Devore

On February 7, 2003, LINDADEVORE, peacefully in her home as the snow fell softly outside on February. She had a 4 1/2 month bout with pancreatic cancer that she fought with dignity and grace; an illness that also took her late husband, Dr. Duane DeVore 4 1 2 years earlier. Linda was Chairman of the Dental Hygiene Department of the University of Maryland, and speaker and consultant for many associations and pharmaceutical companies. She is survived by her mother Anne Strauber, her brother Dr. Jerome Meisel; daughter Marva Bailer; son Marc Rubinstein; step-daughter Kate DeVore; and three beautiful grandchildren.

The Sun editorial slamming departing Department of Juvenile Services Secretary Don DeVore ( "Still waiting for Superman," Nov. 21) is unfair, particularly in light of the same newspaper's recent reporting that since 2006, "the number of children killed in [Baltimore] has plunged by 80 percent, and the number of juveniles suspected in killings has dropped by about the same percentage. " As The Sun reported, Mr. DeVore collaborated to supervise the most at-risk youth closely and provide needed services and support.

Juvenile Services Secretary Donald W. DeVore announced Thursday that he's looking for jobs in other states and will not seek reappointment, making him the first Cabinet-level departure since Gov. Martin O'Malley won a second term. DeVore's four-year tenure atop the agency has earned mixed reviews from advocates and lawmakers; they applaud his efforts to physically revamp the state facilities but are frustrated that the agency has not beefed up its treatment and rehabilitation programs.

Juvenile Services Secretary Donald W. DeVore announced Thursday that he's looking for jobs in other states and will not seek reappointment, making him the first Cabinet-level departure since Gov. Martin O'Malley won a second term. DeVore's four-year tenure atop the agency has earned mixed reviews from advocates and lawmakers; they applaud his efforts to physically revamp the state facilities but are frustrated that the agency has not beefed up its treatment and rehabilitation programs.

Dr. Duane T. DeVore was a dentist whose specialty was oral surgery. He was a lawyer who specialized in medical and dental malpractice cases. He also was a baker and gourmet cook who spent countless hours making breads and fancy dishes. He was 64.Dr. DeVore, who died Sunday of cancer at his Kent Island home, was described by friends and relatives as "eclectic" because of his many interests.He pursued each with gusto.Outside his professional careers, Dr. DeVore went scuba diving in the Caribbean, flew airplanes, rode motorcycles and raced his Porsche on tracks in Georgia.

Things haven't been easy for Donald W. DeVore, the highly praised reformer Gov. Martin O'Malley brought in from Connecticut to fix Maryland's violence-prone juvenile justice system. As soon as he arrived in February, he found himself managing the fallout from the death a few weeks before of a Baltimore youth in a private detention facility. Three months later, he found himself explaining how 10 youths escaped from the Charles H. Hickey Jr. School - and why an automatic notification system for the school's neighbors failed.

Johns Hopkins' Sam DeVore on limiting Hofstra's Jay Card to one goal: "He's a righty, and I just tried to sit on his right hand, stay low and play him knowing that I had my guys getting my back." ( For more, go to baltimoresun.com/lacrosseblog)

The U.S. Department of Justice filed motions in federal court yesterday to end its oversight of two long-troubled Maryland juvenile justice facilities. In August 2002, federal authorities began investigating conditions, including poor health care and inadequate education, at Cheltenham Youth Facility and Charles H. Hickey Jr. School, eventually entering into an oversight agreement with the state Department of Juvenile Services.

Gov. Martin O'Malley is expected to name a high-ranking Connecticut official as his secretary of juvenile services, sources familiar with the decision said yesterday, giving the agency a new leader as it grapples with a teenager's death at a privately run Carroll County residential facility regulated by the state. Donald W. Devore, Connecticut's juvenile justice director, has been identified as the top choice of the O'Malley administration to head the Maryland Department of Juvenile Services, said the sources, who didn't want to be identified pending the official announcement.

State schools Superintendent Nancy S. Grasmick and Juvenile Services Secretary Donald W. DeVore promised yesterday to "respond immediately" to complaints from teachers at the Baltimore City Juvenile Justice Center, where staff members have said they fear for their safety. Grasmick and DeVore met separately yesterday with the teachers, days after an article in The Sun reported violence against education staff inside the juvenile lockup and some teachers' belief that officials were not listening to their concerns.

Comptroller Peter Franchot criticized the state Department of Juvenile Services for what he called the "administrative sloppiness" that led to a request Wednesday for the approval of $171 million in no-bid contracts for work that has already been performed. Juvenile Services Secretary Donald W. DeVore said he has made personnel changes and warned agency officials of "dire consequences" if they continue to circumvent state procurement procedures. He also said he is implementing better contract-tracking tools, included a color-coded "dashboard.

Security lapses found after a teacher from Bel Air was killed at the troubled Cheltenham youth detention center in Prince George's County have prompted a leadership shake-up, including the demotion of the superintendent, the firings of two staffers and the suspensions of a program manager and a supervisor. Department of Juvenile Services Secretary Donald W. DeVore said Thursday that he has temporarily suspended the rehabilitation program that the 13-year-old suspect was assigned to. The program for nonviolent offenders, designed to help kids who appear to be veering off track, was run out of Murphy Cottage, a low-security building outside Cheltenham's main gates.

T he shocking slaying of a 65-year-old teacher at the Cheltenham Youth Facility in Prince George's County was a wake-up call to the risk of workplace violence faced by state workers at such institutions. The body of Hannah Wheeling, who had taught youths at the troubled institution since 2004, was found more than a week ago near the parking lot of the building where she worked. Police have identified a 13-year-old boy as a suspect. This isn't the first time Cheltenham has drawn attention.

In May 2005, then-Mayor Martin O'Malley announced a 10-point plan to reform Maryland's juvenile justice system. He told Marylanders that "the community deserves juvenile justice that is responsive, effective and accountable to the public." Now, more than four years later and almost three years into his term as governor, the juvenile justice system in Maryland remains, as it was described in the O'Malley transition report, dangerously dysfunctional. Two years ago, Mr. O'Malley appointed Connecticut's juvenile justice director, Donald W. DeVore, to head Maryland's Department of Juvenile Services.

Johns Hopkins' Sam DeVore on limiting Hofstra's Jay Card to one goal: "He's a righty, and I just tried to sit on his right hand, stay low and play him knowing that I had my guys getting my back." ( For more, go to baltimoresun.com/lacrosseblog)

State officials agreed yesterday to allow a private company to open a juvenile facility in Carroll County, a move that troubled advocates and some lawmakers who say the Department of Juvenile Services took a dangerous step backward. Nevada-based Rite of Passage received a license from the department to open a 48-bed program for boys deemed offenders in juvenile court. The facility, called Silver Oak Academy, will be at the site of the former Bowling Brook Preparatory School, which was shuttered two years ago when a boy in custody died.

THE FOUR-DAY national conference of the Future Business Leaders of America last month in Nashville, Tenn., was the scene of hard-fought competitions among the club's top members. The finals in the network design category had all the makings of a David-vs.-Goliath match. Old Mill High School students Jon Bronson, Steve Brower and Adam Sawyer made it to the national competition sponsored by the 250,000-member organization by winning their school, regional and state contests. They arrived in Nashville ready to take on their teen-age counterparts from traditional technological powerhouse states such as New York and California.

State officials agreed yesterday to allow a private company to open a juvenile facility in Carroll County, a move that troubled advocates and some lawmakers who say the Department of Juvenile Services took a dangerous step backward. Nevada-based Rite of Passage received a license from the department to open a 48-bed program for boys deemed offenders in juvenile court. The facility, called Silver Oak Academy, will be at the site of the former Bowling Brook Preparatory School, which was shuttered two years ago when a boy in custody died.

The U.S. Department of Justice filed motions in federal court yesterday to end its oversight of two long-troubled Maryland juvenile justice facilities. In August 2002, federal authorities began investigating conditions, including poor health care and inadequate education, at Cheltenham Youth Facility and Charles H. Hickey Jr. School, eventually entering into an oversight agreement with the state Department of Juvenile Services.

State schools Superintendent Nancy S. Grasmick and Juvenile Services Secretary Donald W. DeVore promised yesterday to "respond immediately" to complaints from teachers at the Baltimore City Juvenile Justice Center, where staff members have said they fear for their safety. Grasmick and DeVore met separately yesterday with the teachers, days after an article in The Sun reported violence against education staff inside the juvenile lockup and some teachers' belief that officials were not listening to their concerns.