rosedale 21237

4:30-6 p.m.: BCPS Staff Session
6:30-8 p.m.: Public Session

Thursday, May 21, at the George Washington Carver Center for Arts and Technology cafeteria, 938 York Rd., Towson 21204

4:30-6 p.m.: BCPS Staff Session
6:30-8 p.m.: Public Session

Thursday, May 21 – Virtual/Online Session

4:30-6 p.m.: BCPS Staff Session – Join the Zoom meeting. Meeting ID: 851 7100 9157
6:30-8 p.m.: Public Session – Join the Zoom meeting. Meeting ID: 893 2548 4631

Can't make it to a Superintendent Search forum? Please share your thoughts via an online survey.

Make plans to attend the 2026 BCPS Film Expo this Thursday, May 21

BCPS Film Expo

Thursday, May 21, at 7 p.m.

(The doors will open at 6:30 p.m.)

Pikesville High School, 7621 Labyrinth Rd., 21208

The annual BCPS Film Expo challenges middle and high school students to create documentary, short-form, animated, experimental, promotional, and live-action narrative films. Entries selected as finalists will be shown to the public during this free and family-friendly event. There will be photo opportunities and a display of poster finalists. The reel of all submitted GIFS will run before the main show. Following the main show, awards will be presented to the finalists, and audience members can ask questions of the student filmmakers.

Ryan Chen,

Western School of Technology

High School Winner, BCPS People's Choice Film Expo Poster Contest

Tamara Han,

Parkville Middle School

Middle School Winner, BCPS People's Choice Film Expo Poster Contest

Members of the Class of 2026 can offer parting words to BCPS and younger students

All graduating seniors are invited to share (in no more than two sentences) their favorite BCPS memories OR words of advice for younger students. Selected messages will be shared on social media and in a blog post. Please note that messages must be accompanied by photos of the students. The student should be the only person in the photo. Messages and photos can be submitted using an online form.

2026 high school graduations to begin on May 19

More than 7,000 students will graduate from BCPS this spring. All graduations will be held at Towson University’s SECU Arena, unless otherwise noted. The graduation schedule is available online.

While in-person seating will be limited, all BCPS graduations at SECU Arena can be viewed live on the BCPS-TV YouTube Live channel, on BCPS-TV (Comcast Channel 1073 and Verizon Channel 34), and on the BCPS website.

In addition, BCPS invites students, families, and staff to submit their favorite 2026 high school commencement snapshots. By submitting a photo, the sender agrees to its use by BCPS. Many of the pictures received will be shared by BCPS on its social media accounts and/or posted online in a BCPS Flickr album. To contribute a photo via email, individuals are asked to send the photo as a jpeg file (no larger than 4 MB) and email it to communications@bcps.org – including the school name.

More than 90 elementary schools compete in 22nd Annual BCPS Safe Racer Competition

Catonsville, Perry Hall, and Carroll Manor elementary schools earn top honors

For the 22nd Annual BCPS Safe Racer Competition, students from more than 90 elementary schools gathered to test the designs of cars built by Grade 3 students. The competition hosted by the BCPS Office of Science was held on May 9 at George Washington Carver Center for Arts and Technology.

Through Safe Racer, students design and build model cars to safely carry an egg. The racers compete for distance and safety. The event highlights students' creativity, collaboration, and problem-solving skills.

Congratulations to the regional top-scoring teams and overall winners:

Catonsville Elementary School – Southwest Region Top Scorer; 1st Place Overall
Perry Hall Elementary School – Northeast Region Top Scorer; 2nd Place Overall
Carroll Manor Elementary School – Central Region Top Scorer; 3rd Place Overall
Sussex Elementary School – Southeast Region Top Scorer; Honorable Mention (4th Place Overall)
Winand Elementary School – Northwest Region Top Scorer; Honorable Mention (5th Place Overall)

Community partners collaborate with Ridge Ruxton staff to host prom

A new blog post by Community School Facilitator Sherri Fisher describes how partners joined with Ridge Ruxton School to produce a highly successful prom on May 13 for students in Grades 11 and 12 and their parents/guardians. The Broadmead retirement community hosted the event and supplied boutonnieres and corsages. Loyola Blakefield and Ridge Ruxton students made decorations. Staff, residents, and community volunteers from Broadmead and staff and volunteers from Ridge Ruxton transformed the Broadmead auditorium into a carnival-themed prom venue. The Ridge Ruxton staff band, “Free and Appropriate,” performed crowd favorites. And additional assistant Stephen Hopkins took photos, which can be found in the blog post and on Flickr.

Team BCPS celebrates...

Honoring BCPS school nurses for all they do

National Nurses Week ended on May 12, and BCPS celebrated School Nurses Day on May 6. In honor of both occasions, BCPS-TV created three video profiles spotlighting the work of Team BCPS school nurses.

Gail Hall, RN

Sparrows Point Middle School and Sparrows Point High School

Telisa Daniels, RN

Elmwood Elementary School

Ashley Roper, RN

New Town Elementary School

The graduating senior profile series concludes for the Class of 2026

To honor the Class of 2026, BCPS has profiled one senior from each high school. A new profile will be highlighted on the website and social media each school day until Friday, May 22, the last day for seniors.

These profiles highlight the strengths of our seniors and their diversity. Please follow along and share your support on Facebook, Instagram, and X (formerly Twitter) as they are posted each day.

Featured this week will be:

recent honors

Carver Center earns Arts Schools Network Exemplary School Designation

The Arts Schools Network Board of Directors has named George Washington Carver Center for Arts and Technology an Exemplary School in recognition of its commitment to excellence. The five-year designation is awarded for 2026–2031.

Arts Schools Network (ASN), the nation’s largest professional membership organization of

specialized arts schools, awards Exemplary School designations to members that follow "A Guide to

Assessing Your Arts School" in strategically evaluating their school’s purpose, operations, and educational programs. The guide is a collaborative

effort by ASN and the Accrediting Commission for Community and Pre-collegiate Arts Schools.

ASN will honor Carver Center at the awards ceremony during the ASN 2026 Annual Conference, October 20–22, in San Diego, California.

Dulaney High senior Nicole Yia and Carver Center senior Khushi Patel earn National Merit scholarships

Nicole Y. Jia, a senior at Dulaney High School, and Khushi Bhavesh Patel, a senior at George Washington Carver Center for Arts and Technology, are among 2,500 distinguished high school seniors from across the nation who have earned this year’s National Merit® $2,500 Scholarship awards. Learn more in a BCPS news release.

Nicole Jia

Khushi Bhavesh Patel

Michelle Antlitz of Catonsville Elementary School named Office Professional of the Year

Michelle Antlitz, administrative secretary III at Catonsville Elementary School, was surprised on May 12 with the news that she has been named BCPS Office Professional of the Year by Education Support Professionals of Baltimore County. More photos from the award presentation can be found on Flickr.

Annual CTE Student Recognition Ceremony available for online viewing

BCPS premiered a virtual 52nd Annual Career and Technical Education (CTE) Student Recognition Ceremony on May 13. During the ceremony, 158 seniors – one student from each CTE program at each high school – were recognized as exemplary students.

Pikesville High athletic trainer Jon Glover to receive Presidential Lifesaving Award from state association

Jon Glover, an athletic trainer at Pikesville High School, will receive the Maryland Athletic Trainers Association's Presidential Lifesaving Award on June 13 for his heroic actions in response to a medical emergency last December. Glover provided life-saving emergency care to a Pikesville High student-athlete. Thanks to the heroic actions of Glover and the coaches, the student-athlete was able to return to school after their release from the hospital.

Franklin High School senior Avery Ray earns 4-year McCormick scholar-athlete scholarship

Loch Raven senior Kate Cabrera also honored with one-time scholarship

Avery Ray, Franklin High School

Kate Cabrera, Loch Raven High School

McCormick & Company, Inc., announced Avery Ray from Franklin High School as the 96th recipient of its Charles Perry McCormick Scholarship, worth $40,000 over four years.

The selection of Ray was announced on May 11 during an event at the France-Merrick Performing Arts Center in downtown Baltimore. Ray was selected as one of two statewide scholarship recipients from nearly 100 student-athletes to be honored as Unsung Heroes for their commitment to unselfish team play.

In addition, Loch Raven High School senior Kate Cabrera was among four other students recognized with one-time scholarships at this year's Unsung Heroes event. Cabrera received a $7,500 scholarship.

Stoneleigh Elementary teacher Kelli Hickey honored by Morgan State University

Kelli Hickey, a Grade 4 teacher at Stoneleigh Elementary School, was honored by Morgan State University on May 13 with its 2026 Alumni Student Impact Award. The award is given each year to an outstanding alum from Morgan's School of Education and Urban Studies.

At Stoneleigh, Hickey serves as an equity liaison, has established a Homework Club, and mentors colleagues. She gives presentations across the nation on equity, racial social justice, and growth mindset. Her research will be featured in "Issues in Teaching" this spring.

You'll want to see this!

The BCPS Elementary Choral and Recorder Festival 2026

During the 2026 BCPS Elementary Choral and Recorder Festival, the All-County Elementary Recorder ensemble was conducted by Sarah Stoop, instrumental music teacher at Woodbridge Elementary School. The All-County Elementary Chorus was conducted by Rebecca Tice, vocal music teacher at Jacksonville Elementary School, and accompanied by Stephanie Case, vocal music teacher at Fort Garrison Elementary School, and Deborah Feldman, vocal music teacher at Reisterstown Elementary School.

The latest episode of BCPS-TV's "Entertainment Blvd"

The Owings Mills High School Chorale, led by vocal music teacher Bishop Moore, performs songs of inspiration and hope.

Announcing the BCSTAT 2026 Data Contest, open to all Baltimore County High School students

Baltimore County high school students are invited to enter the BCSTAT 2026 Data Contest and use data to find solutions to issues facing Baltimore County residents. Registration forms and submissions are due by July 31.

Winning students will present their projects to department leaders, spend time with data and policy analysts, and experience day-to-day local government operations.

'Tis the season for PreKindergarten and Kindergarten registration

It is time to register children for PreKindergarten and Kindergarten ahead of the 2026-2027 school year.

Parents/guardians who wish to register their child for enrollment in a PreKindergarten 3 or PreKindergarten 4 class should contact their home school.

Kindergarten is required for all students living in Maryland. Parents/guardians should contact their neighborhood elementary school to register their child for Kindergarten.

Families may also call the Department of Early Childhood Programs at 443-809-4313 for more information.

for parents/caregivers

from BCPS Parent University

Help us eliminate bullying, intimidation, and harassment from our schools

The latest "Toni's Quick Connect" video describes how to submit bullying reports in BCPS.

Timely reporting is essential for student safety, and every student's voice plays a vital role in creating a supportive environment.

Find more information on the BCPS website.

for your viewing pleasure

"Revolution," by Chyler Sydnor, Grade 12, George Washington Carver Center for Arts and Technology. This digital painting is featured in the 2026 High School Juried Art Show on display at the Reginald F. Lewis Museum of Maryland African American History and Culture through February 28, 2027. The show includes 15 artworks by Carver Center students.

mission moment

from The Education Foundation of BCPS

Foundation supports $88,000 grant for Sollers Point Technical High School

Photos from the Anatomage website

Sollers Point Technical High School, in partnership with The Education Foundation of BCPS, Inc., is proud to announce the receipt of an $88,000 grant from the France-Merrick Foundation. This generous funding will support the purchase of an advanced Anatomage Table to enhance instruction in the school’s Project Lead the Way Biomedical Science and Academy of Health Professions programs.

The Anatomage Table is a state-of-the-art virtual dissection platform that allows students to explore human anatomy in a highly interactive, 3D environment. This cutting-edge technology will provide Sollers Point students with hands-on, immersive learning experiences that mirror real-world medical and healthcare practices.

More information about the grant and the technology can be found in a Mission Moment blog post.

a word from Dr. Rogers

May 18, 2026

Dear Reader:

This week marks the beginning of an exciting new chapter for more than 7,000 BCPS graduating seniors. Their last day of high school classes is this Friday, and commencement exercises for comprehensive high schools begin next week and continue through Friday, June 5.

Even before graduating from high school, members of the Class of 2026 have earned professional certifications, completed associate degrees, won sports championships, launched small businesses, started nonprofit organizations, earned national recognitions in the arts, successfully competed in academic and skills competitions, advocated for the causes that are important to them, volunteered throughout the community, and much more. I encourage you to learn more about them through our graduating senior profile series and our Dear Team BCPS campaign.

We are so proud of what these young people have already accomplished and so inspired by their potential.

Many thanks to the BCPS educators and staff who supported the academic and personal growth of these young adults and to the families who nurtured them and who entrusted us with their education.

Regards,

Myriam Rogers, Ed.D.

Superintendent