LEONARDTOWN — Youth leagues, churches, scout troops and other groups that use St. Mary’s County public school gyms, fields and classrooms will have to start over with a new scheduling system next month.
St. Mary’s County Public Schools will open its new community Event Manager platform on Nov. 2, the school system announced Oct. 19. Every organization that wants to use school facilities must reapply through the new system, show current insurance and receive approval. Existing SchoolDude accounts will not carry over.
The change splits along the calendar:
- Events through Dec. 31, 2026: still handled in SchoolDude, the system the district has used for facility reservations.
- Events on or after Jan. 1, 2027: requested through the new Event Manager platform, which opens to community users Nov. 2.
That means a group planning a winter basketball league or a spring fundraiser in a school cafeteria should set up its new account and reapply in November rather than wait until January.
The district’s Usage of School Facilities page already lists separate logins for the two systems: SchoolDude for events through Dec. 31 and the Event Manager for events after Jan. 1.
The rules for using school buildings are not changing. Community use of school facilities is encouraged under the Public School Law of Maryland, and groups must follow the school board’s Policy KF. Use may carry fees, which are paid through MySchoolBucks, and the district’s facilities brochure has been in effect since Jan. 1, 2024.
Groups with questions about a specific building can contact that school’s main office.
