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Talia Richman

Talia

Talia Richman is the Montgomery County education reporter at The Banner. She previously covered schools for The Dallas Morning News, where she wrote about shoddy teacher preparation programs, discipline disparities and the lingering impact of COVID-19 on children. The Education Writers Association has recognized Talia as among the best education beat reporters in the nation. Prior to her time in Texas, she covered schools and City Hall for The Baltimore Sun. Talia is a Dallas native who made her way to the East Coast to study journalism at the University of Maryland, College Park.

The latest from Talia Richman

Montgomery County schools offer free lunch, job fair for furloughed parents
MCPS is trying to support parents as they wait to return to work and receive their paychecks.
Chinita Sinkler eats lunch with her son during the MCPS-sponsored “Federal Family Lunch Day” at Robert Frost Middle School in Rockville on Thursday.
Montgomery County schools have a mold problem
Here’s what The Banner found among hundreds of work orders to remove mold from Montgomery County school campuses.
Goshen Elementary School submitted at least 15 mold-related work orders between August 2024 and this September, according to documents obtained by The Banner through a public information request.
Montgomery County teacher’s final ‘Jeopardy!’
The 42-year-old Beltsville resident said his job was great preparation for “Jeopardy!”
Updated Nov 6, 2025
Montgomery County Public Schools teacher Joe Evans watches himself compete on “Jeopardy!” during a watch party at Silver Branch Brewing Co. with his friends and family in Silver Spring on Tuesday.
Can this Montgomery County teacher become a ‘Jeopardy!’ champion?
On Tuesday night, Joe Evans’ parents, friends and fellow teachers packed into Silver Branch Brewing Company to stream the episode.
Nov 5, 2025
Montgomery County Public Schools teacher Joe Evans reacts to seeing himself in a preview for his episode of “Jeopardy!” during a watch party at Silver Branch Brewing Company with friends and family.
4 things to know about Montgomery County’s new school ratings
The number of schools earning 4 stars (the second-highest rating) increased this year but so did the number earning 1 star.
Nov 4, 2025
Walt Whitman High in Bethesda was the top-performing secondary school.
Furloughed parents are jumping into thorny school debates
Montgomery County school leaders announced major plans at practically the same time many parents were sent home from their jobs.
Nov 3, 2025
Victoria Hougham, a furloughed federal worker, has been using her unexpected time away from work to research and advocate on Montgomery County Public Schools proposals.
What is the Montgomery County school board going to do about Crown High?
MCPS Superintendent Thomas Taylor wants to use the newly constructed campus as a “holding school.”
Oct 30, 2025
Montgomery County parents, including Nihar Shah, center, hold signs at Thursday's school board meeting, urging members not to use Crown High as a temporary holding campus.
More Montgomery County students suspended so far this year
The 29% increase was driven by more suspensions assigned to Hispanic students, children who are learning English and those who receive special education services.
Oct 29, 2025
Montgomery County Public Schools recently revised its student code of conduct.
A Montgomery County teacher is heading to the “Jeopardy!” stage
The Takoma Park Middle School educator will appear Nov. 4.
Oct 27, 2025
A Takoma Park Middle School educator will appear on "Jeopardy" on Nov. 4.
Your guide to the changes coming to Montgomery County’s public schools
Montgomery County Public Schools are in for some massive changes. This guide summarizes the school system’s plans, and we’ll refresh it regularly to keep you posted on how they evolve and when the public can weigh in.
Oct 23, 2025
Montgomery County Board of Education members during a work session Thursday, Sept. 4, 2025 in Montgomery County, Maryland.
The only charter school in Montgomery County is hitting speed bumps
The charter school’s enrollment has dropped by more than 25% since the school opened in August.
Oct 20, 2025
Mecca Business Learning Institute leaders hoped to launch this fall in a newly renovated Germantown campus, but construction delays meant they had to instead start the year in an old Montgomery County Public School building in Bethesda. The two campuses are about 20 miles apart, leading to transportation issues and enrollment declines.
Montgomery County’s high school boundary study could be getting a major change-up
Superintendent Thomas Taylor wants to consider using the new Crown High building as a “holding school” to house students while their own campuses undergo renovations.
Oct 16, 2025
The Montgomery County Public Schools headquarters in Rockville.
Montgomery County is losing students. Here’s why that matters.
Montgomery County Public Schools predicts a dramatic dive in enrollment: a 9% drop from its 2019 peak to the enrollment forecast for 2031.
Oct 14, 2025
Teacher pointing at paper on the floor with students.
Montgomery County superintendent wants billions of dollars to fix aging schools
If the MCPS superintendent’s proposal is approved, several elementary school buildings could be replaced by 2031, as could Damascus High.
Oct 14, 2025
MCPS Superintendent Thomas Taylor is asking for $2.7 billion for campus infrastructure.
Maryland is offloading more special education costs on Montgomery County
It cost about $57 million to send roughly 700 Montgomery County students to nonpublic schools last year.
Oct 13, 2025
Jennifer Berzok and her son, Ben. Because Ben has autism, his mom sent him to a nonpublic school for the specialized attention he needed, even though she would have liked to keep him in public school.
‘It’s messy’: School leaders ask for patience as they redesign high school programs
It’s going to be messy.
Oct 9, 2025
District leaders are proposing a plan to divide Montgomery County’s 25 high schools into six regions, each with a slate of parallel academic programs focused on themes such as STEM, health care and the performing arts.
Why are Montgomery County high schools holding graduations at UMBC?
Montgomery County public high schools will hold graduation ceremonies at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County’s campus in May and June of the coming year, the school system announced.
Updated Oct 8, 2025
Montgomery County public high schools will hold graduation ceremonies at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County’s campus.
Redesign of high school magnet programs to get scrutinized by council members
Montgomery County Council members will pepper MCPS leaders with questions about a plan to divide high schools into six regions, each with a slate of parallel academic pathways.
Oct 7, 2025
Montgomery County Council members will question MCPS leaders about a plan to divide high schools into six regions.
5 years before her son died there, a mother tried to make an intersection safer
In September 2020, Caty Anderson typed out a short email to her state representative, lamenting that a woman was hit by a car near her family’s Kensington home.
Oct 6, 2025
A makeshift memorial of flowers, a teddy bear, a cross and a baseball glove hang on a utility line Friday at University Boulevard West and St. Paul Street. The intersection is where James Evert Anderson, 16, was killed on Sept. 21 in a pedestrian crash.
5 key questions about the MCPS plan to change school boundaries and programs
Big changes are in store for Montgomery County’s public high schools — new boundaries and a very different approach to specialized programs.
Sep 29, 2025
The Montgomery County Public Schools headquarters in Rockville.
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