Board Of Education Emails & Instructions

Subject: All of Fields Road Elementary To Crown High School

Dear __________________________

I am writing as a (Fields Road Elementary parent and/or Gaithersburg resident - pick which one) to ask that MCPS modify Option H to rezone Fields Road Elementary School (FRES) to Crown High School, and to open Crown HS as a permanent school. The FRES feeder neighborhoods are within walking distance of Crown HS, and including all of the FRES community also ensures Crown HS represents the true diversity of Gaithersburg. 

Gaithersburg High School is projected to be over capacity immediately, straining resources for the students most in need, and sending our students to Gaithersburg HS, which is on the other side of Interstate 270 from our neighborhoods, and requires longer, more complicated trips to school, preventing many students from being able to engage in after school programs, clubs, and sports.

A plan that sends the Fields Road feeder neighborhoods to Crown High School best supports safety, proximity, diversity, community stability, special education needs, and reflects MCPS’s commitment to giving our children the strong future they deserve. 

Thank you for your time and consideration. 

[Your Name] 

[Your Address or Neighborhood (optional)] 

[Your Student’s Grade (optional)]

If you prefer to create your own email, here is a helpful guide for the pieces you should include in your communications to Board Of Education (BOE) members.

When writing your message, make sure the key message comes off clearly in the very beginning, and strongly written again at the end. Feel free to use any of the provided options, or craft a version of your own.  Make sure to add in some of the provided points while also telling your personal story. Remember, they are getting many many emails and getting the same key message repeatedly reinforces our collective, unified, position of our ask to them. 

1. Opening Sentence 

On 12.11.25’s BOE meeting, you all heard our community give testimonies on the value of the diversity of our community. We would like to reinforce that position again, so…(choose one and personalize if desired)

1. I am writing to ask the Board of Education to make sure that all Fields Road Elementary School students are permanently assigned to Crown High School, this can be done by modifying Option H to include the entire Fields Road community. 

2. I request that the Board make sure 100% of Fields Road Elementary students are assigned to Crown High School, and that Crown is opened as a permanent school, not a holding school. 

3. Please assign all Fields Road students to Crown High School permanently by adding Fields Road to Option H.

2. Main Points to Choose From (Select 2–5 to include)

1. Proximity and Safety 

   • Fields Road is the closest feeder school to Crown, and assigning us elsewhere contradicts the FAA principle of geographic proximity. 

   • Sending Fields Road students across Interstate 270 is unnecessary and less safe than attending Crown, the school located in their own community.

   • A portion of Fields Road families do not drive and rely on public transportation or walking. Right now, these students can safely walk to Crown, giving them easy access to before- and after-school activities, sports, and clubs that strengthen community. Assigning them to Gaithersburg High School would require a longer, more complicated commute—including crossing a major highway on foot—which could prevent many from participating in extracurriculars altogether.

2. Diversity and Community Identity 

   • Fields Road is one of the most socioeconomic and culturally diverse schools in the region, and including the entire school strengthens Crown’s diversity and aligns with FAA goals. 

   • Crown should reflect the Gaithersburg community it sits in—this requires including all of Fields Road.

3. Capacity Balance (Crown Has Space; GHS Does Not) 

   • MCPS’s own projections show that Gaithersburg High School is over capacity under many scenarios, while Crown has the space to support Fields Road. 

   • Moving Fields Road to Crown reduces overcrowding at Gaithersburg High School and creates a sustainable balance of enrollment. 

   • With declining enrollment projections at Crown, there is more than enough room for the entire Fields Road community.

4. Special Education and Student Needs 

   • Overcrowded schools lose the small-group rooms, testing spaces, sensory-friendly areas, and therapeutic spaces that students with disabilities rely on most. 

   • Crown offers more stable capacity and better access to specialized spaces than Gaithersburg High School. 

   • My child—and many others—need predictable environments, smaller learning spaces, and consistent access to services that Crown can better provide.

5. Stability and Articulation 

   • Splitting Fields Road between multiple high schools destabilizes peer groups and violates FAA’s stability goals. 

   • Fields Road has a strong, unified community, and keeping the entire school together through Crown supports student wellbeing and long-term continuity. 

   • Crown should open as a permanent school with a stable feeder pattern; dividing Fields Road weakens that foundation.

6. Alignment With FAA Principles 

   • Including Fields Road in Crown best meets FAA goals: proximity, diversity, capacity balance, and stability. 

   • Option H does not meet FAA standards unless it is modified to include all of Fields Road.

3. Your Personal Story (Write 2-3 sentences)

This is where you share why the decision matters to you. You may describe your child’s needs, strengths, learning style, experiences with the Fields Road community; concerns about crossing I-270; how Crown would support your child academically, socially, or emotionally; or why you moved here.

• Please Note: If you are a homeowner DO NOT mention concerns around property values! The BOE believes property value impacts to be irrelevant to schooling decisions, and they will discount your feedback if you provide this as part of your argument.

• Examples include:

  • “As a parent of a ______ grader at Fields Road, I worry about…” 

  • “My child thrives when…”

  • “Our family chose this community because…” 

  • “Crossing 270 every day would mean…” 

  • “Crown HS gives my child the stability/space/community that…”

  • We moved here because…

4. Closing Statement (choose one or personalize)

1. I strongly urge the Board to adopt a boundary solution that places all Fields Road Elementary students at Crown High School permanently through a modified version of Option H. This is the solution that best reflects fairness, safety, stability, diversity, and long-term sustainability. 

2. Please modify Option H to include all of Fields Road so that our community remains intact and Crown can open as the strong, permanent Gaithersburg high school it is intended to be. 

3. For the wellbeing of all students and the long-term success of Crown High School, I respectfully ask the Board to assign all Fields Road students to Crown permanently.

5. Signature

Thank you for your time and consideration. 

[Your Name] 

[Your Address or Neighborhood (optional)] 

[Your Student’s Grade (optional)]