In the fall of 2009, the AACS state affiliate in Maryland closed down, having nobody who was able and available to give leadership to the group.  In response, ODACS initiated discussions with AACS and within the ODACS board to see if a policy could be enacted that would enable the Maryland Association of Christian Educators to continue to exist while drawing on leadership from Virginia.  A policy was adopted, and the Maryland Association of Christian Educators came back to life in the fall of 2010.

One of the provisions of the Maryland policy was that Maryland schools would be able to compete in the ODACS Bible, Fine Arts, and Academic Competition.  No Maryland schools took advantage of this policy in 2011, but two new AACS schools in Maryland plan to compete in 2012.  The purpose of the policy is to help the Maryland schools learn and grow from the strength of the ODACS competition and to give Maryland schools a potential pathway to the AACS national competition.  Following is a summary of how Maryland participation will work.

1. Maryland students will compete head-to-head with Virginia students at both the regional and state levels.
2. In order to advance to the next level of competition, an entry must place in the top three and earn the highest award in that category from its own state.  This policy will be in place at both regional and state competitions.
3. As participation grows in the future, ODACS will consider making policy changes that will serve to facilitate the growth.