General | Transportation | Before- and After-Care Programs | PTA After-School Programs/Extracurricular Activities
General | Top
Will parents and students be able to visit Grosvenor before the start of the 2009-2010 school year?
There will be four open houses at the Grosvenor building in August. The first two are on Thursday, August 6th, from 9:30 a.m. to 11 a.m., and from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. These sessions are only for families to visit the school facility. Teachers will not be there. The classrooms may not be set up by this date, but families will get a chance to walk around and see the school facility and classrooms. On Thursday, August 27, there is an open house for kindergarten parents only from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. (This is Back to School Night and Meet the Teachers for adults only--no children, please.) Finally, on Friday, August 28, there is an All School Open House to meet the teachers from 9:30 am to 11:30 am. Bus transportation will be available for the August 6th open house. Please contact the school secretary, Ms. Johanna Paz, at Johanna_A_Paz@mcpsmd.org or 301-650-6414, if you are interested in riding the bus. Indicate how many people will be riding with your family so the school can plan accordingly.
Why is Takoma Park Elementary School (TPES) moving out of its building?
TPES is getting a new addition to replace the portables at the back of the current building. The new addition will enable TPES to accommodate its full student body.
When is TPES moving out of its current building?
TPES is now out of its current building.
When is TPES moving back into its building?
The school will return to its location on Holly Avenue at the start of the 2010-2011 school year. The school may still be undergoing minor construction, but students will be able to return and use the new addition in August 2010.
Where is TPES moving to?
TPES will relocate to a Montgomery County holding school on Grosvenor Lane in Bethesda, Maryland. Click here to see a map of the location.
Will the existing TPES building on Holly Avenue be renovated too?
No. There will be some updates to the current building, mostly to the front entrance, all-purpose room, and some other rooms at the front of the building. However, TPES is not currently on the school renovation schedule.
What will the new addition include?
The addition replaces all of the existing portable classroom and includes 16 new classrooms. There is also a pre-K room, a day care room, ESOL and speech therapy rooms, a new computer lab, a counselor’s office, and a staff lounge. In addition, there will be a new school bus lane added on Philadelphia Avenue where the Takoma Park School building currently stands. Changes will also be made to the front entrance of the school.
Will the addition accommodate students from Takoma Park who currently attend other elementary schools out of boundary, such as Sligo Elementary?
The new addition will accommodate more students than the number who currently attend TPES (approximately 400). The county is holding boundary discussions to determine which additional students will attend TPES beginning in 2010.
Are there guarantees that the county will be able to finish construction of the addition given the current economic climate?
The county has assured the TPES community that the new addition will be completed on time. However, parents from TPES are actively monitoring the construction process to keep informed of changes or delays.
Will the school day begin and end at the same time while TPES is at Grosvenor?
The school day at Grosvenor will begin and end at the same times, 9:05 and 3:30.
What will happen to the grounds around TPES and the atrium in the school building while the addition is under construction?
The PTA is working with the construction team to allow access for volunteers to maintain school plantings at TPES during the 2009-2010 school year.
Transportation | Top
How will students get to Grosvenor?
The county is providing bus transportation to all students who attend TPES, including those students who currently walk or arrive by car.
Where will my student(s) catch a bus to Grosvenor?
The Montgomery County Public Schools transportation department is working out bus routes. Current bus routes and stops are likely to remain the same. Others will be added in the neighborhoods to accommodate students who do not currently ride the bus. The transportation department expects that most students will be less than half a mile away from a bus stop. Students are free to use any bus stop to and from school on any day. Click here for the latest list of bus routes and schedules.
How are bus routes and schedules determined and, once they are published, can they change?
Bus routes and schedules are determined based on the home addresses of registered and enrolled students. In addition, before- and after-care programs can be added to a list of stops. The MCPS Transportation Department will monitor bus usage during the first two weeks of school and may make necessary route and schedule adjustments.
Will Piney Branch Elementary students continue to ride the same buses as TPES students?
No. There will be separate buses serving TPES while the school is at Grosvenor.
How long does it take to drive to Grosvenor?
The MCPS transportation department has determined that the trip to Grosvenor should take about 30 minutes, depending on traffic.
When will my child be picked up in the morning at the bus stop, and when will students arrive home?
The transportation department anticipates that buses will make morning stops between 8:10 and 8:30 and afternoon stops between 4:10 and 4:30. Schedules are subject to change, based on trip times and ridership.
What happens if my child misses the bus in the morning?
Parents are responsible for arranging alternate transportation to school. Sometimes a child can catch the same bus or another one at a later stop on the route.
What happens if I am not at the bus stop in time to meet my child in the afternoon?
Parents are responsible for making an emergency plan with their children in the event that someone is not at a stop to meet them. The PTA is working out a plan to have designated contact parents on bus routes and phone trees to help children in case of emergencies. Parents may also provide bus drivers with emergency contact numbers. In addition, the PTA and TPES staff are looking into having a backup plan in the rare event that a student might be stranded at a stop.
What routes will the buses use to travel between Takoma Park and Grosvenor?
The MCPS transportation department does not specify what routes buses must use between bus stops and school locations. Bus operators use all available information to select the best route based on traffic and other conditions. Since the Beltway is often congested, buses will frequently use other roads to and from Grosvenor.
Will there still be buses for out-of-boundary students?
Yes. Magnet transportation will be from the home school. Click here for the latest list of out-of-bounds bus routes and schedules for current TPES students. School staff is currently requesting transportation for new students.
Will there be arrangements to make the bus ride more comfortable for students?
The TPES staff is discussing a plan to end the school day a few minutes early, to allow time for students to use the bathroom and possibly have a snack before getting on the bus.
Will there be other adults on the buses besides the drivers, to help with safety?
The TPES staff and PTA are working on a plan to have volunteers and school staff ride some buses to and from school. Parents may ride school buses at any time, provided there is room on the bus and they have received permission from the TPES administration.
What public transportation is available to get to Grosvenor?
The nearest Metro stop is Grosvenor-Strathmore, on nearby Rockville Pike. MTA bus #6 goes from the Wheaton and Grosvenor-Strathmore Metro stations to Grosvenor.
If I choose to drive my child to Grosvenor, where do I park or drop off my student?
Families who drive to Grosvenor should park on Dickens Avenue, the street just before the entrance to the school, and walk their students to the school entrance. Drivers MAY NOT use the school parking lot, which is reserved for staff and buses.
Will there be transportation provided for special school-wide events, such as the Open House and Back to School Night?
TPES is considering the feasibility of funding special buses that could transport parents to school-wide events at Grosvenor, such as the Open House and Back to School Night.
What happens if my child is sick during the school day but I cannot get to Grosvenor to pick up my child?
School staff will make arrangements to take sick children home if the student has absolutely no other way back to Takoma Park. If a child becomes sick at the end of the school day, the child may be able to ride his or her bus home, depending on the severity of the illness.
Before- and After-Care Programs | Top
Where will before- and after-care programs that are held at TPES be held next year?
Programs that currently run on the TPES campus are relocating. The YMCA has a new location for its before- and after-care programs. The Y programs will be held at 500 Urban Center on Sligo Avenue in Silver Spring. For more information, contact Meena at 301-588-7720 or 301-404-1435. Morgan Day Care will hold before- and after-care programs at Piney Branch Elementary. For more information, contact Janette Morgan or Suzanne Miller at 301-587-7474. The PTA is also in discussions with the Bethesda YMCA to have them provide before- and after-care programs at Grosvenor. The Y needs a minimum number of students to run the programs. Interested families should email Susan Roth at cfleet@msn.com by July 25th to list their children’s name for enrollment.
How will my child travel between before- and after-care programs and Grosvenor?
The PTA is working with the MCPS transportation department to make sure that before- and after-care programs are on bus routes, including the relocated YMCA and Morgan programs. Any childcare provider that is currently on a bus route will remain on a bus route to Grosvenor.
Will before- and after-care programs come back to TPES when we return to our location on Holly Avenue in the fall of 2010?
Before- and after-care programs will return to the TPES all-purpose room when the school moves back to Holly Avenue. The new school addition will also have space for one full-time childcare provider. Childcare providers will have to win a county bidding process to operate at TPES for the 2010-2011 school year. The TPES community will be invited to comment during the bid process.
My child has breakfast at school. Will breakfast still be provided next year?
Breakfast will be provided next year at Grosvenor the same as this year. The YMCA will provide meals for the children in its childcare programs as it usually does.
PTA After-School Programs and Other Extracurricular Activities | Top
Will TPES continue to hold its after-school enrichment programs, and where will they be held?
The PTA will not be offering any after-school programs at Grosvenor for the 2009-2010 school year. After-school programs will resume when TPES returns to its location on Holly Avenue.
Where will the school hold special events for parents, such as parent-teacher conferences?
TPES staff and the PTA are working out a plan for parent-teacher conferences that best accommodates the needs of both the staff and families. Most other school-wide events, such as Back to School Night and the Open House, will be held at Grosvenor.
Where will the PTA hold its events, such as meetings and family social nights?
The PTA will hold most of its evening events at Piney Branch Elementary School on Tuesdays in the All Purpose Room. PTA meetings will be held on the first Tuesday of every month. Dates for all school events will be posted on the PTA Web site calendar once they are final. Information will also be sent home prior to all events during the school year.
Last updated July 30,2009 |
