New plan aims to cut down on drug use, fighting in Montgomery County school bathrooms

MCPS announces new plan to monitor bathrooms

There's a new plan going into effect to cut down on bad behavior in Montgomery County Public School bathrooms including vaping, drug use and fighting. FOX 5's Tom Fitzgerald reports from Rockville.

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Md. (FOX 5 DC) - There's a new plan going into effect to cut down on bad behavior in Montgomery County Public School bathrooms including vaping, drug use and fighting.

Under the new "Student Restroom Monitoring Plan," MCPS staff will be increasing checks inside restrooms, installing latches on exterior restroom doors so they can't be locked shut and limiting access to designated restrooms.

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MCPS spokesperson Christopher Cram says it's a security priority.

"If bathrooms are a place where that may happen, what are we doing to ensure that we change that behavior?" he says. "It’s the simplest thing that we can do most immediately."

MCPS to address bathroom safety concerns as parents voice frustrations

Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School parents attended a meeting Monday night with Montgomery County Public Schools leaders.

Last year, a student was shot inside a Magruder High School bathroom and recently, two students were found passed out in a Bethesda Chevy Chase High School bathroom.

Students say vaping, fighting and even marijuana use isn't uncommon. Parents have voiced skepticism and doubts that this behavior can be stopped.

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In a district-wide email on Friday, MCPS says as part of this effort, they are also going to be zeroing in on what they called "unstructured times" which are during transition periods such as before school, after school and during lunch periods.