ROCKVILLE, Md. — Montgomery County recently announced that their camps this summer are canceled even as Maryland inches toward a Phase 1 of the reopening process.
County officials announced Wednesday that all summer camps and programs are canceled and customer pre-payments will be refunded. Officials said they are also developing contingency plans for new camps in a COVID-19 environment.
Montgomery County Recreation said they will have new safety standards in place for all programs and services as it plans for eventual re-openings following the COVID-19 health crisis.
In addition, facility rentals through May 31 have been canceled and registrations for summer activities and classes have been postponed until further notice.
"Our team is ready to provide services and welcome the community back to our facilities, but we will not do so until it is safe," Montgomery County Recreation Director Robin Riley, Director said. "Once we receive guidance from state officials, we will work closely with our local public health officials to determine the appropriate methods and timing to reopen our facilities and programs."
County recreation officials said they are continuing to follow Maryland and Montgomery County guidelines regarding the reopening of facilities and programs.
Leaders said they are working on restructuring a new set of summer camp offerings if guidelines will eventually allow those programs this year. The department also has launched a new "Virtual Rec Room" that offers hundreds of ideas for creative family fun.
Just this week, The Montgomery County Board of Education voted on a new grading system for online learning for students.
The board voted seven-to-one in favor of counting a higher letter grade than the previous marking period number three.
Essentially, if a student had a "C" last semester, they will have a "B" to end the school year. Board members believe this will help students improve their GPAs, or accept a pass if they had a grade lower than a "C."
This system is for both the fourth marking period and the overall semester. There is no word on how the grading system will look next school year.