Faculty Members

Dr. Christopher Dyer Saudek, founder and director of the Johns Hopkins Comprehensive Diabetes Center and a pioneer in the development of the implantable insulin pump, died Wednesday of metastatic melanoma at his Lutherville home. He was 68. "We have lost one of our giants," said Dr. Edward D. Miller, dean of the faculty of the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and CEO of Johns Hopkins medicine. "He always tried to make things better for patients. I so enjoyed referring patients to him because I knew that he would not only give them great medical care but that his compassion and understanding of the human condition was unsurpassed," Dr. Miller said.

Jaromir "Jerry" Stephany, a University of Maryland, Baltimore County photography teacher who worked in abstract photo techniques, died of complications from an infection Wednesday at his Severna Park home. He was 80. Born in Rochester, N.Y., he began making photographs as a youngster during the Depression and served in the Army during the Cold War. He was trained as a combat photographer at Fort Monmouth, N.J., and was stationed at Rhein-Main Air Force Base in Germany. On his Web site, Mr. Stephany said he "did not view photography as an art form until he studied photography and photographic illustration with Ralph Hattersly and Minor White" at the Rochester Institute of Technology, where he received a bachelor's degree in 1958.

The University System of Maryland will cut 175 jobs and freeze hiring as part of its overall plan to cut $37.8 million from the 2010 budget, a move that probably will lead to fuller classrooms and the elimination of underenrolled courses, said Chancellor William E. Kirwan. Kirwan submitted his planned cuts Friday to the state Department of Budget and Management. They are part of the $281 million in statewide cuts announced by Gov. Martin O'Malley last week to make up for shortfalls in this year's budget.

Market incentives often aren't enough In his column "New way to save the bay" (Commentary, Feb. 12), Robert Wieland suggests that a new approach must be taken as an alternative to standard command-and-control environmental regulations. While I believe that market-based measures can play an important role in restoring the Chesapeake Bay, I also believe that regulation has an important role to play. Aviation offers a clear example of how this works. Today's aircraft fly three times farther on the same amount of fuel than planes did 40 years ago. Because the amount of carbon dioxide emitted is a constant multiple of fuel burned, this equates to about a 70 percent reduction in carbon dioxide emitted per passenger-mile.

Employees of the state university system will be furloughed up to five days under a plan approved yesterday by the Maryland Board of Regents that would save $16 million in salary costs. Regents said the furloughs, which will come between January and June, were preferable to laying off any of the system's 22,500 full-time employees. The furloughs, the system's first since 1992, were ordered by the governor as the state tries to balance its budget in the face of declining revenues and a global economic crisis.

Wayne Conner, a much-revered Peabody Institute vocal teacher whose tenure in the classroom lasted nearly 45 years, died of liver cancer Friday at Jefferson Medical Center in Philadelphia. He was 79. "He was a beloved Peabody figure," said James Harp, the Baltimore Opera Company's artistic administrator, who was a former student. "He was a walking encyclopedia of vocal music. His classes were required for all voice students, but he was such a wonderful teacher, other students would sign up to hear him."

The Columbia Business Exchange will hold a networking event from 5 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. tomorrow at That's Amore restaurant, 10400 Little Patuxent Parkway, Columbia. Those who attend are asked to bring a door prize, such as a shirt, wine, gift certificates, baskets or other items. Donated services must receive prior approval. The cost is $15 for members; $25 for guests. Memberships cost $60. A corporate membership that covers all of the company's employees costs $195. Sponsorships are also available.

Meet Michael Decker, musical investigator. He already has a sterling reputation as a classical guitarist, not to mention mandolin, banjo and bouzouki player. He often performs with the Baltimore and National symphony orchestras - he's playing the banjo today with the BSO for its live film-score accompaniment to Charlie Chaplin's City Lights. And he has played in the pit bands for dozens of Broadway shows.

When Ron Belinko was a physical education teacher at Overlea 30 years ago, he was a fixture on fields and in gymnasiums as a football, wrestling and lacrosse coach. At that time, faculty members coaching three sports weren't uncommon. Over the past two decades, however, more and more coaching positions are being filled by individuals who are not certified professional educators or teachers employed by the school system. They are known as "emergency coaches," and they have become increasingly prevalent since Maryland high schools began using them in 1981.

CHICAGO -- Roger Myerson spent the bulk of his career as an economic theorist at Northwestern University, but when the telephone call came from Sweden he was on the faculty of the University of Chicago. Myerson and two other Americans were awarded the Nobel Prize in economics yesterday, adding to the University of Chicago's reputation as a powerhouse in the study of economics. "I could tell by the Swedish accents that it was a different kind of call," said Myerson, described as a brilliant economist and a decent harmonica player.