High School Diploma

HSA test requirement upholds diploma's value Kudos to state schools Superintendent Nancy S. Grasmick, the Maryland State Board of Education and Baltimore schools CEO Andres Alonso for standing firm on requiring students to pass the High School Assessment tests to graduate from Maryland high schools ("Md. firm on tests," Oct. 29). Tenth-grade-level proficiency is the standard for these tests, so every student who graduates from high school should be required to pass them. If you cannot read at the 10th-grade level upon graduation, you will not be able to compete in the job market.

Public schools announce last days Carroll County Public Schools have announced the last day of school for 2005-2006. The last day for kindergarten pupils (full day and half day) will be June 6. Students will be dismissed two hours early June 7 for professional time for teachers. The last day for students will be June 8, with a two-hour early dismissal for professional time for teachers. Information: 410-751-3020. GED tests, practice sessions offered Carroll County Public Schools offers GED tests and practice sessions for the exam to those who wish to earn their high school diploma.

The word was tristeza. It's a disease of citrus trees, but more importantly, for Tobey Roland, it once scored 228 points for him in a game of Scrabble, he said. Roland, 52, of Mount Washington, loves Scrabble and estimates he has played in 120 tournaments, winning eight to 10, since he started playing competitively in 2005. "It's fun and challenging," said Roland, an independent financial investor. "It's really more about probabilities, using premium spots and letters and getting bonuses by using seven-letter words.

Too much of the public is missing from public education. As a people, we recognize the economic value of education, but we under-invest in our schools, both financially and in terms of civic capital. With America's students and schools facing unprecedented needs, and education budgets under enormous pressure, it is time to drastically ramp up civic investment in public education. Our public school system - one of the great achievements of American democracy - is not just a service for the public to consume.

Dyslexia Tutoring trains volunteers to tutor low-income children and adults with dyslexia and other language-based disorders. Volunteers should have a high school diploma, good language skills, patience and a willingness to understand those with language disabilities. Tutors are trained through a 20-hour course in the Orton-Gillingham method of teaching, reading, spelling and writing. Interested volunteers will also undergo a background check and must commit to 60 hours of tutoring.

The way South Baltimore businessman Jules Edward "Sonny" Morstein Jr., sees it, he owes something to the community in which his family has prospered. "This city has given me a good life," said Morstein, 65. "How can I not give back?" Nearly 25 years ago, several business owners along South Baltimore's Light Street asked one of their own to help renew their shopping district. Morstein, who runs the city's oldest family-owned jewelry store, stepped into the role of president of the Federal Hill Business Association.

State schools Superintendent Nancy S. Grasmick proposed yesterday that the state school board back off forcing students to pass a new series of tough high school examinations for graduation -- threatening a severe blow to Maryland's education reform effort. The state board also moved forward yesterday with its plans to take over three failing Baltimore elementary schools, agreeing for the first time to a contract with a private company, Edison Schools Inc., to assume control July 1. The move to detach the new tests from Maryland's high school diploma requirements comes as state educators are resigning themselves to the likelihood that Gov. Parris N. Glendening will fund little of the $49 million they are seeking to end social promotion and provide more help to low-performing elementary and middle-school pupils to eventually meet the demands of the new high school tests.

The correlation between education and employment is clear: The better the education, the more likely a person will seek and find employment. The U.S. unemployment rate for those without a high school diploma is 14.3 percent; for those with a bachelor's degree or higher, it is 4.3 percent. This relationship is confirmed in study after study and in country after country. As the president, Congress and the nation debate the legislative solutions to the disaster that is our unemployment rate, we must emphasize education for its unique ability to deliver systemic and sustained improvement.

The increasingly hyperbolic diatribes in the presidential campaigns have drowned out any focus on the single most important issue on Maryland voters' minds: jobs. It's time to stop the political attacks and put forward ideas to attack the economy's core problems. To help, the high-tech sector, at TechElect.org, has developed a "to-do" list that would create the good-paying, long-lasting jobs central to our nation's economic strength. It's based on the record of results that our sector has developed as one of America's economic champions - even with the recession's challenging headwinds.