The Memo this week focuses on how our lives have changed and how to get what we need. We start with food for our kids and move on to other matters like health care access (Maryland reopens enrollment). News of our Progressive Maryland chapters and action priorities as the General Assembly moves to adjourn this Wednesday – in other words, our regular Memo details including our blog posts --are tucked in below the lead section on access to necessities in the health emergency.
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Progressive Maryland weekly memo for Monday march 16 2020
The Memo this week focuses on how our lives have changed and how to get what we need. We start with food for our kids and move on to other matters like health care access (Maryland reopens enrollment). News of our Progressive Maryland chapters and action priorities as the General Assembly moves to adjourn this Wednesday – in other words, our regular Memo details including our blog posts --are tucked in below the lead section on access to necessities in the health emergency.
INFORMATION ON ACCESS TO HUMAN NEEDS IN MARYLAND DURING THE COVID-19 EMERGENCY
FOOD FIRST
Meals made available to students at area Prince George's County Public Schools
PGCPS will provide “grab and go” lunches at regional locations from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. daily during the statewide school closures (March 16-27). Students may get a sack lunch at one of the following locations:
Martin Luther King Jr. Middle School, Beltsville
William Wirt Middle School, Riverdale Park
Nicholas Orem Middle School, Hyattsville
Kenmoor Middle School, Landover
Benjamin Tasker Middle School, Bowie
Walker Mill Middle School, Capitol Heights
Drew-Freeman Middle School, Suitland
Thurgood Marshall Middle School, Temple Hills
Stephen Decatur Middle School, Clinton
 PGCPS proveerá almuerzos en bolsa para llevar en ubicaciones regionales entre 11 a.m. a 1 p.m. diariamente durante los cierres de escuelas estatales (Marzo 16-27). Los estudiantes pueden obtener un almuerzo en una de las siguientes ubicaciones: (supra)
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If you need further assistance or have additional questions regarding the coronavirus, please contact the County's hotline at 301-883-6267 from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday thru Friday. Also for the the latest updates you may go to www.health.mypgc.us/coronavirus.
Montgomery County Public Schools Division of Food and Nutrition Services will provide free meals to children in 20 community locations in a method similar to their Summer Feeding program.
- Arcola Elementary, 1820 Franwall Avenue, Silver Spring
- Captain James Daly Elementary, 20301 Brandermill Dr., Germantown
- Harmony Hall Elementary, 13407 Lydia St., Silver Spring
- Jackson Road Elementary, 900 Jackson Rd., Silver Spring
- JoAnn Leleck at Broad Acres Elementary, 710 Beacon Rd., Silver Spring
- Rolling Terrace Elementary, 705 Bayfield St., Silver Spring
- Roscoe Nix Elementary, 1100 Corliss St., Silver Spring
- Judith Resnik Elementary, 7301 Hadley Farms Dr. Gaithersburg
- Weller Road Elementary, 3301 Weller Rd., Silver Spring
- Argyle Middle, 2400 Bel Pre Rd., Silver Spring
- Forest Oak Middle, 651 Saybrooke Oaks Blvd., Gaithersburg
- Gaithersburg Middle, 2 Teachers Way, Gaithersburg
- Parkland Middle, 4610 W. Frankfort Dr., Rockville
- Earle B. Wood, 14615 Bauer Dr., Rockville
- Montgomery Blair High, 51 University Blvd. East, Silver Spring
- Clarksburg High, 22500 Wims Rd., Clarksburg
- Albert Einstein High, 11135 Newport Miller Rd., Kensington
- Northwest High, 13501 Richter Farm Rd, Germantown
- Paint Branch High, 14121 Old Columbia Pike, Burtonsville
- Watkins Mill High, 10301 Apple Ridge Rd., Gaithersburg
Anne Arundel County Schools will provide lunches to students during the two-week school shutdown beginning Monday, March 16. Curbside pickup of hot meals along with a snack will be provided to students at 31 school sites from noon to 12:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. Mobile meals vehicles will deliver meals to 21 additional sites, two schools and six communities, on weekdays as well. Each child will be provided with a single meal free of charge each day. Children must be between the ages of 2 and 18, but do not have to be eligible for free and reduced-price meals. Adults cannot accept meals on behalf of children.
The following schools will serve as meal sites:
- Annapolis High
- Annapolis Middle
- Bates Middle
- Belle Grove Elementary
- Brooklyn Park Elementary
- Brooklyn Park Middle
- Carrie Weedon Early Education Center
- Eastport Elementary
- Freetown Elementary
- George Cromwell Elementary
- Georgetown East Elementary
- Germantown Elementary
- Glen Burnie High
- Glen Burnie Park Elementary
- Glendale Elementary
- Lothian Elementary
- MacArthur Middle
- Marley Elementary
- Meade Heights Elementary
- Meade Middle
- Mills Parole Elementary
- North County High
- North Glen Elementary
- Old Mill Middle North
- Park Elementary
- Point Pleasant Elementary
- Rippling Woods Elementary
- Southgate Elementary
- Tyler Heights Elementary
- Van Bokkelen Elementary
- Woodside Elementary
Children can pick up meals at the following Mobile Meals sites and times:
- Brock Bridge Elementary, 12:25 to 12:40 p.m.
- Maryland City Elementary, 12:50 to 1:05 p.m.
- Annapolis Gardens, 1845 Bowman Court, Annapolis, 10:45 to 11:00 a.m.
- Bywater Community, 1901 Copeland Street, Annapolis, 11:15 to 11:30 a.m.
- Woodside Gardens, 701 Newtown Drive, 11:45 a.m. to noon
- Hilltop Village, 2 Heritage Court, Annapolis, 12:15 to 12:30 p.m.
- Congregation Kneseth Israel, 1125 Spa Road, Annapolis, 12:45 to 1:00 p.m.
- Admiral Farragut, 205 Boxwood Road @ Boxwood Court, 1:15 to 1:30 p.m.
- Maryland City @ Russett Community Library, 3501 Russett Common, Laurel, noon to 12:15 p.m.
- Maryland Manor, 1500 Berkley Court, Harwood, 10:50 to 11:05 a.m.
- Rio Vista, 900 Margarita Street, Lothian, 11:20 to 11:35 a.m.
- Patuxent Mobile, 121 Patuxent Mobile Estate, Lothian, 11:45 a.m. to noon
- Wayson Woods, 125 Main Street, Lothian, 12:15 to 12:30 p.m.
- Cedar Morris, 351 Arundel Corporation Road, Glen Burnie, 11:00 to 11:15 a.m.
- The Willows Apartments, 116 Warwickshire Lane @ Harris & Allen Road, Glen Burnie, 11:30 to 11:45 a.m.
- Heritage Hill, 6399 Continental Drive & Heritage Hill Drive, Glen Burnie, noon to 12:15 p.m.
- Pumphrey Center, 5757 Belle Grove Road, Baltimore, 12:35 to 12:50 p.m.
- Pioneer City, 8443 Pioneer Drive, Severn, 11:00 to 11:15 a.m.
- Spring Meadows, 8311 Still Meadows Drive, Severn, 11:20 to 11:35 a.m.
- Still Meadows, 8201 Averill Court, Severn, 11:40 to 11:55 a.m.
- Meade Village, 1710 Meade Village Circle, Severn, noon to 12:15 p.m.
BALTIMORE CITY SCHOOLS MEAL AVAILABILITY
(From WJZ-13 on March 13) Here’s how to get a free meal from Baltimore City Schools while they are closed:
The schools will operate eight emergency food distribution sites across the city the week of March 16-20 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Friday. Free meals will be available for students ages 18 and under, as well as people with disabilities over the age of 18 who participate in school programs. The food will be in the form of take-out or grab-and-go packages.
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Sandtown-Winchester Achievement Academy
701 Gold Street
Dorothy I. Height Elementary School
2011 Linden Avenue 21217
Alexander Hamilton Elementary School
800 Poplar Grove Street
The Historic Cherry Hill Elementary/Middle School
801 Bridgeview Road
Yorkwood Elementary School
5931 Yorkwood Road
John Ruhrah Elementary/Middle School
701 Rappolla Street
Arlington Elementary School
3705 W Rogers Ave
Beechfield Elementary/Middle School
301 S Beechfield Avenue
Sinclair Lane Elementary School
3880 Sinclair Lane
Paul Laurence Dunbar High School
1400 Orleans Street
The district will also be working closely with our partners and Baltimore City’s Emergency Food Working Group to identify additional options for meals the week of March 23.
Also, the list is available here.
Student meal availability in Charles, Howard and Frederick counties is also available at this link.
ACCESS TO HEALTH CARE
MD HEALTH INSURANCE ENROLLMENT WINDOW REOPENS
People without health insurance in Maryland will have a chance to purchase it starting today (Monday March 16) as the state opens a special enrollment window because of the coronavirus crisis. Policies can be purchased through the Maryland Health Benefit Exchange, the state’s marketplace that sells individual policies. Many residents are eligible for subsidies. The policies are normally only available during the traditional open-enrollment period in the fall, but Gov. Larry Hogan (R) ordered the exchange to reopen them now; the enrollment window is open till April 15.
OTHER SERVICE CHANGES AND INFORMATION OPPORTUNITIES
In Prince George’s
M-NCPPC, Department of Parks and Recreation Proactively Closes Facilities and Cancels Programs and Events in the Interest of Public Health and Safety. Please click here to read the full press release. For additional information about Covid-19, please visit http://pgparks.com/4826/COVID-19-Information
Prince George’s County Memorial Library System announced it is closing facilities today (Monday March 16)
Tomorrow, (Tuesday, March 17)  Prince George's County is hosting a Tele-Town Hall at 6:30 PM to update County employees and residents on the County Government’s response to COVID-19. If you would like to join the call, you can register here.
Montgomery County
MoCo Ride On buses will be free beginning today (Monday March 16). Passengers are asked to use the rear doors and preserve healthy social distancing. Here’s a full list of closings and service changes in Montgomery County
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BI-COUNTY SERVICES (PRINCE GEORGE’S AND MONTGOMERY
WSSC has announced suspension of water shutoffs in its bi-county service area; Pepco likewise will suspend service cutoffs and late fees.
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IN BALTIMORE CITY
Here’s a spreadsheet for mutual aid initiatives and contacts in the Baltimore region:
Baltimore Mutual Aid and Emergency Relief Fund: https://www.facebook.com/donate/201582851152373/HEALTH CARE
PROGRESSIVE MARYLAND – OUR CHAPTERS AROUND THE STATE
Progressive Prince George’sÂ
State Update and Action Needed:
The State House voted to fully fund the Blueprint (Kirwan Commission) and its game-changing recommendations for Maryland’s public school system. The Senate also took action but stopped short of full funding citing concerns about the COVID-19 emergency and possible negative implications for the state’s economy.  We remain committed to the reforms and investments our public schools need and note that House leaders say that the policies and funding can be adjusted in the future if the state faces economic problems
The legislative session will end this week on March 18th with the expectation that our elected officials will return for another week of lawmaking in late May. For more information and ways to support the Blueprint:
https://www.strongschoolsmaryland.org/
Thank you for taking action on these issues even during these challenging times. Please contact Patty Snee at [email protected]  if you want to learn more and get involved in Prince George’s activism in support of world-class schools.
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 MOCO Update March 16, 2020
Important education issues, both state and local, continue to be a key focus of our Montgomery County organizing even as we adjust our outreach methods and schedules to follow local, state and national COVID- 19 recommendations and guidelines.
Local Update and Action Needed:
On the local level we’ve been supporting the Montgomery County Education Association’s call to the School District and the County Council and Executive to fully fund our public schools. MCEA is in the midst of contract negotiations with MCPS.  At two recent bargaining sessions, the Education Association’s President, Chris Lloyd, stressed the need to increase funding by $100 million over maintenance of effort to meet critical staffing and program needs in our schools.
We joined MCEA staff and teachers at a Parent Community Meeting on March 11 and received updates on the contract negotiations. Negotiation sessions scheduled for this week have been canceled but you can support our teachers by signing the petition and sharing with other County residents.
 https://actionnetwork.org/petitions/fund-our-schools-2020?fbclid=IwAR29Ds964p2fCRYG1x2W3FqatpTtGgiDpHbCl2kAuRiKS9uKLRcXqnGs4wM
   Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich and our nine Council Members also play a critical role in determining school funding. Please urge them to vote for full funding for our schools.
https://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/COUNCIL/members/index.html
State Update and Action Needed:
The State House voted to fully fund the Blueprint (Kirwan Commission) and its game-changing recommendations for Maryland’s public school system. The Senate also took action but stopped short of full funding citing concerns about the COVID-19 emergency and possible negative implications for the state’s economy.  We remain committed to the reforms and investments our public schools need and note that House leaders say that the policies and funding can be adjusted in the future if the state faces economic problems
The legislative session will end this week on March 18th with the expectation that our elected officials will return for another week of lawmaking in late May. For more information and ways to support the Blueprint:
https://www.strongschoolsmaryland.org/
Thank you for taking action on these issues even during these challenging times. Please Contact Josh Raznick at [email protected] or Patty Snee at [email protected]  if you want to learn more and get involved in the MOCO Chapter’s work on education and other issues.
Take Action Anne Arundel County
Lower Shore Progressive CaucusÂ
>>Baltimore progressives, Check in on the wide-ranging Baltimore Activist Alert calendar and tip sheet at http://baltimorenonviolencecenter.blogspot.com/
Reading the Progressive Maryland BlogSpace: our recent blogs are shown below, but if you want a handy way to keep track – and never miss a blog post – you can sign up to get this Weekly Memo by email. Remember this is your blogspace and your participation is heartily invited. See something going on that you don’t like – or that you do like and hope to see more of? Send us your thoughts; submit to the moderator at [email protected]
We recently published these blog posts:
March 11, 2020 COVID-19: Maryland has a secret weapon: paid sick leave
With the federal response struggling, Maryland is one of the dozen or so states where state-mandated paid sick leave can provide a faster path to channeling resources to the low-income people hardest-hit.
March 09, 2020 Progressive Maryland Weekly Memo for Monday, March 9, 2020
In the Memo this week: a roundup of the broad scope of legislation requiring attention from Maryland's progressives as the Session is nearing the home stretch; news from our chapters, events from our progressive allies, and of course our recent blog posts.
March 09, 2020 Annapolis Session Annex to Progressive Maryland Weekly Memo for Monday, March 9, 2020
Lots still going on in the Annapolis session heading toward Crossover deadline for bills to move in both chambers. Here are good pro-people bills that need to stay viable this session and need progressive Marylanders' help.
March 06, 2020 Activists, legislators press constitutional remedy for Citizens United decision
The Supreme Court's Citizens United decision (2010) has unleashed a decade of big money into political campaigns at the national and state level. Activists propose a constitutional amendment to declare corporations are not persons with first amendment rights, which finding caused the trouble in the first place. Others worry about opening up the US Constitution to amendments by forces that -- yep -- have unchecked money to spend. Here a Maryland activist argues for a long-sought Assembly resolution favoring constitutional action. We include a link to Thursday's hearing on the measure.
February 25, 2020 Public funding for state candidates will democratize a flawed electoral system
Two important bills in pursuit of Fair Elections had hearings last Friday (Feb. 20) – one, SB 613/HB1125, strengthening the existing public-financing provisions for the race for Governor and adding the state Attorney General and Controller to the program, and the second, HB1351/SB0947, sets up a Fair Elections public financing electoral process for members of the Assembly, in which small-donor contributions are matched with public funds. Progressive Maryland testified in favor of both bills last week.
Here is testimony in support of both bills before the Senate Education, Health and Environmental Affairs Committee as delivered Friday, Feb. 20 by Progressive Maryland Executive Director Larry Stafford.
>REMEMBER – these blog posts are frequently expressions of political opinion from our wide-ranging membership and circle of allies. They are not expressions of opinion by Progressive Maryland. Don’t be surprised if they sometimes vary in their political content. You might even disagree with them – a good reason to contribute a blog of your own. Send it to the moderator, Woody Woodruff, at [email protected].
>>Keeping up with the blogs is easier with the index. The blogs published in the PM BlogSpace from June 2015 through December 2016 are all available with descriptions and links here. You can follow blogs for 2017-18 starting from here
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