 Wednesday, February 22, 2023
Our Students are the Future
Which is why I am visiting schools across District 2 each week
As part of my weekly Breakfast with Balcombe, I have been taking the time to visit schools in District 2 to hear from students and staff about their most pressing concerns for their schools and communities at large. I had the pleasure of visiting Clarksburg High School on February 10th, where I chatted with an incredible group of student leaders about what they love most about their school and what changes they would like to see that would help them excel as students.
With the fantastic student leaders of Clarksburg High School!
Principal Edward Owusu gave me a tour of the school and I learned about its fantastic P-TECH Program (Pathways in Network and Information Technology) which allows students to enroll dually at Montgomery College and earn an Associate of Applied Science degree while in high school. Programs like these are vital to ensuring that students are career ready. As the workforce development lead on the ECON committee, it was great to see one of the programs MCPS students can take advantage of in action.
Next week, I will be visiting Monocacy Elementary School and John Poole Middle School on my Poolesville stop for Breakfast with Balcombe.
The County Council held a town hall at Lakelands Park Middle School last Wednesday. It was great to hear from so many community members about their concerns. As councilmembers, our job is to work for the residents who elected us, and town halls such as these are one of the ways we can learn about the needs of our community and take appropriate action.
If you have any follow up questions about the town hall or would like to raise any issues and direct questions to me, I encourage you to reach out. I want to hear from you!
At the County Council's town hall held at Lakelands Park Middle School.
Public safety is of utmost importance and I have heard a number of constituent concerns about safety in District 2. Therefore, I will be hosting a town hall focused on public safety on March 22nd at 7PM at the Upcounty Regional Services Center.
I will share more information on the town hall in the coming weeks and encourage you to keep your evening open on March 22nd so that you can join me to ask questions and share your concerns.
Economic Development (ECON) Committee
The ECON committee held a joint session on February 9th with the Education and Culture committee to talk about workforce development in Montgomery County and workplace learning in MCPS. This meeting was the first in a series of conversations we will be having on how to prepare students as they transition from high school to the workplace and/or higher education.
- You can view the agenda from the February 9th ECON/E&C meeting here and can watch the full joint committee session here.
The ECON committee met again last week on February 16th to discuss the Montgomery County Economic Development Corporation's Strategic Plan and to review the County Executive's proposed FY23-28 Capital Improvements Program's amendments.
- You can view the agenda from this meeting here and can watch the full committee session here.
Transportation and Environment Committee
The Transportation and Environment committee spent a majority of its February 13th work session discussing Bill 18-22, which would ban gas powered leaf blowers to address environmental, noise,
and health concerns raised by County residents.
- You can view the agenda from this meeting here and can watch the full committee session here.
Upcoming Public Hearings
The Council will be holding two public hearings in the coming weeks on recently introduced items.
Tuesday, February 28th at 1:30PM. Deadline to sign up to speak is February 27th at 2PM.
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Bill 8-23, Boards, Committees, and Commissions - Open Meetings - Supplemental Requirements
- This legislation would require that boards, committees, and commissions to publish detailed information regarding meetings including meeting times, agendas and minutes. It would also require certain reporting by the office of the Office of the County Executive to the Council.
- The legislation would generally amend laws regarding boards, committees, and commissions and regarding open meetings.
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Bill 9-23, Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse Advisory Council - Rename
- This legislation would amend the Montgomery County Code to rename the Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse Advisory Council to reduce stigma associated with the word abuse.
- The legislation would generally amend the law regarding alcohol and other drug addictions.
Tuesday, March 7th at 1:30PM. Deadline to sign up to speak is March 6th at 2PM.
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Bill 10-23, Health - Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Commission - Established
- This legislation would establish an Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Commission, prescribe the membership and the duties of the Commission, and provide the staffing of the Commission.
- The legislation would generally amend the law regarding the provision and coordination of services for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities in the County.
- The Council is seeking applicants to service as the Council's recommended representative on the Board of Investment Trustees for the Montgomery County Employee Retirement Plans and the Board of Trustees for the Consolidated Retiree Health Benefits Trust.
- You can learn more about the position here.
- The deadline for applications is March 10th at 5PM.
- The County is looking to fill multiple positions on its boards, committees, and commissions. You can learn more about openings and apply for a position here.
- Applicants of diverse backgrounds, professions, genders, geography, disabilities, ethnicities, and ages are encouraged to apply.
- February is Teen Dating Violence Awareness month. Choose Respect Montgomery is holding a video competition for 6th - 12th grade students to raise awareness of teen dating violence. The deadline to submit videos is March 13th. Students who participate will be awarded 10 student service learning hours.
- Winners will be announced at RespectFest, a virtual and in-person festival for aimed at raising awareness to reduce the rates teen dating violence and provide education on healthy relationships and consent.
- The BlackRock Center for the Arts is offering discounted registration for its Summer Youth Art Academy until February 28th.
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I encourage all eligible students to participate in the ChooseRespect video contest.
RespectFest is coming up soon - mark your calendars!
If you would like to get in touch with me regarding anything mentioned in this newsletter or any other concerns you may have, please email me at Councilmember.Balcombe@montgomerycountymd.gov or call my office at 240-777-7940.
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