RICA August Update

Welcome to the 25-26 school year! A few more weeks left of summer fun and we are ready for our classrooms and school to have our staff and students back! A new school year gives us a chance to begin fresh, set new goals, and strengthen the connections that make our school community so remarkable.

This year, our theme is “Anchored in Excellence: 5 Pillars of Impact”—a reminder that no matter what challenges or opportunities come our way, we remain grounded in our shared commitment to academic growth, ruthless equity, and the well-being of every student.

Our Royal Families: Thank you for being our partners in this journey. Your involvement, encouragement, and trust are essential as we work together to inspire a love of learning in your children.

Our Royal teachers and staff: You are the heart of our school. Your dedication, creativity, and ruthlessness set the tone for student success. Each lesson taught, each relationship built, and each extra step taken makes a lasting difference.

Let’s approach this year with open minds, positive energy, and the belief that we can accomplish great things together. Here’s to a year filled with meaningful learning, joyful moments, and the continued success of our students.

With excitement for the year ahead,

Ms. Langston, Principal

Ms. Alyssa Cunneen- Assistant Principal

Mr. Zachary Grant- Special Education Teacher

Mr. Bernie Jankowski- Special Education Teacher

Ms. Min Sun Song- Special Education Teacher

Mr. William Wilt- Special Education Teacher

Mr. Shacquan Beairs- SPED Paraeducator

Ms. Annemarie Guske- SPED Paraeducator

Our first Welcome to Back to School Conference will welcome back Teachers, Paraeducators and Clinical Staff to start the year off right. Our Theme "Anchored in Excellence: Navigating Together Toward Student Success." will focus on:

• Anchored in our vision, values, and Ruthless equity for all learners
• Navigating the intentional direction, adaptability, and problem-solving as a RICA Community
• Together through collaboration across school, clinical and residential programming
• Toward Student Success grounds all efforts in the shared purpose of improving student academic and social emotional outcomes

We will navigate our day conference style with breakout sessions for you to select sessions that will support you in starting the year right, Please see the registration form below to select your classes today.

As part of the updated Cell Phone and Personal Mobile Device Regulation (COG-RA), MCPS will limit how personal mobile devices can be used during the school day. At the elementary level, devices will need to be turned off and put away during the school day. At secondary schools, devices must be turned off and put away during class time unless explicitly permitted by the teacher for instructional purposes. These changes will minimize distractions, increase focus and strengthen the quality of in-person engagement among students.

MCPS is hosting its annual Back-to-School Fair on Saturday, Aug. 23 from 10 a.m.–1 p.m. at Westfield Wheaton mall (11160 Veirs Mill Road in Wheaton). Learn about the school system, and county programs and services, pick up giveaways and get your immunizations. Enjoy music, entertainment and children’s activities, such as the Bike Rodeo, a fun activity to teach kids essential bike safety skills.

Transition Day is a new event in MCPS schools adopted by the Board of Education at the behest of our Superintendent, Dr. Taylor. It is intended to provide a positive onboarding transition for students who are in middle school, 9th grade and new students. It is required for all middle school students, 9th grade and new students to RICA. All Staff are required to work that day in support of the process. This not a required school day however it is open to all students. All staff will be working on Transition Day.

Bethesda Kiwanis Needs Your Help with Nonperishable Food Donations!

We’re collecting essential nonperishable food items to donate to Nourishing Bethesda, and we need your support! Please drop off your contributions in the donation box located on the table near the front desk.

I will be volunteering to deliver all donated items to Nourishing Bethesda on August 28, 2025, at 5 PM. If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to contact me. Every item makes a difference—please help if you can!

What We Need (No Glass Containers, Please):

• Canned Goods: Tuna, Salmon, Chicken, Soup, Tomatoes, Tomato Paste, Corn, Mixed Vegetables

• Grains: Rice, Pasta, Cooking Oil, Peanut Butter (in plastic jars), Canned or Dried Beans & Lentils

• Cereal: Plain and Low-Sugar varieties

Supporting Our Community Together

Nourishing Bethesda was founded just a few years ago to meet urgent short-term food needs and has quickly grown into one of the region’s leading organizations combating food insecurity. They serve nearly 5,000 individuals monthly—from families and seniors to those formerly homeless—across Montgomery County and neighboring areas.

With the help of volunteers, donors, civic groups, and local officials, Nourishing Bethesda continues to expand its reach, offering comprehensive support and developing new solutions to address food insecurity in our community.

To: Parents and Guardians of Students in JLG RICA Day and Residential Programs

From: Prabha Menon, Psy.D., Director of Clinical Services, JLG RICA

Date: July 22, 2025

Subject: Prior Authorization of Student Passes

In order to ensure the safety and supervision of our day and residential students on campus and in the community, the JLG RICA policy on Student Passes states that, all off-ground passes are authorized by only the student's primary therapist. This includes excused absences or time off during the school day for medical appointments, dental appointments, court hearings, special events/appointments etc. that will lead to a student missing classes. These passes are required to be approved and authorized by the primary therapist prior to the day of the pass. Such a procedure promotes smooth hand-off communication between the staff of Clinical, School and Residential (if applicable) components of JLG RICA. Parents/guardians are discouraged from impromptu pick up of the student without prior authorization from the therapist. For students in the residential program, weekend, holiday and vacation passes are determined by the therapist in consultation with the treatment team

• VISIT the MCPS homepage.
• CALL 240-740-3000. Staff take calls from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Fridays, in English and Spanish (240-740-2845).
• READ news and information sent via email and text message and on the MCPS News page.
• FOLLOW the MCPS social media pages:
  x.com/mcps / facebook.com/mcpsmd / instagram.com/mcps_md
  facebook.com/mcpsespanol / x.com/MCPSEspanol / instagram.com/mcpsenespanol
• SIGN UP for emails and text alerts and make sure your ParentVue information is up to date.
• WATCH the MCPS cable channels Comcast 34 (1071 HD), Verizon 36 or RCN 89

Email: jada_langston@mcpsmd.org
Website: https://rica-school.mcpsmd.org/
Text/phone: 301-251-6900