Chancellor

Moves College ARKANSAS -- Announced merger of men and women's athletic programs next year. Named Jeff Long vice chancellor for intercollegiate athletics and director of athletics and Bev Lewis associate vice chancellor. Football REDSKINS -- Placed WR Brandon Lloyd on IR. Signed WR Jimmy Farris. Hockey BLUE JACKETS -- Acquired D Aaron Rome and D Clay Wilson from Ducks for C Geoff Platt.

When Andres Alonso "fell" into teaching after ditching his job as a Wall Street lawyer, he took on a special education class in Newark, N.J., and dedicated himself to serving emotionally disturbed children for more than a decade, eventually becoming the legal guardian of one of his former students. To those who have watched Alonso's life evolve from those early days as a classroom teacher to a deputy chancellor of New York's behemoth school system, the man who is the new chief executive officer for Baltimore's schools didn't just switch jobs, he found his calling.

ALTHOUGH BARELY noticed during the U.S.-led storm over Serbia, Europe is seeing a new political leader emerge, one who had been discounted. Gerhard Schroeder is taking his place as the most influential head of government there.Germany's chancellor showed that when he chaired the marathon European Union summit meeting in Berlin following the collapse of the EU's commission. Under his guidance, the 15 members of the supranational economic body picked Italy's former Prime Minister Romano Prodi to head a new commission committed to efficiency and honesty.

A year ago, Maryland's largest community college system was bruised and reeling from the report of a blue-ribbon panel that found the schools in pandemonium, suffering from weak management and outdated technology.A miffed Baltimore County Council slashed $2.5 million in 1997 because the schools lacked direction. The system's top official was later fired, trustees quarreled and faculty members on the Catonsville, Essex and Dundalk campuses were in a state of rebellion.But this spring, as the Community College of Baltimore County submits a $106.

Candice Chancellor of Hampstead won the title of Mrs. Maryland 1999 at the pageant May 1 in Easton.Married women from across the state competed in the pageant that showcases the accomplishments of those who are wives and mothers and maintain careers.Chancellor has been married five years and is the mother of two. She has a bachelor's degree in public relations and journalism and is a marketing professional.Her platform for the pageant was "Buckle Up, America," to increase the use of seat belts and proper child car seat restraints.

BERLIN -- The political plight of Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder intensified yesterday as his Social Democratic Party was thrown out of government in the eastern state of Thuringia and suffered severe setbacks in the Ruhr, Germany's industrial heartland.The plunge in support for Schroeder, who swept to power a year ago, was symbolized by his party's failure to win municipal elections in Dortmund. The city is so tied to the labor movement that it was called "the capital of the Social Democratic Party" by former Chancellor Willy Brandt.

BERLIN -- Marking a clear break with the caution of German foreign policy since World War II, Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder has laid out a new vision of his country's international role, describing Germany as "a great power in Europe" that will not hesitate to pursue its national interests.The new definition of German foreign policy, spelled out by Schroeder in an article in the last edition of the monthly review of German unions, appears to signal the formal end of Germany's self-imposed reserve since 1945, even as it underscores the country's irreversible attachment to NATO and the European Union.

BERLIN -- This is the thanks German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder gets for presiding over the government's move to Berlin, shepherding the country through a war, and championing budget cuts.The voters have turned against his party in recent local elections, and a one-time political ally is now a critic with a best-selling book.And that's just for starters.In office one year, Schroeder clings to what he calls the "new middle," a pragmatic place on the political spectrum that has yet to gain full favor among Germany's electorate or elite.

BERLIN -- Voters in two German states handed a sharp rebuff to Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder yesterday, ousting his long-dominant Social Democratic Party in the western Saarland and ushering a far-right party into the state Parliament for the first time in Brandenburg.The results were a major setback for the chancellor, who has been unable to exploit the wave of enthusiasm that brought him to office a year ago. He has seen his support dwindle steadily as unemployment in Europe's largest economy has remained high, with discontent widespread.

Chancellor's letter sought to inspire, not split faculty, staffI am writing in response to the article ("Chancellor's letter divisive, critics say," Sept. 10) concerning the personal letter Irving P. McPhail, chancellor of the Community Colleges of Baltimore County, sent to African-American faculty and staff of the three-campus system.The letter [urging recipients to "watch each others' backs"] was well-received by those of us in attendance at the reception. It was directed to us, thanking us for hosting such a warm and gracious reception for Dr. McPhail and his new wife, Dr. Christine McPhail, who recently relocated to join her husband.

Dr. Robert L. Gluckstern, a physicist and educator who served as chancellor of the University of Maryland, College Park, died of lymphoma Wednesday at his Baltimore home. He was 84. Born in Atlantic City, N.J., and raised in Brooklyn, N.Y., Dr. Gluckstern graduated from Boys High School at 16. He was captain of the math team and could regularly be found tackling math problems and theorems, said Elizabeth M. Nuss, his wife of 23 years. He sent one such theorem to Albert Einstein, said his son, Steven M. Gluckstern.

COLLEGE PARK -- LSU women's basketball coach Van Chancellor was late coming into the press room after yesterday's game against Maryland, and he didn't want to stick around long once he arrived. And after the 75-62 decision the third-ranked Terps hung on the No. 4 Lady Tigers to win the Preseason Women's National Invitation Tournament, who could blame Chancellor for wanting a quick exit? The Terps (5-0) were impressive defensively, holding LSU to 33 percent shooting, while taking an All-America center out of her comfort zone for the second time in eight days and making a claim that, off a week where they beat two top-10 opponents and another ranked team, they could be considered the best team in the country.

Moves College ARKANSAS -- Announced merger of men and women's athletic programs next year. Named Jeff Long vice chancellor for intercollegiate athletics and director of athletics and Bev Lewis associate vice chancellor. Football REDSKINS -- Placed WR Brandon Lloyd on IR. Signed WR Jimmy Farris. Hockey BLUE JACKETS -- Acquired D Aaron Rome and D Clay Wilson from Ducks for C Geoff Platt.

When Andres Alonso "fell" into teaching after ditching his job as a Wall Street lawyer, he took on a special education class in Newark, N.J., and dedicated himself to serving emotionally disturbed children for more than a decade, eventually becoming the legal guardian of one of his former students. To those who have watched Alonso's life evolve from those early days as a classroom teacher to a deputy chancellor of New York's behemoth school system, the man who is the new chief executive officer for Baltimore's schools didn't just switch jobs, he found his calling.

With a bagpiper, a chorus of bow-tied vocalists and all the pomp of a college graduation, the Community College of Baltimore County officially celebrated yesterday the arrival of its new president. Sandra L. Kurtinitis described the opportunity to lead the college's three campuses as the capstone of her 39-year career as a professor and administrator of community colleges in Maryland and Massachusetts. "I have been in training for this day and this job for my entire life," she told the audience that crowded into the Catonsville campus's theater and gave her several standing ovations.

Van Chancellor took a gamble 10 years ago, betting that the American sports public was ready for a professional women's basketball league. Four league championships later, Chancellor, who left the safety and security of the University of Mississippi to become the first and only coach and general manager of the Houston Comets, is convinced that taking a chance on the WNBA was the right thing to do. "It's been beyond my wildest dreams." Chancellor said recently. "This whole league has just done unbelievable.

BERLIN -- Germany's former interior minister was told by a U.S. diplomat in 2004 that the CIA might have mistakenly abducted and detained a German citizen suspected of being linked to al-Qaida, the German government announced yesterday. The minister, Otto Schily, was informed in May 2004 by then U.S. Ambassador Daniel R. Coats that Khaled al-Masri, a car dealer of Lebanese descent, claimed that he had been in U.S. custody for five months, the Interior Ministry statement said. In an interview with a German weekly to be published today, Schily indicated that he was visited by Coats after al-Masri had been released.

FRANKFURT -- Germany's two major political parties sealed an agreement yesterday to govern the country together under Angela Merkel, who would become the country's first female chancellor. But after six weeks of grueling negotiations, which exposed fissures on both sides and necessitated deep compromises, the new government faced a murky future, shorn of the reformist zeal that many here believed is necessary to fix Germany's stagnant economy and stem its soaring unemployment. "This can become a coalition of new possibilities," Merkel said after the conclusion of talks between her Christian Democratic Union and the Social Democratic Party of the departing chancellor, Gerhard Schroeder.

Growing up in an area of Pennsylvania where most men worked in the coal mines, Sandra Kurtinitis seemed bound for the drudgery of a job in a local dress factory. But she had other dreams that would carry her past the mountains surrounding her home in Wilkes-Barre. And last week, as she set out to inject a new spirit into the Community College of Baltimore County, she said she will draw upon her character shaped by her blue-collar upbringing, and the wisdom and people skills culled over 30 years in higher education.

Angela Merkel, Germany's first female chancellor and head of its Christian Democrats (CDU), is negotiating a policy agenda with her partners in a new government formed after national elections last month, the Social Democrats (SPD). The talks are proving a tough slog. But they should be finished by mid-November, when the two parties' agreed agenda will be announced and the parliament can confirm her as head of government, succeeding the SPD's Gerhard Schroeder. At first glance, Ms. Merkel's position doesn't look strong: During last summer's campaign, she squandered a huge lead, with her party and its Bavarian sister, the Christian Socials (CSU)