Departure

WJZ meteorologist Bernadette Woods is leaving the CBS-owned station to join a non-profit firm in New Jersey focused on climate change, she said Wednesday night. Woods, who has been with WJZ for seven years, said she will remain at the station helping with the transition for the next month. After that, she, her husband and their two children will be moving to Princeton, N.J., where she will join Climate Central as staff meteorologist. "I'm very excited about the opportunity in Princeton," she said.

Legg Mason Inc. has lost two key employees of its Legg Mason Capital Management, including portfolio manager Mary Chris Gay. Gay, manager of an overseas version of the subsidiary's well-known Value Trust fund, and Randy Befumo, head of research at Legg Mason Capital Management, left May 15 and are "pursuing other opportunities," said spokeswoman Mary Athridge. Sam Peters, manager of the Value Trust fund in the United States, last week replaced Gay as manager of the Value Fund that is modeled after the Value Trust.

At 6 feet-7 inches tall, Paul Farragut never had any trouble making his presence known. His looming stature, hang-dog expression and balding pate were all unmistakable trademarks that telegraphed his comings and goings.For five years, he has served as the Howard County councilman from District 4, never the best-known or the most prolific of legislators, but solid. He generally voted with his Democratic colleagues, but rarely cast the lead vote. His dependability was overshadowed only by his good-naturedness.

T. Rowe Price lost another one of its fund managers, the third this year. Friday was the last day for Joseph M. Milano, 40, who has been the manager of Price's New America Growth Fund since 2002, said spokesman Brian Lewbart. Milano, who joined the Baltimore-based money manager in 1996 as an associate analyst, only recently informed Price of his plans to leave. "He let us know he was leaving the firm to pursue other investment management opportunities, most likely on his own," Lewbart said.

This week's elections had the unintended effect of pushing to the back pages a worrisome report concerning the future of one of Prince George's County's top unelected officials, School Superintendent John A. Murphy. On Tuesday Murphy was named one of three finalists for Kentucky commissioner of education, and the P.G. schools chief announced that he was actively looking for another job. The news raised concerns that Murphy's departure could stall improvements in the county schools at a crucial time.

With Baltimore starting the search for its next police commissioner, a key official in the city's crime fighting efforts also departed City Hall this week to lesser fanfare. Sheryl Goldstein was rarely at the public forefront but almost always involved in the agency's biggest initiatives in her role as director of the Office on Criminal Justice. Perhaps more importantly, she was able to get those initiatives paid for amid tight budget times. As a key advisor to former Sheila Dixon and an ally of Police CommissionerFrederick H. Bealefeld III, she may be as responsible for the city's shift away from so-called zero tolerance policies as anyone - resulting in a precipitous decline in arrests.

Ritchey originally had planned to ship the Preakness winner to Long Island today for the June 11 Belmont Stakes. The departure date will be delayed until New York Racing Association officials have control of the situation. One week after his victory, Afleet Alex jogged one mile and galloped two miles on the Pimlico oval this morning. Meanwhile, the betting numbers for Preakness day continue to soar, as the Maryland Jockey Club released the final numbers. Adding figures from simulcasting and the Preakness-Pimlico Special Double, the final handle figure is $91,028,704, including $63,230,573 on the Preakness.

WASHINGTON -- It's kind of an unwritten rule hereabouts that if you leave a high-profile public job, you go quietly, and with a bouquet from your boss as you go out the door.That is, no matter why you depart, the standard operating procedure is for the real reason to be sugarcoated so that nobody's reputation is unduly tarnished, neither the kicker nor the kickee.When Les Aspin was given his walking papers as secretary of defense, for example, his departure was officially cast as a mutual decision.

HOLLYWOOD -- By refusing to promote Jeffrey Katzenberg to the No. 2 job at Walt Disney Co., Michael Eisner, the chairman and chief executive, has taken a risk that leaves not only the successful film studio but the entire company in turmoil, movie industry executives and agents said yesterday.Mr. Katzenberg's decision on Wednesday to quit the company he helped build during the last decade after the rebuff by Mr. Eisner comes at an especially troubled time at Disney.Once viewed as one of the most stable and successful entertainment-industry giants, Disney had been engulfed by a series of strains this year in its management and its businesses that have been compounded by the turbulence surrounding Mr. Katzenberg's departure.

WASHINGTON -- The State Department, expressing a worry that terrorists might get help from Iraq's embassy staff here, ordered the Iraqi ambassador yesterday to send home 12 of his staff members and their families.Their departure would leave only Ambassador Mohammed al-Mashat and three of his staff aides at the embassy, so that they could function "as a channel of communication," said State Department press officer Anita Stockman.She stressed that the U.S. government was not breaking diplomatic relations with Iraq.

It's roughly a week before the Baltimore Rock Opera Society debuts its most ambitious production to date, and musical director John DeCampos is "freaked out" from the pressure. He is not alone. "People are getting stressed out. Sometimes people are getting short with each other," DeCampos, 30, said. "There's a general nervousness about the show. " It's hard to blame him. Founded in 2007, the BROS has established a reputation in the local arts scene as a do-it-themselves theater ensemble guided by metal, beer and over-the-top silliness.

Baltimore schools CEO Andrés Alonso's resignation at the end of this academic year is a major blow to a city whose trajectory he helped change. There can be little doubt that the energetic and rapid reforms he implemented in the city's long-struggling school system have set the stage for broader renewal and growth in Baltimore. But city leaders also need to look on his departure as a tremendous opportunity, a chance to bring in a new superintendent who will build on Mr. Alonso's successes.

Seeking to solidify its membership following Maryland's decision to depart for the Big Ten, the Atlantic Coast Conference said Monday that 15 current or future members have signed documents granting the conference their media rights for the foreseeable future. The agreements, effective immediately and extending until at least 2027, according to reports, were viewed by ACC members as a powerful means of promoting stability. Like many conferences, the ACC has been rocked by the imminent departure of a member - Maryland is leaving next year - and rumors that more defections could occur.

If you're trying to figure out exactly what motivated all-time Ravens safety Ed Reed to jump off the Super Bowl bandwagon and sign with the Houston Texans, you should probably consider some other hobby. Figuring out what makes Reed tick could be a lifelong quest. He's a complicated guy who doesn't fit easily into anyone's preconceived notions about the inner workings of professional football players or, for that matter, superstar athletes of any stripe. What we do know is that Reed will always be remembered as one of the greatest safeties of all time and he'll eventually see his name gracing a façade at M&T Bank Stadium.

For three weeks in June 2009, Tom Schreiber was in a bit of limbo about his status as Princeton's most prized men's lacrosse recruit. Bill Tierney had just resigned as coach after 22 seasons, and Schreiber, a midfielder, was growing worried. Then the university named Chris Bates from Drexel as Tierney's successor. Bates dispelled Schreiber's anxiety quickly, driving to the family home in East Meadow, N.Y., the day after he was hired to meet with Doug and Liz Schreiber, and then spend a few hours with their son. "I kind of had a unique recruiting experience," Tom Schreiber recalled.

Wind gusts as high as 49 mph have shut down the Bay Bridge in Anne Arundel County to vulnerable large trucks, as weather conditions make for a problematic Thursday morning commute. Debris in the roadway has shut down the southbound ramp and one of two southbound shoulders of Route 295 and Route 198 on Anne Arundel County. Debris is also causing delays on Route 10 southbound at Furnace Branch Road. In Baltimore County, a collision is blocking traffic on the outer loop of Interstate 695 at exit 39 for Merritt Boulevard.

It was George Santayana who observed that "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it." Apparently, not much Santayana is being read in the Orioles' offices.The explosion that has accompanied the departure of Jon Miller is eerily reminiscent of what happened in Detroit five years ago when Tigers management tried to dump Hall of Fame broadcaster Ernie Harwell.To recap, then-Detroit president Bo Schembechler decided that Harwell, a fixture on the airwaves there for over 30 years -- after he left Baltimore in 1960 -- was no longer needed, and tapped Rick Rizzs and Bob Rathbun.

Harford County Executive James M. Harkins will speed up by two weeks his early departure from office to join the Ehrlich administration. Harkins said yesterday that Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. has asked him to take over the Maryland Environmental Service on July 1, instead of July 15 as previously announced. MES is an independent, quasi-state agency that operates dozens of water and wastewater plants around the state. The accelerated departure compresses the timetable for the County Council to devise a procedure to replace Harkins, who will leave office 17 months before his term expires.

  U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood's decision to leave the Obama administration, which was announced Tuesday, could provide an opening for his No. 2: Former Maryland transportation official John D. Porcari.   Though his name is rarely on the speculative short list for the top spot, Porcari has run the day-to-day operations of the department since he was sworn in as Deputy Transportation Secretary in 2009. Porcari served as Maryland's top transportation official from 1999 to 2003 and from 2007 until he went to work for the Obama administration.