Montgomery County Public Schools eliminated the chief of security and compliance position held by former Police Chief Marcus Jones, saying the move was driven by the need to find $36 million in cost savings after a budget request was not fully funded. Parents
The day the news broke, parents didn’t react to a policy change in the abstract—they reacted to what it could mean for the safety of their kids on a normal school day.
Montgomery County Public Schools has eliminated the chief of security and compliance position held by former Police Chief Marcus Jones. a move the district described as budget-driven. according to school spokeswoman Liliana Lopez. The decision comes months after shootings at two county high schools: Wootton High School in February and James Hubert Blake High School in April.
“The news that Marcus Jones’ position is being cut really goes to show the impact of budget decisions,” Bridgid Howe, president of the Montgomery County Council of PTAs, told WTOP.
The district’s fiscal and academic year ended with a push to identify $36 million in cost savings after the superintendent’s budget request was not fully funded by the county council.
For Howe, the timing is what stings. She said safety and security must remain a top priority for the system, and she wants clarity on what comes next—especially after recent shootings.
“Safety and security should 100% be a top priority for the system, and I’m eager to hear what the plan is going to be without it being a chief-level position,” Howe said. “It’s important that the system explain what the new structure is going to look like in order to support schools.”
Lopez. in an email to WTOP. said the Department of School Safety and Security is being “restructured into the Department of School Safety. embedded within the Division of School Leadership and Improvement.” She added that there will be no operational changes at the school building level. and that security staff will still report to their building principals.
Even with those assurances, Howe said the shift is already causing concern among families. She wants Superintendent Thomas Taylor to spell out the new structure so parents can be reassured their children can be safe every day in school buildings.
“It’s not just about children of course, it’s about staff as well,” Howe said, “and it really needs to be a top priority.”
Howe also said the superintendent’s office deserves credit for transparency about safety and security than in the past. She pointed to after-action reports released following the shootings at Wootton and Blake.
“That, I think, is progress,” Howe said.
The district has offered a structural explanation—moving the safety-and-security department within the broader Division of School Leadership and Improvement while keeping day-to-day reporting at the building level. But for parents still grappling with the memory of the February and April shootings. the question now isn’t only where security sits on an organizational chart. It’s whether the system can preserve its urgency for safety while absorbing financial cuts.
Montgomery County Public Schools Marcus Jones chief of security and compliance Liliana Lopez Thomas Taylor $36 million cost savings school safety Wootton High School shooting James Hubert Blake High School shooting PTA