Prince George's County school earns Purple Star recognition for military families

Melwood Elementary School in Upper Marlboro earned Prince George’s County Public Schools’ Purple Star distinction for 2026, placing the Woodyard Road campus among Maryland schools recognized for serving military-connected children and their families with more than a plaque and a press release.

The state honored 27 schools across seven local education agencies in the 2026 cycle, part of a Purple Star initiative Maryland says now includes 43 other states. For Prince George’s County, the recognition went to Melwood Elementary, 7100 Woodyard Road, where Principal Jewel Preston leads a school that also has a dedicated Military Family Information link on its county page.

That detail matters in a county shaped by proximity to Andrews and other military communities, where students can enter a classroom in the middle of the year, shift between states, and face the strain of deployment or re-enrollment. Purple Star recognition is designed to reflect schools that have built the practical supports that make those transitions less disruptive, including a military liaison, a resource webpage for military-connected families, a peer-led transition program, and staff training on the needs of military-connected students.

Maryland created its Purple Star Schools program through Education Article §7-129, signed by Governor Hogan on April 12, 2022, and the State Board of Education adopted COMAR 13A.06.10 in February 2023. The application is released each year on Dec. 1, and schools must show additional measures beyond the minimum requirements before they are awarded the designation.

The county’s 2026 recognition also fits a broader pattern. In 2025, Maryland honored 23 schools from eight local education agencies, and Prince George’s County was represented by Imagine Andrews Public Charter School and Stephen Decatur Middle School. The year before, schools that had already earned the designation kept it for the 2024-2025 and 2025-2026 school years, showing that the honor is meant to measure sustained support rather than a one-time effort.

State regulators also widened the program in 2024, expanding the definition of military-connected student to include dependents of Space Force members and National Guard members of any other state. The same regulation opened Purple Star designation to nonpublic schools, broadening the number of campuses that can qualify.

For Prince George’s families, the value of the recognition is straightforward. It marks a school that has systems in place to identify military-connected students quickly, help them settle in, and give parents a clearer path to support. In a county where mobility can be routine and stability can be hard won, that can shape attendance, confidence, and day-to-day belonging from the first day a child walks into school.