Executive Summary

Garrett County Public Schools (GCPS) is rated "Meets" across all five Blueprint pillars. Governance milestones are solid: the Accountability and Implementation Board (AIB) approved all seven components of the 2024 Blueprint Implementation Plan on October 24, 2024^[1], approved the 2025 Career Ladder on November 20, 2025 with no further revisions required^[2], and approved FY26 Release of Funds in December 2025^[3]. Pre-K3 expanded from 2 to 6 classrooms, 5 of them run jointly with Head Start^[4], and 212 children were publicly funded in Pre-K in 2025-26^[5].

Student outcomes are improving. Grades 3-8 ELA proficiency reached 51.5% in 2025-26 (up from a 44.2% baseline), and Grade 3 ELA proficiency reached 53.3% (up from 43.1%)^[5]. Grades 3-8 math proficiency rose to 34.3% from a 27% baseline but remains below the 35% threshold^[5]. Community schools grew from 0 to 5 between SY21-22 and SY24-25^[3], and community school chronic absenteeism fell from 22% to 18.2%^[6]. Teacher retention reached 75.2%, and new teacher retention rose from 58.8% to 73.1% in SY24-25, second-highest among Maryland LEAs^[5][6].

Several areas need attention. All-school chronic absenteeism rose to 22.9%^[5], and only 3 of 8 programs were budgeted to meet Minimum School Funding for FY26 as of December 2025^[5]. The mixed-delivery Pre-K system is still nascent, National Board Certification (NBC) achievement fell from 14 to 4, and the minimum teacher salary of $57,098 remains below the $60,000 requirement^[5]. Proficiency gaps for students with disabilities and economically disadvantaged students also persist.