Evidentiary Hearings Booked For Legal Fight Against Wootton High School Relocation

ROCKVILLE, MD — A community coalition legally challenging the Montgomery County school board's decision to relocate hundreds of students to a new campus will have evidentiary hearings in December.

The latest update from the Community and Education Policy Alliance Inc. states the hearings will take place Dec. 8-10.

"We are moving forward toward a full evidentiary hearing on the merits, and we actually set the roadmap for getting there," the statement reads. "That means discovery, documents/exhibits, witnesses and testimony — we will have the opportunity to put our evidence before the judge and make our case."

"While no ruling has yet been made on the ultimate merits of the appeal, the case could have implications for school communities throughout Maryland," the alliance wrote.

Related:

• MoCo Residents Turn Out For 'Save Wootton' Rally
• Coalition Challenges MCPS' Wootton HS Decision

CEPA's legal challenge came after the Montgomery County Board of Education voted 7-1 in March to adopt its new regional model and school attendance zones, which would require students at Thomas S. Wootton High School in Rockville to attend the Crown High School in Gaithersburg.

The school change would see the Rockville high school used as a holding school while maintenance and improvement projects are carried out at aging buildings. Wootton High School is among many county buildings requiring upgrades.

School officials have also argued that the new changes would help address overcrowding concerns and balance school enrollments.

The March adoption, according to CEPA, was made by the school board despite a lack of "transparency, consistency, and meaningful community input."

"Families repeatedly raised concerns about rushed timelines, late-stage changes, and inadequate opportunities for stakeholder engagement — concerns that were simply ignored," the group said in March.

CEPA previously filed an emergency request with the Maryland Department of Education for a temporary pause on the school board's decision, but was ultimately denied due to the timing of the relocation enforcement. The school relocation won't take effect until the 2027-2028 school year.

CEPA's appeal advanced to the Maryland Office of Administrative Hearings in July.