Graduate School

One of three class valedictorians, Ainehi Ejieme Edoro, 23, was pleased that keynote speaker Rep. James E. Clyburn of South Carolina considered the dark clouds looming overhead. With the threat of rain, Morgan State University's 129th commencement ceremony, held yesterday at the school's stadium, was a speedy one. "He was considerate to keep it short," said Edoro, a native of Nigeria. Still, she added, she appreciated the message. "I took from it that we should strive as much as we can to make a mark in the world."

EVERYONE WANTS the same thing: A good school with good teachers that will lead to more and better opportunities for their children. Let's pause and reflect on the good things in our schools. This is a thanksgiving piece, an antidote to the drumbeat of negativity that so often drives the conversation around the city schools. What kind of school do you want? Do you want your kids to enjoy learning and return home full of curiosity and excitement? Do you want your son to read classics such as Tom Sawyer, The Odyssey and The Prince and the Pauper and write well?

Robert Seager II, an award-winning historian who established the University of Baltimore's graduate school, died Wednesday of heart failure. He was 79 and lived in Reston, Va. A specialist in American military and diplomatic history, Dr. Seager held several teaching and administrative posts at Maryland schools during his career. He taught history at the Naval Academy in Annapolis from 1961 to 1967 and was dean of Washington College in Chestertown from 1970 to 1972. Dr. Seager then became president for academic affairs at the University of Baltimore.

Morgan P. Bodie Jr., a World War II veteran who received the Purple Heart and went on to become a claims agent for Lloyd's of London in Baltimore, died on Dec. 8 from a heart attack after a year-long illness. He was 81 and lived in the Keswick neighborhood of Baltimore. Mr. Bodie was born in Lexington, S.C., and raised in North Carolina. He graduated from The Citadel, a military college in South Carolina, in May 1942 and enlisted in the Army. He fought in the Battle of the Bulge, and later, on March 18, 1945, was seriously injured by shrapnel from a grenade and was blinded in one eye. After recovering from his injuries, Mr. Bodie attended graduate school, completing graduate work at what is now known as Thunderbird, the American Graduate School of International Management, in Glendale, Ariz.

EVEN DURING the soggiest spring in memory, predicting a sunny future for Kelly Mahoney is a no-brainer. Mahoney, 21, who graduated recently from North Carolina State University with a 4.0 grade point average, is training to be a meteorologist. The 1999 Mount Hebron High School graduate has won an impressive number of scholarships and internships to help her reach that goal. Although she has worked with chief meteorologist Tom Tasselmyer at WBAL-TV in Baltimore and the chief meteorologist at WRAL-TV in Raleigh, N.C., she says she is more interested in behind-the-scenes research than the glamour of the television studio.

Robert E. Appleby Jr. missed the final course in Loyola College's MBA program. But given his unique circumstances -- the Army reservist is serving in Iraq -- the graduate school waived the requirement and awarded him a diploma in a private ceremony yesterday. While Melissa Appleby received congratulations from her husband's classmates, their daughter, dressed in pale green and pink linen, and four sons -- clad alike in khakis, print shirts and sandals -- mingled with staid men and women in business suits at the Loyola Graduate Center in Timonium.

New Positions Abbott is Comcast VP, Chesapeake Group chief Comcast Cable Communications appointed Bruce D. Abbott vice president and general manager of its Chesapeake Bay Group cable system. He is responsible for employee management and customer service as well as business growth and new products in Calvert, St. Mary's and southern Anne Arundel counties, including Annapolis. Abbott is a graduate of the University of Wyoming and was formerly with Susquehanna Communications. Banking Schrider is promoted at Sandy Spring Bank Sandy Spring Bank, a subsidiary of Sandy Spring Bancorp, Inc. promoted Daniel J. Schrider to executive vice president and chief credit officer.

I am in a very tight situation with a department store over a stolen credit card. We reported the theft to the store, then later discovered that it was my daughter and son-in-law who had racked up $6,500 in unauthorized charges. I have since received two letters from the store's fraud department telling me that I am responsible for these purchases. I did not authorize the use of my card and neither did my wife, but the store will not accept my explanation on this. I don't have the money to pay the bill or the interest they are charging my account.

ST. ANDREW'S Episcopal Church celebrated St. Andrew's Day a day late this year - but with a parade from Bushy Park Elementary School to the congregation's new home in Glenwood. A bagpiper led the procession, followed by a horse trailer carrying the altar that had been used for seven years at Bushy Park. A convoy made up of the entire congregation followed behind. About 280 people filled the new Parish House in Glenwood to enjoy the first service held by the 22-year-old church in its own building.

When the doors opened, everyone cheered. The original 53-year-old brown floor tiles. The dark-green lockers. The same bathrooms, even. The high school where Howard County sent its African-American students when segregation ruled looked much the same yesterday, when the men and women who graduated a half-century ago returned for an emotional reunion open to all. Harriet Tubman High School could easily be a bitter symbol of oppression and inequality....