Churchill and Wootton cluster families are seeing lower semester grades after Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) switched to numerical grade averaging for all secondary students this school year.

The district replaced its longtime letter-grade semester formula with straight numerical averages for students in grades six through 12. Under the old method, a student who earned an A one quarter and a B the next still received an A for the semester. Now the two marking-period percentages are averaged directly, and the result often lands lower.

An opinion piece published Wednesday, Sept. 9, on Moderately MOCO, a community blog, put the issue in sharp terms. Author Ahana Samantray, an intern contributor, argued that MCPS was right to curb grade inflation but moved too fast for students already deep into high school.

One Richard Montgomery junior quoted in the piece said the new formula cost a letter grade in an AP course: "I got an A the first quarter … but then a B the second quarter … and I ended up getting a semester B."

That math checks out. Under the old formula, an A paired with a B still yielded an A. Under the new system, averaging 92.5 and 85 produces 88.75, a B.

The grading change is part of a broader overhaul MCPS announced in a June 12, 2025, community update. The district said the revisions would increase consistency and strengthen expectations across schools. New rules also cover reassessments, late work, due dates and districtwide assessments during the second and fourth marking periods for select courses. Students now receive at least two reassessment opportunities per marking period for eligible work.

The MCPS Board of Education discussed the changes at its April 10, 2025, meeting, according to the Moderately MOCO piece. The revised regulation, known as IKARA, was published July 3, 2025. By August 2025, the district was reminding families the new rules would take effect that fall.

The policy applies directly to Potomac schools. Cabin John Middle School, part of the Churchill cluster, posted its own notice directing parents to the MCPS grading page and a one-page summary. Churchill and Wootton high school students face the same formula shift, though no students from those schools were quoted in the opinion piece.

Students quoted in the piece attended Richard Montgomery, Montgomery Blair and Walter Johnson. Several said the system itself is fairer but that the rollout left them scrambling. One Blair junior said teachers never explained how grading would change. A Walter Johnson senior called the timing unfair, saying students who graduated before the switch got to finish under the rules they knew.

MCPS hosted a webinar Sept. 25, 2025, featuring local college admissions directors to explain how the new grading policy would affect applications. The district's grading and reporting page states that report cards now show each student's course percentage alongside the letter grade.

No public comment window or upcoming board meeting focused on reviewing the grading policy has been announced. MCPS has not publicly responded to the student concerns raised in the opinion piece.