Good morning, Rockville.

Residents in Ashton and Sandy Spring experienced their third major outage in one month after Monday's severe storms damaged utility lines — BGE crews are actively restoring power today while notifying affected customers.

Tuesday's severe storms caused widespread damage as falling trees knocked out power and disturbed homes; in Bethesda a tree crashed into a house (no injuries were reported) while in Rockville a man was injured when a fallen tree trapped him and sent him to the hospital.

Washington’s minimum wage is $18.40 per hour while Maryland mandates $15 and Montgomery raises rates to $17.65; Virginia pays only $12.77.

These regional differences may affect job choices for Rockville workers who might commute for higher pay.

MCPS is hiring three new regional communications team leaders plus a communications specialist to improve outreach after recent budget cuts.

The realigned roles offer salaries from about $120,400 to $171,300 for team leaders (and $34.30 to $50.60 hourly for the specialist) and will support over 150,000 students.

Montgomery County Public Schools reported 4,504 fewer students last year and has launched a boundary study that may lead to school consolidations and closures early next year.

Districts in Virginia and D.C. noted enrollment declines due to falling birth rates and rising housing costs.

At Rue *Row in Kentlands, local kids are driving back-to-school trends by choosing bold ’90s styles with rhinestones and neon accents while also favoring soft, tagless fabrics for comfort; co-owner Maddie Kaufmann said squishies are selling out fast.