Schools

Public, private options available for students

Thursday, March 26, 2009

St. Mary's County offers parochial and public school education for all ages.

The public schools are governed by the St. Mary's County Board of Education. The offices are located in Leonardtown on Moakley Street. The superintendent is Michael Martirano. The chief academic officer is Linda Dudderar. The chief operational officer is Brad Clements. The school system's Web site is www.smcps.k12.md.us.

To register a child in public school, parents should call or visit the school the child will be attending to make arrangements. For information on which of the county's 24 public schools a child would attend, call the school's department of transportation at 301-475-4256, ext. 2.

For public school children, parents of first-time students, usually kindergarten or pre-kindergarten, must bring the child's birth certificate, Social Security number and immunization record with them to register their child. Parents of students transferring from another county in Maryland should bring the Maryland State Transfer Card, which should be completed by the sending school.

Parents of students transferring from another state are encouraged to bring copies of student achievement records, such as report cards, test scores and copies of special education information.

Parents interested in the county's Catholic elementary schools should contact the principal of the school for information on how to apply for admission. Most Catholic elementary schools do not require an entrance test. Most do, however, require an evaluation of children entering kindergarten. This is done to provide the school with information about the needs of a child entering school for the first time so that teachers can help him or her succeed.

To enroll in St. Mary's Ryken High School, eighth-grade students must complete the high school application form available at the school. Students in grades higher than eighth who wish to apply must contact the school directly. An official entrance test and an interview are given to all students who wish to apply.

For information on admissions and financial aid, contact the admissions director of St. Mary's Ryken or call the Archdiocesan Catholic Schools Office at 301-853-4589.

Public elementary schools

Benjamin Banneker Elementary School

27180 Point Lookout Road

Loveville, 301-475-0260

Principal Debra Bowling

Chesapeake Public Charter School

20945 Great Mills Road

Lexington Park, 301-863-9589

Acting Education Director Angela Funya

Dynard Elementary School

23510 Bushwood Road

Chaptico, 301-769-4804

Principal Kim Summers

Evergreen Elementary School

43765 Wildewood Parkway

California

Principal Kim Summers

(to open August 2009)

G.W. Carver Elementary School

46155 Carver School Blvd.

Great Mills, 301-863-4076

Principal Annette Wood

Green Holly Elementary School

46060 Millstone Landing Road

Lexington Park, 301-863-4064

Principal Paul Fancella

Greenview Knolls Elementary School

45711 Military Lane

Great Mills, 301-863-4095

Principal Elizabeth Servello

Hollywood Elementary School

44345 Joy Chapel Road

Hollywood, 301-373-4350

Principal Jennifer Gilman

Leonardtown Elementary School

22885 Duke St.

Leonardtown, 301-475-0250

Principal Denise Eichel

Lettie Marshall Dent Elementary School

37840 New Market Turner Road

Mechanicsville, 301-472-4500

Principal Barbara Eddy

Lexington Park Elementary School

46763 Shangri-La Drive

Lexington Park, 301-863-4085

Principal Susie Fowler

Mechanicsville Elementary School

28585 Three Notch Road

Mechanicsville, 301-472-4800

Principal Barbara Feeney

Oakville Elementary School

26410 Three Notch Road

Oakville, 301-373-4365

Principal Tenina Reeves

Park Hall Elementary School

20343 Hermanville Road

Park Hall, 301-863-4054

Principal Katherine Norton

Piney Point Elementary School

44550 Tall Timbers Road

Tall Timbers, 301-994-2205

Principal Kathy Woodford

Ridge Elementary School

49430 Airedale Road

Ridge, 301-872-0200

Principal Sandra Kerner

Town Creek Elementary School

45805 Dent Drive

Lexington Park, 301-863-4044

Principal Kathryn Miluski

White Marsh Elementary School

29090 Thompson Corner Road

Mechanicsville, 301-472-4600

Principal Luchrisha Flowers

Public middle schools

Esperanza Middle School

22790 Maple Road

Lexington Park, 301-863-4016

Principal Jill Snyder-Mills

Leonardtown Middle School

24015 Point Lookout Road

Leonardtown, 301-475-0230

Principal Lisa Bachner

Margaret Brent Middle School

29675 Point Lookout Road

Helen, 301-884-4635

Principal Michael Egan

Spring Ridge Middle School

19856 Three Notch Road

Lexington Park, 301-863-4031

Principal Maureen Montgomery

Public high schools

Chopticon High School

25390 Colton Point Road

Morganza, 301-475-0215

Principal Garth Bowling

Great Mills High School

21130 Great Mills Road

Great Mills, 301-863-4001

Principal Tracey Heibel

Leonardtown High School

23995 Point Lookout Road

Leonardtown, 301-475-0200

Principal David O'Neill

Dr. James A. Forrest Career

and Technology Center

24005 Point Lookout Road

Leonardtown, 301-475-0242

Principal Robert Taylor

Fairlead Academy

20833 Great Mills Road

Great Mills, 301-863-4090

Academic Dean Wendy Zimmerman

Private/parochial

Bay Montessori School

Age 2 through sixth grade

20525 Willows Road

Lexington Park, 301-737-2421

Administrator James Pool

Father Andrew White School

Grades pre-K through eighth

22850 Washington St.

Leonardtown, 301-475-9795

Principal Linda Maloney

Holy Angels-Sacred Heart

Grades pre-K through eighth

21335 Colton Point Road

Avenue, 301-769-3389

Principal Janice Walthour

(set to close at end of 2008-2009 year)

The King's Christian Academy

Grades K through 12th

20738 Point Lookout Road

Callaway, 301-994-3080

Administrator Sarah Patterson

Leonard Hall Junior Naval Academy

Grades sixth through 12th

41740 Baldridge St.

Leonardtown, 301-475-8029

Headmaster Suzanne Wisnieski

Little Flower School

Grades pre-K through eighth

20410 Point Lookout Road

Great Mills, 301-994-0404

Principal Marsha Leigh Stewart

Mother Catherine Spalding School

Grades pre-K through eighth

38833 Chaptico Road

Helen, 301-884-3165

Principal Susan Fatka

St. John's School

Grades K through eighth

43927 St. John's Road

P.O. Box 69

Hollywood, 301-373-2142

Principal Patricia Suit

St. Mary's Ryken High School

Grades ninth through 12th

22600 Camp Calvert Road

Leonardtown, 301-475-2814

Principal Rick Wood

St. Michael's School

Grades pre-K to eighth

16560 Three Notch Road

P.O. Box 259

Ridge, 301-872-5454

Principal Lila Hofmeister

Starmaker Learning Center

Age 6 weeks to third-grade

23443 Cottonwood Parkway

California, 301-863-7740

Admin. Florence and Rycourt Freeman

Victory Baptist Academy

Grades K through 12th

29855 Elorado Farm Lane

Golden Beach Road

P.O. Box 98

Charlotte Hall, 301-884-8503

Administrator John Tignor

Adult education

St. Mary's public schools' adult education program offers adult basic education/GED prep classes and English as a Second Language classes. Classes are open to anyone 16 or older who has officially withdrawn from high school.

Brochures containing a complete schedule of classes are available through the adult education center.

Information is also available on the public schools' Web site at www.smcps.org.

Classes are held at Great Mills High School, Chopticon High School, the Jarboe Building and at the College of Southern Maryland, Leonardtown campus. Orientations for GED classes are held periodically from September through April. English as a Second Language classes are open entry and classes are held at Lexington Park United Methodist Church and Great Mills High School.

For more about adult education classes, call 301-475-0213 Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.