Support Our Schools (SOS) is encouraging parents, educators, students, alumni and community members to attend the Kent County Commissioners meeting Tuesday, September 15, at 6 p.m., when the Commissioners are expected to vote on funding a new Kent County Middle School (KCMS).
The proposal to replace KCMS is the result of nearly a decade of formal planning, studies, public input and review involving KCPS, the Board of Education, county officials, state education experts and community members. Delays have already cost an additional $2 million through inflation. We hope community turnout will show our commissioners that the time to start building is NOW.
Be There September 15
Kent County Commissioners Meeting
Tuesday, September 15, 2026
6:00 p.m.
400 High Street
Chestertown, MD 21620
Wear your favorite KCPS shirt or blue and gold to show your support.
The future of Kent County Middle School deserves the community’s attention—and the community should be in the room when its future is decided.
Some Background
As Superintendent Mary Boswell-McComas stated on September 3:
“The study and planning for the replacement of Kent County Middle School spans nearly a decade.”
The process included a 2017 Facilities Strategic Planning Committee, public hearings, school tours, stakeholder meetings, an Educational Specifications Committee, a feasibility study and evaluation of 12 planning options. A joint meeting of the Board of Education and County Commissioners was held in 2022.
Community input was also incorporated through both a community survey and a weighted site evaluation. While the initial survey showed a preference for the Worton campus, the weighted evaluation placed the greatest consideration on benefit to students and overwhelmingly favored the existing Chestertown campus with a score 6 times higher than the Worton location.
In October 2023, the Board of Education approved the recommendation to build a new middle school on the Chestertown campus. Design work followed, costs were subsequently reviewed and reduced where possible.
In October 2025, the County Commissioners drafted a “Kent County Middle School Modernization Project – Letter of Support for FY 2027 Capital Improvement Program Request” to the Maryland IAC requesting funding assistance while confirming their support for the KCMS project on the existing Chestertown site:
“We, the County Commissioners for Kent County, Maryland, support the modernization of Kent County Middle School (KCMS). As part of the FY 2025 Capital Improvement Plan (CIP), we approved design funding for replacing KCMS on the existing school site in Chestertown, Maryland. Subsequently, as part of the FY 2026 CIP, we approved construction funding for the new KCMS. KCMS is the only middle school in the County and will impact every student enrolled in Kent County Public Schools. We appreciate the Maryland Stadium Authority’s participation in managing the project, and we are encouraged by the selection and performance of the Architectural/Engineering Team and Construction Management Team.”
The Commissioners unanimously approved and signed the letter.
How Will Kent County Pay for It?
In March 2026 the IAC increased the state’s share of eligible KCMS construction costs* from 50% to 75%, plus an additional 5%. The district’s current project information estimates a $69.820 million total project cost, with approximately $39.909 million in state funding and an estimated $29.911 million total cost to Kent County.
*Soft costs for the project are 100% county funded. These include architecture, engineering, project management, furniture, fixtures, equipment and contingencies. These costs are included in the estimated $29.911 million local share.
Among the resources that have been publicly discussed:
- Approximately $29 million in the county Capital Fund, with about $6 million committed to other capital projects.
- Approximately $250,000 in new annual revenue, from the county’s recent income-tax increase, expected to grow to approximately $700,000 annually.
- Approximately $947,222 in existing annual debt service is projected to disappear by the end of FY2030 as existing obligations are retired.
- Preliminary borrowing estimates presented by the county CFO were approximately $802,500 annually for 20 years or $650,400 annually for 30 years.
Teachers and a New School: We Need Both
We absolutely need more teachers and continued investment in our educators. This isn’t an either/or choice. Students need great teachers and a safe, modern school where they can learn.
KCMS is a capital investment, while teacher salaries are part of the county’s ongoing operating budget. The two should not be treated as interchangeable.
We should continue advocating for competitive teacher salaries, adequate staffing and smaller class sizes. Kent County students deserve both the teachers they need and a school that meets their needs.
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About Support Our Schools
The Support Our Schools (SOS) Initiative is a grassroots advocacy effort established in 2016 devoted to increasing awareness of and support for the needs, challenges and potential of Kent County’s public school system, for the benefit of current students and the broader community. The SOS Facebook Group has over 2,000 members and is intended to update and inform the community, especially parents, on KCPS activities and opportunities. Support our Schools (SOS) founders are Robbi Behr, Jodi Bortz, Piers Heriz-Smith, Rebecca Heriz-Smith, Elizabeth Tussing, and Francoise Sullivan.
One Response
I will be there and am very much looking forward to it!