I am deeply disappointed by the Montgomery County Board of Education’s 7-1 vote to approve the Superintendent’s Boundary Recommendations, which will, in effect, close Wootton High School and relocate its entire student body to the new Crown High School.

This decision comes despite extraordinary and unified opposition from multiple communities. The Wootton Cluster community, the Magruder Cluster community, the unanimous Rockville Mayor and Council, and voices from across Montgomery County came together to urge a cooperative path: a solution that would open Crown to its closest students while also preserving Wootton High School and maintaining a clear rebuild path for Magruder High School. That unified call for collaboration and balance was not supported through tonight’s outcome.

In my testimony earlier today, I urged the Board to pause and work collaboratively with communities and local leaders to support a solution that supports all students. I emphasized that significant questions remain regarding growth projections, development assumptions, transportation impacts, and the future of the Wootton facility. Importantly, I invited the Board and Superintendent to join us in advocating together before the County Council for funding to support both Wootton and Magruder. As I told the Board, “When communities are asking you for leadership, when data is questioned, when one decision directly threatens multiple communities, the strongest leadership is not choosing which community to sacrifice, it is standing together and refusing to sacrifice any of them.”

This unfortunate decision creates heartache in the Wootton community, provides continued sorrow in the Magruder community, and raises long-term concerns about capacity and growth planning in one of the fastest-growing regions of Montgomery County. Rather than bringing communities together, this decision risks dividing them and eliminating flexibility that will likely be needed in the years ahead.

While tonight’s vote is final, my advocacy is not. I will continue to strongly advocate for Wootton High School to be rebuilt or renovated as a permanent, community high school on Wootton Parkway. The Wootton community deserves long-term certainty, and students deserve a local, modern facility that allows the school’s strong academic and community traditions to continue for generations.

Although I strongly disagree with tonight’s outcome, I remain committed to working with parents, students, educators, County leaders, and community stakeholders to advocate for investment in Wootton, a clear modernization path for Magruder, and planning that supports growth across our County.

Thank you to the amazing community members and volunteers from the Wootton High School PTSA, Magruder High School PTSA, and Keep Wootton on Wootton Parkway for all of their amazing advocacy over the past few months. The unity demonstrated by the incredible Wootton, Magruder, and Richard Montgomery parents, students, and community members throughout this process has been extraordinary, and that collaboration will remain essential moving forward.