MCPS staff can obtain MCPS-specific forms and information related to 10&Es and appeals by visiting the Division of Appeals Staff Resource Webpage.
CESC
850 Hungerford Drive
Room 43
Rockville 20850
240-740-4130
DivisionofAppeals@mcpsmd.org
Individual staff numbers and email addresses can be found here.
The Division of Appeals processes the following appeals:
For more information regarding student transfer appeals, such as COSA denials and COSA rescission, please click here.
For more information regarding CFPs, please click here.
MCPS has the authority and reserves the right to reassign a student to a different school or alternative instructional program for safety reasons. This is referred to as an administrative placement. A student may be recommended for an administrative placement by the student’s principal, following an extended suspension or expulsion, or directly by the superintendent. Administrative placements via principal recommendations and following an extended suspension or expulsion are made through the Office of School Support and Improvement (OSSI).
For more information regarding administrative placement processes and criteria, view MCPS Regulation JEE-RA, Student Transfers and Administrative Placements.
OSSWB Administrative Placements
Parents/Guardians may appeal the OSSWB decision to administratively place their child. Appeals must be sent to the DivisionofAppeals@mcpsmd.org within 15 calendar days of the placement decision.
Parents/Guardians may appeal the superintendent’s decision to administratively place their child. Apples must be sent to BOEappeals@mcpsmd.org within 10 calendar days following the placement decision.
Parents/Guardians may request a review of the new school assignment from the administrative placement if they believe the assignment creates an undue hardship for the family or precludes opportunities for the student's overall school success, including positive peer relationship and engagement in the school community.
To request a review of the new school assignment, send a written request to the director of the Division of Pupil Personnel and Attendance Services (DPPAS). If the DPPAS director determines that the new school assignment does not create an undue hardship, parents/guardians may appeal to the Division of Appeals within 15 calendar days. Send all administrative placement and new school of assignment review documentation to DivisionofAppeals@mcpsm.org.
Students who transfer out of their current feeder pattern through a COSA must attend the new school of assignment for one calendar year before being eligible to participate in MCPS interscholastic athletics, unless granted an athletic waiver.
If exceptional circumstances exist, a parent/guardian may appeal the ineligibility rule by applying for an athletic waiver by emailing Anne_M_Rossiter@mcpsmd.org. Please note: Athletic waivers are not considered until the COSA has been approved.
Students who change school assignments within the Downcounty Consortium (DCC), Northeast Consortium (NEC), or an administrative transfer do not need to apply for an athletic waiver. They are permitted to participate in MCPS interscholastic athletics at their new school of assignment:
More information on the athletic waiver process can be found here, or by contacting the Department of Systemwide Athletics at 240-740-5650.
View MCPS Regulation IQA-RA, Administration of the High School Interscholastic Athletic Programs, MCPS Regulation JEE-RA, Student Transfers and Administrative Placements, and the Change of School Assignment (COSA) Information Booklet.
Upon receipt of the decision from the Department of Systemwide Athletics, a parent/guardian may file an appeal of that decision to the Division of Appeals at DivisionofAppeals@mcpsmd.org. Appeals must be submitted within 15 days of the date noted on your decision letter. Be sure to include your denial letter, reason for appeal, and supporting documentation.
Per MCPS Policy JEB, Early Entrance to Prekindergarten, Kindergarten, and First Grade, Children must be five years old prior to September 1 to enroll in kindergarten. Children who will turn five years old between September 2 and October 15 may apply for early entrance to kindergarten and will be assessed by a trained assessor at the local school. If, after being assessed, they are denied early entrance to kindergarten, families may appeal the decision to the chief of districtwide operations.
Children must be six years old prior to September 1 to enroll in Grade 1. Children who turn six years old between September 2 and October 15 may apply for early entrance to first grade and will be assessed by a trained assessor at the local school. If, after being assessed, they are denied early entrance to first grade, families may appeal the decision to the chief of districtwide operations.
More information regarding the early entrance process can be found via the Office of Curriculum and Instructional Programs or by contacting DECPS directly at 240-740-5430.
Provide a written statement of appeal to the DivisionofAppeals@mcpsmd.org.
A student’s parents/guardians* must provide proof of residency for their child to receive free public education at the school assigned to that geographic area. If a principal determines that a student does not have a bona fide residence within that school’s catchment area, or within Montgomery County, Maryland, the student will not be permitted to remain enrolled at that school.
*Please note, children living with guardians may be considered a nonresident student, depending on the reason for guardianship. For example, students are considered nonresident students if guardianship was solely obtained for the purpose of enrolling the child in MCPS. Nonresident students may be required to pay tuition to attend MCPS. For more information regarding guardianship, residency, and enrollment, view MCPS Regulation JEA-RE, Tuition-based Enrollment and MCPS Regulation JEA-RB, Enrollment of Students.
Per MCPS Regulation JEA-RB, Enrollment of Students, upon residency verification, if a a principal determines that a student does not have a bona fide residence within Montgomery County, Maryland, the student will not be permitted to enroll or remain enrolled in MCPS and/or the current school of assignment. The principal will provide the parent/guardian with a written enrollment denial letter.
For more information, contact the Residency Office at the Department of International Admissions and Enrollment (IAE) at 240-740-4500.
If you wish to appeal the principal’s decision to no longer permit your child to attend school at that location, forward the written enrollment denial letter and a letter of appeal to the DivisionofAppeals@mcpsmd.org.
During the appeal process for residency, the student may remain at the current school of enrollment.
If the superintendent of schools/designee denies the appeal, the student will be withdrawn from the school of enrollment. If the parent/guardian chooses to appeal to the Board of Education, they are encouraged to enroll their child at the school within the catchment area of their bona fide residence during the appeal process. Parents/guardians residing outside of Montgomery County, who wish for their child to attend MCPS during the Board of Education appeal process, may be required to pay 10% of the yearly tuition, as described in MCPS Regulation JEA-RE, Tuition-based Enrollment. Tuition will be refunded in whole or in part if the original decision is reversed or modified.
If the the superintendent of schools/designee determined the student resides outside of Montgomery County
MCPS Form 560-24B, Quick Guide to Enrollment
Transportation is provided to eligible students based on their grade level and the distance of their bone fide place of residence to their school of assignment. Transportation eligibility is based on Board Policy EEA, Student Transportation, MCPS Regulation EEA, Student Transportation, and special education law.
If there is an inquiry, concern, or complaint regarding student transportation, the parent is encouraged to discuss the matter with the transportation cluster manager. Contact information for transportation cluster managers can be found here.
If the concern is not resolved by the cluster supervisor, parents/guardians may file a formal complaint to the director of the Department of Transportation. Per MCPS Regulation EEA-RA, Student Transportation, the director of the Department of Transportation may deny a family's inquiry, concern, or complaint regarding student transportation.
For more information you may contact the Department of Transportation at 240-740-6200.
If a parent/guardian disagrees with the decision of the director of the Department of Transportation, the parent/guardian can file an appeal directly to the Division of Appeals. Forward the Department of Transportation denial letter and a letter of appeal to DivisionofAppeals@mcpmsd.org.
Students of parents/guardians residing in Montgomery County, Maryland with a bona fide place of residence are eligible to receive free public education from MCPS. Students who do not reside in Montgomery County, Maryland, but wish to attend MCPS may apply to do so as a nonresident, tuition paying student.
Per MCPS Regulation JEA-RE, Tuition-based Enrollment, nonresident students whose parents, or court-ordered custodians, do not have bona fide residency in Montgomery County may apply to attend MCPS as a nonresident, tuition paying student. Families may apply for a tuition waiver, due to a unique hardship, through the Division of International Admissions and Enrollment (IAE). Criteria for qualifying unique hardships can be found in MCPS Regulation JEA-RE, Tuition-based Enrollment.
For more information, contact the Residency Office at the Department of International Admissions and Enrollment (IAE) at 240-740-4500.
If their tuition waiver is denied by IAE, parents/guardians may appeal the decision by forwarding their denial letter and a letter of appeal to DivisionofAppeals@mcpsmd.org.
MCPS Form 335-73a, Request to Enroll Nonresident, Tuition-paying Student