For Immediate Release: Friday, September 30, 2016
Montgomery Councilmember Navarro,
MCPS Superintendent Smith
to be featured guests on
‘Tuned In’ Radio America show
At 2:30 p.m. TODAY, Friday, Sept. 30, on WACA 1540 AM,
topics will include closing the achievement gap,
smaller class sizes, diversity of school staff
ROCKVILLE, Md., September 30, 2016—Montgomery County Councilmember Nancy Navarro and new Montgomery County Public Schools superintendent Jack Smith will be the featured guests at 2:30 p.m. TODAY, Friday, Sept. 30, on En Sintonía con el Concejo del Condado de Montgomery (Tuned In with the Montgomery County Council), a weekly show on Radio America (WACA 1540 AM). With the new school year now about a month old, the show will focus on goals Superintendent Smith has to close the achievement gap and how MCPS is using the $89 million in additional funding that the County Council provided for the current school year.
Councilmember Navarro, a former member of the Board of Education, now chairs the Council’s Government Operations and Fiscal Policy Committee and is a member of its Education Committee. Dr. Smith officially became superintendent of MCPS on July 1.
The Council’s decision to provide additional funding for the school system aimed to reduce class sizes at many schools. It also was intended to support special programs that could support closing the achievement gap.
One topic of today’s show will address the makeup of MCPS staff. A report issued last year showed that about 5 percent of MCPS staff members was Hispanic, but statistics show the school student population is about 30 percent Latino.
Another topic of the show likely will be Governor Larry Hogan’s executive order stating that all school systems statewide must begin their school years after Labor Day starting with the 2017-18 year. There is, however, a provision for waivers for individual school systems. Montgomery County has traditionally started its school year in August.
Today’s show also will provide details about the Town Hall Meeting for Students that the Council will host at the Council Office Building in Rockville on Wednesday, Oct. 5.
The Montgomery County Council and Radio America have entered into a partnership that provides the Latino community with key information on issues and programs. The partnership also provides a forum for residents to express views and ask questions. The partnership includes the weekly one- hour show each Friday on the Washington Region’s most popular Spanish language station. The show is hosted by Andrea Sarralde.
Each week, the show features guests talking about important issues before the Council and occasionally the show provides information about programs offered by the County to help residents.
In addition to the radio broadcast, the show can be heard via the Internet at: http://radioamerica.net/en-vivo/ . Video links with a summary of the show are available each week at the County Council's newly-redesigned, mobile friendly web site at: www.montgomerycountymd.gov/council .
# # # # Release ID: 16-294