Frederick County school board approves plan for county's first Montessori high school

Feb. 10—Frederick County could soon have its first charter high school.

The Frederick County Board of Education on Wednesday voted to conditionally greenlight Monocacy Valley Montessori Public Charter School's bid to expand and serve grades nine through 12. If the school can secure a new building in time, the Montessori high school will launch in fall 2023.

MVMPCS first opened in 2002, making it Maryland's oldest public charter school. It currently serves as an elementary and middle school, enrolling students aged 3 through eighth grade.

Ahead of Wednesday night's vote, MVMPCS principal Amy Dorman said she'd be "over the moon" if the board approved the high school expansion. There's been palpable excitement in the community, Dorman said, with students stopping her in the hallway to ask about the project.

"Of course, we need to secure a facility," Dorman said. "My enthusiasm is a little bit tempered by that."

The school had been looking for a bigger space even before the high school proposal started gathering steam, according to its expansion application. Officials are negotiating with the landlord of the school's current property on Dill Avenue, representatives told the board Wednesday, seeking a short-term extension of a year or two while they finish the search for a permanent home.

"I know it's challenging. It's challenging for all the schools, as hot of a real estate market as Frederick is," said board President Brad Young. "It's not going to be easy, so I wish you luck."

The vote to approve MVMPCS' expansion was 6-1, with Board member Liz Barrett opposed. She said she had concerns about the school's ongoing property search.

Plus, Barrett said, she wasn't sure how well-suited the Montessori model would be in preparing high school students for college or a career.

The Montessori model of education includes self-directed activity and hands-on learning, usually with mixed-grade classrooms.

An MVMPCS high school would have four cohorts — two "lower high school" cohorts and two "upper high school" cohorts. Unique features would include a "microeconomy" where students could develop, sell and purchase goods and invest the profits back into the school, weeklong "intersessions" where students would take daily field trips and explore a given topic, and a yearlong capstone project during 12th grade.

The entire curriculum would emphasize project-based learning, Dorman said.

MVMPCS high school students would take the same courses as other high schoolers in the county, Dorman said, but they might approach the material in a different way. She said the Montessori model would be beneficial to teenage students because of its emphasis on community service and group work.

"The work of adolescence is social," she said.

Dorman said the option to access a Montessori education would appeal to students who grew up in the school — and to others who may want a different approach.

All of the students in the current MVMPCS would be guaranteed enrollment to the charter high school. Thirty-five percent of the additional seats would go to students of Carroll Creek Montessori Public Charter School, MVMPCS' sister school.

MVMPCS has been well-received in the community since it opened 20 years ago, with an extensive waitlist each year.

Dorman said she was honored by the thought of introducing Frederick County's first charter high school.

"It's absolutely amazing. It's incredible," Dorman said. "I'm super excited about this."

Follow Jillian Atelsek on Twitter: @jillian_atelsek