MCPS LGBTQ forum on Wednesday
MCPS will host a virtual forum about LGBTQ issues and resources during the coronavirus pandemic on Wednesday.
The forum will be streamed on Zoom, MCPS-TV, the school district website and YouTube. It begins at 6 p.m.
An in-person LGBTQ forum was canceled in April due to the pandemic.
United We Learn contest winners announced
Winners of MCPS’ fourth annual United We Learn contest were recently announced.
For the contest, elementary school students designed a web page with information about their school. Middle and high school students developed an Amazon Alexa skill to share important information about the school district.
The United We Learn contest was launched in 2017 to provide students with a “creative, structured opportunity to learn about the values of respect, diversity and civility,” according to MCPS.
This year’s contest winners were:
Elementary
First place: Maya Chaudhry and Ahana Samantray, Beverly Farms Elementary School
Second place: Tavishi Ghosh Dastidar and Sarayu Penchala, Cold Spring Elementary School
Third place: Renu Vijayaraj and Elizabeth Watts, Ashburton Elementary School
Middle/high school
First place: Nelson Josue Alvarez, Matthew Chu and Nicholas Neirotti, Springbrook High School
Second place: Ishaan Samantray and Anil Trevor, Herbert Hoover Middle School
Third place: Ava Cress, Aurelia Smith and Allegra Unger, Silver Spring International Middle School
Honorable mention: Eva Guimares, Jordan Levin, Naiya Nurse and Seamus Williams, Longview School; Joel Haftel and Michael Ilie, Springbrook High School and Montgomery Blair High School,
Student group wins volunteerism award
Montgomery County Students for Change recently were named the Montgomery Serves Volunteer Group of the Year.
The award recognizes “outstanding service by a group or team … who volunteered together in 2019,” according to the award’s website.
Founded in 2018, Montgomery County Students for Change is a group of students from 15 chapters at public and private high schools throughout the county. It focuses on issues like gun violence prevention, climate reform, and diversity, equity and inclusion.
“MoCo Students for Change deserves the Volunteer Group of the Year Award in honor of their efforts to create a real difference in our world through focused and innovative activism,” Amy Yontef-McGrath wrote in a nomination letter.
