DCPS School Planning

In April and May 2025, members of the CWG for the New Middle School on Euclid St built knowledge about DCPS through visits to four DCPS schools: MacFarland MS, Cardozo EC, Eliot-Hine MS, and Columbia Heights Education Campus. (For more details about the new school, check out our post about the FY25 budget).

On April 9, a group visited MacFarland MS and learned about middle school arts programming. Mary Lambert, DCPS Director of Arts, joined the visit and provided the group with an overview of DCPS’ arts curriculum (including dance, drama, music and visual arts). The visit coincided with the school’s Spring Arts Showcase and the group had an opportunity to briefly attend that event. 

On April 24, a group visited Cardozo EC to learn more about high school course offerings, CTE (Career and Technical Education) pathways and sports. Principal Mola and a group of students joined the group to talk about their experience at Cardozo.

On May 6, a group visited Eliot-Hine MS to learn about how they build school culture. Attendees joined grade 6 and 7 advisory classes, a social-emotional learning strategy in which small groups meet weekly to explore discussion questions and activities. In addition, DCPS Coordinator of Middle School CTE Amber Terry joined the group to share an overview of the current CTE (Career and Technical Education) offerings at DCPS middle schools.

On May 13, at Columbia Heights EC a group visited 6^th grade academic classrooms to learn more about the school’s dual language immersion program and project-based learning. Attendees visited a few 6^th grade classrooms (band, choir, art and physical health), the middle school library and Model UN room.

On April 9, 2025, DC Public Schools (DCPS) hosted the New Middle School on Euclid St Community Working Group (CWG) April meeting. (For more details about the new school, check out our posts about the FY25 budget and the March meeting.)    
 
During the meeting, the DCPS Facilities team provided an overview of the scope and timeline for the construction of the new middle school (located at 800 Euclid St NW). The team also shared the new school’s education specifications document, linked here, and you can learn more about the modernization project here. 

The group also discussed ways in which they would collect feedback from their community about the design of the building and middle school programming options. 

You can view the meeting recording here and the presentation here (English), here (Spanish), here (Chinese), here (Amharic). The next CWG meeting is scheduled for May 14, 2025. 

To ensure that the community remains informed on the new middle school opening on Euclid St in School Year 2028-2029, DCPS has formed a Community Working Group (CWG) composed of 23 parents, community members, and school staff. For more details about how representatives were chosen, see this blog post about the CWG member application process. 

Members of the CWG for the new middle school on Euclid St will have three primary roles:   

1. Build knowledge about middle school in DCPS and share updates with members of the community they represent.    

2. Collect feedback from members of the community they represent.    

3. Based on collected feedback, provide insight into the priorities of prospective students, family members, and community members during CWG meetings.    

The group will meet regularly over the next three years until the school opens in School Year (SY) 2028-2029. If you have questions or ideas about the new middle school, please contact the representative for your community, listed below: 

On March 12, 2025, DC Public Schools (DCPS) hosted the New Middle School on Euclid St Community Working Group (CWG) March meeting. (For more details about the new school, check out our posts about the FY25 budget and the December 2024 community engagement kick-off event.)  

The meeting opened with introductions and a discussion of the group’s purpose and an outline of the role of CWG members. Greg Dohmann, the DCPS Senior Director of Graduation Success Initiatives, was a guest speaker and provided an overview of DCPS’ middle school offerings to build the group’s foundational knowledge. 

You can view the meeting recording here and the presentation here (English), here (Spanish), here (Chinese) and here (Amharic).

The next CWG meeting is scheduled for April 9, 2025. This spring, CWG members will also visit DCPS middle schools and will plan opportunities to get feedback from the communities they represent.  

On Wednesday, February 26, 2025, DCPS hosted a meet-and-greet for members of the New Middle School on Euclid St Community Working Group (CWG) – the first in a series of planning meetings for the new school that will open at 800 Euclid St NW. (For more details about the new school, check out our posts about the FY25 budget, the December 2024 community engagement kick-off event, and the CWG member application process.) 

The CWG is composed of 23 representatives, including parents, community members, and school staff. The group will meet regularly over the next three years until the school opens in School Year 2028-2029. The finalized list of members will be posted here, on the School Planning Blog, in the coming weeks so that community members know who to contact with questions and ideas.  

The next CWG meeting will be held virtually on March 12, 2025. A recording of the meeting and all meeting materials will be publicly available and posted to this blog. If you have questions about the new middle school, please email our team at dcps.planning@k12.dc.gov.