Garrett County Public Schools

09/25/2026

09/25/2026

𝐆𝐚𝐂𝐨 𝐑𝐨𝐛𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐬 𝐓𝐞𝐚𝐦 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐬 𝐒𝐮𝐜𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬, 𝐇𝐞𝐥𝐩𝐬 𝐈𝐧𝐬𝐩𝐢𝐫𝐞 𝐍𝐞𝐰 𝐅𝐈𝐑𝐒𝐓 𝐓𝐞𝐚𝐦 𝐢𝐧 𝐊𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐂𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐲

Members of Garrett County's Public High School FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC) Team 1629, GaCo, recently visited Kent County High School on the eastern shore of Maryland. The purpose of the trip was to share information about Garrett County’s FIRST robotics program and help recruit students for a new FRC team in Kent County Public Schools.

Kent County learned about the FIRST Robotics Competition from a presentation GaCo students made at last year’s Common Ground - Maryland’s premier professional development conference for PK-12 educators. One of the purposes GaCo has in sharing about its program at K-12 education conferences is to find other rural school systems to replicate its program, empowering their students to make a difference in STEM education.

One of the teachers who attended GaCo’s session from Kent County contacted the team with a desire to start a FIRST robotics program, like Garrett County's. Since then, Kent County has secured funding and officially registered a FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC) team for the 2027 season. The next step was to recruit students, which was the purpose of GaCo’s trip, as well as to meet with administrative staff and parents.

Kent County has the distinction of being the least populated county in Maryland, with only about 20,000 people total - just a few less than Garrett County’s population of only 28,000! Kent County is also similar to Garrett County, as it’s very rural with some tourism, associated with the Chesapeake Bay. GaCo is hopeful that with similar demographics, the Kent County team can gain much support and make an even greater impact on its schools and community than GaCo has made with the generous support it has enjoyed here in Garrett County.

In the picture are Kent County High School Engineering and Computer Science Teacher Mr. Tim Kelleman; GaCo Southern Garrett senior, Kelsey Brown; Northern Garrett seniors, Jessica Simmons, Eden Rankin, and Emma Bernshon; along with Mrs. Kris Hemstetter, Principal of Kent County High School.

GaCo's day-long trip to Kent County occurred on Wednesday, September 23, taking advantage of Garrett County's half-day of school and Kent County's Parent Back to School Night.

09/25/2026

𝐆𝐂𝐏𝐒 𝐭𝐨 𝐀𝐝𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐁𝐞𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐢𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐥 𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐡 𝐒𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐫

Garrett County Public Schools (GCPS) will administer a Behavioral Health Screener to all students in Pre-K through 12th grades beginning the week of September 28, 2026. This initiative is part of GCPS’s approved Strategic Plan, which is aligned with the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future.

The Behavioral Health Screener is designed to help GCPS better understand students’ experiences at school, including how they feel about their classroom environment, their interactions with peers and teachers, and the overall school climate. The screener is a short survey that should take no more than 10 minutes for students in grades 3 through 12 to complete. For students in Pre-K through 2nd grade, the screener will be completed by their teacher.

The results will provide valuable insight into how students are experiencing school and help GCPS identify opportunities to better support student needs and improve the school experience. If a student is unsure about an answer to any question, they may skip the question.

The following link will take you to the exact survey questions students/teachers will respond to: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1L-NRzXOksCbvgpLr9ZAv2llkwjjhTpfJ?usp=sharing. Parents and guardians have the option to opt their child out of participating in the Behavioral Health Screener. Please note the “opt-out” process begins with a telephone call to your child’s school. For more information, please visit the Behavioral Health Screener page of the GCPS website, https://www.gcps.net/page/behavioral-health-screener, or contact your school or the Student Services Department at 301-334-8926.

09/25/2026

Superintendent Dr. Nicole Miller was featured on WFWM Public Radio's Community Matters segment. Click below to listen to her discussion about GCPS achievements and goals for the school year.

09/24/2026

09/24/2026

09/23/2026

𝐈𝐧-𝐒𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐨𝐥 𝐅𝐥𝐮 𝐂𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐬 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐆𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐞𝐭𝐭 𝐂𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐲 𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐡 𝐃𝐞𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭

Garrett County Health Department is offering the annual FREE FluMist/Flu Vaccine Clinic. COVID-19 vaccinations will not be offered for students at these clinics. If interested, contact the health department or your healthcare provider. Please note that children diagnosed with asthma, cochlear implants, or immunocompromised are not eligible to receive FluMist. A preservative-free flu vaccine will also be available. The options for the flu vaccine are listed for selection on the registration form. Please see the list below for dates and the registration links.

To register your child/children for the clinic, go to the active link below associated with your student's school and fill out the registration form. Please enter the child’s legal first and last name. You will be required to upload a picture of the current insurance card. If the child does not have insurance, please select “no insurance”. If you have more than one child to register in the SAME school, you will be able to click on the link again and complete another registration. If your child/children go to different schools, please use the link associated with the child's school.

Please use the active links below to register. If you are having trouble registering or need help, contact the nurse at your child's school for assistance.

𝟗/𝟐𝟖/𝟐𝟔
Yough Glades Elementary - https://forms-v2.pattrac.app/form/GARRETT/d6e3c32d-366c-4922-bff2-fc92b0a15ad0
Southern Garrett High - https://forms-v2.pattrac.app/form/GARRETT/b375f2c3-6d86-4a22-a0c3-5df8e9520f6d
Crellin Elementary - https://forms-v2.pattrac.app/form/GARRETT/c44c27d4-ebcd-4dc3-aaa4-5b5095a87c3d
Swan Meadow School - https://forms-v2.pattrac.app/form/GARRETT/c82bfed9-08ad-44fb-b7d7-d33003e7ad99

𝟗/𝟐𝟗/𝟐𝟔
Northern Garrett High - https://forms-v2.pattrac.app/form/GARRETT/8be52b46-159f-4409-a5af-e3af7ad3817f
Northern Garrett Middle - https://forms-v2.pattrac.app/form/GARRETT/0c9b89e1-4060-4062-bfa1-9047ccdbf418

𝟗/𝟑𝟎/𝟐𝟔
Grantsville Elementary - https://forms-v2.pattrac.app/form/GARRETT/7c94b2f0-1215-4fa6-bbf5-265aaff6e29d
Rt 40 Elementary - https://forms-v2.pattrac.app/form/GARRETT/78398fb9-ba62-488a-9dad-8b0661793597

𝟏𝟎/𝟏/𝟐𝟔
Accident Elementary - https://forms-v2.pattrac.app/form/GARRETT/b46cdfbb-7066-4536-bda4-6e1be4ea7106
Friendsville Elementary - https://forms-v2.pattrac.app/form/GARRETT/dd1d995a-360e-49bf-a9e0-51c44e2f340a

𝟏𝟎/𝟐/𝟐𝟔
Broad Ford School - https://forms-v2.pattrac.app/form/GARRETT/d331bea9-bd42-4c3a-a9be-419cc583aeed

09/22/2026

09/21/2026

𝐆𝐂𝐏𝐒 𝐋𝐚𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐬 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐲𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐌𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐋𝐨𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐀𝐠𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐬

Garrett County Public Schools (GCPS) has partnered with local farmers, University of Maryland Extension, Garrett County Economic Development, and the Appalachian Farm and Food Alliance (AFFA) to launch Maryland Mondays, a Farm to School initiative featuring a locally produced Maryland food item on the school menu each week.

The initiative, supported through a USDA Farm to School Grant secured by AFFA, kicked off Monday with 300 pounds of green beans produced by ALL Produce in Oakland. The green beans were served to approximately 1,200 students across GCPS.

The kickoff was highlighted at Yough Glades Elementary School, where local farmer and Yough Glades alumnus Levi Lantz talked with students about farming and the green beans they were enjoying. Kenzie Mousch, Nutrition Educator with the University of Maryland Extension, encouraged students to try the green beans through the “Two Bite Club” and led a student taste test.

The initiative also connects local farmers with GCPS to plan for future locally grown products on school menus. Maryland Mondays will continue throughout the school year, providing students with opportunities to enjoy local food while learning about agriculture and the people who grow it.

GCPS would like to extend gratitude to each of our community partners involved with this program.