Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) will pay close attention to attendance this school year — just like last year — as fears of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids continue around the DMV.
Wednesday at County Executive Elrich’s Media Briefing, MCPS Superintendent Dr. Thomas Taylor said the school system “did not see a really seismic shift in our attendance” last school year after the re-election of President Donald Trump. But there was a “pretty significant shift” during the first Trump administration going into spring 2017. Taylor became MCPS superintendent in 2024.
He said that this time around, attendance stayed relatively consistent and MCPS has actually cut the chronic absenteeism rate by more than 1%.
“We are going to be watching those things very closely,” Taylor said. He added MCPS will also be watching to make sure people are being connected to resources in real-time.
The new school year starts next week. There will be the first-ever Transition Day on Monday for students attending a new school for the first time. The first day of school for all students is Tuesday.
Taylor said schools will send resources home for newcomer and immigrant families, “to make sure that they also feel welcome and comfortable in Montgomery County schools.”
“We’ve got a great plan to deal with issues as they arise in the moment. Fortunately, we haven’t had to respond to a ton yet, but we’re ready,” Taylor said.
