WASHINGTON – More students across the D.C. region headed back to school Monday, part of a growing national trend to get kids back in class earlier in the year.
Students from Montgomery County in Maryland, Loudoun County in Virginia and students in D.C. public schools returned to class, joining thousands of their peers from local school districts who have already been in school since last week.
More than 68,000 students will be in class in Loudoun county, which is more than double what the school district had just 12 years ago — when today’s seniors entered kindergarten.
The district opened two new schools: Frederick Douglass Elementary in Leesburg and John Champe High school in Aldie.
It’s a sign of how quickly Loudoun County continues to grow. Some of the neighborhoods around the school are still under construction and still have dirt roads.
In Montgomery County, drivers are reminded that some of the school buses are equipped with cameras on stop sign arms. Drivers who blow past a stopped school bus face a $250 fine.
Students in Prince George’s and Calvert counties in Maryland and Fauquier and Spotsylvania counties in Virginia returned to school last week.
Other Maryland school districts that welcomed students Monday include Frederick, Howard, Anne Arundel and Charles counties.
Most Virginia schools systems will reopen after Labor Day.
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WTOP’s Hank Silverberg and Kristi King contributed to this report. Follow WTOP on Twitter.
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