Howard County Library

CONGRATULATIONS to Dunloggin Middle School's music students who have been chosen to perform in some of our area's most prestigious groups.Band students who have been selected to be members of the 1997-1998 Howard County Symphonic Band include Ki Yu Kim, Chris Nithianandam, Laura Goss, Erica Folee, Emily Wang, Nicole Arkin, Lindsay Sutton and Mario Fuentes.High audition scores placed students in the Howard County Gifted and Talented Orchestra.High-scoring orchestra students included string players David Wainland, Elizabeth Shin, Greg Savage, Amelia Rubenstein, Tristan Kraft, Christine Levno, Christina Jun, Hajin Kim, Calvin Jiang, Antaredeb Guharay, Warren Choi, Xinzi Liu, Michael Lee, Ricky Buck, Richard Peng, Yiyang Wu and Angela Yu.Band students with high audition scores included Mario Fuentes, Laura Goss, Ki Yu Kim, Nicole Arkin and Lindsay Sutton.

The Howard County Library system -- which for years has aggressively developed reading programs -- has received an $80,850 federal grant to start an ambitious adult reading and discussion program in the humanities throughout the mid-Atlantic region.Howard is one of only four library systems in the nation to receive such a grant this year from the National Endowment for the Humanities, and is the only one to receive the full amount it applied for, said James Turner, an NEH spokesman.That distinction is due in large part to the work of Patricia Bates, adult program coordinator for the Howard County Library, he said.

A GOOD BOOK'S value is too often lost on modern society. Between E-mails, rush hour traffic, car pools, working lunches and hurried phone calls, many of us have to steal time just to read the paper much less plunge into a book. Who would take the time to read Jane Austen's "Sense and Sensibility" when you can go to the movie?The last time many adults were encouraged to sit down and focus on good literature was in school, when reading was more a chore than a conscious choice.Thus, a Howard County Library reading and discussion program designed for adults who have little time to read -- is anyone excluded?

The Howard County Library system -- which for years has aggressively developed reading programs -- has received an $80,850 federal grant to start an ambitious adult reading and discussion program in the humanities throughout the mid-Atlantic region.Howard is one of only four library systems in the nation to receive such a grant this year from the National Endowment for the Humanities, and is the only one to receive the full amount it applied for, said James Turner, an NEH spokesman.That distinction is due in large part to the work of Patricia Bates, adult program coordinator for the Howard County Library, he said.

This week, a neighbor of mine died. An ambulance came for him, and he will not return. We were not particularly close, as neighbors sometimes are, but it is disquieting, his permanent leaving. I turn to the consolation that faith affords me.Ah, but there's the rub; I turn to the consolation that my faith affords. I do not think that he shared my religion. But had he shared my faith, we could still be wrong. All the elaborate theology I believe in might be no more significant than a child's reedy whistle in the dark: a way to keep our spirits up against the dreadful unknown.

Cub Scout packs all over the county are preparing for their first meetings. For parents who wish to enroll their sons, now is the time.Boys can join a Cub Scout unit near their home, with meetings held in local elementary schools.Cub Scout groups, called "packs," are broken down into dens made up of boys in the same grade in school.Tiger Cubs is for boys in the first grade and groups meet twice each month.Cub Scouts is for boys in grades two to five. Each boy belongs to a pack, and then will be assigned to a den.Here is a list of Cub Scout packs in West Columbia.

The Howard County Library has received a $25,000 grant from the United States Institute of Peace to finance local programs examining the issues of international conflict resolution and peacekeeping.The library was one of seven in the nation to receive the grant three weeks ago from the Washington, D.C.-based educational and research center, which was established in 1984 by Congress."We're going to get into a lot of very tough issues," said Pat Bates, adult program coordinator for the Howard County Library.

Howard County Library awarded $120,000 grantThe Howard County Library has been awarded a $120,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities to bring programs to 45 libraries and senior centers in Howard County, northern Maryland and south central Pennsylvania.The program, "The Reader, the Writer and the Muse," includes literary readings, discussion themes and poetry programs using books, videos and audio tapes.The free program will begin next fall and continue for two years."Reading and Discussion" programs will examine philosophical, literary and historical themes.

Several weeks ago, I began a trip back in time. Actually, I've just been house-sitting. It's my parents' house, the one I grew up in near Marriottsville, out in what was once considered the hinterlands of Howard County.My parents asked me to stay here while they vacationed in Florida. It has been a vacation of sorts for me, too. Although I visit my parents often, this is the first time in nearly 30 years that I've slept in the house where I spent my childhood.I agreed to house sit because my father, fearful of the populace slowly marching westward, building housing developments, worried about the safety of his home.

Betty Elmore of GlenelgAbout Mrs. Elmore: She retired in 1990 from the library of the U.S. Department of the Treasury. During her 15 years with the government, she also worked in the libraries of the Office of Administration, the Office of the President and the Office of Budget and Management.She enjoys reading and serves as a volunteer at several places. She volunteers at the Domestic Violence Center of Howard County, working on the computer, filing and stuffing envelopes; and at the Maryland State Police, where she works with an analyst, clipping newspaper articles, filing and making phone calls.

Workshops focus on pressures girls face The Horizon Councils and Women's Giving Circle of Howard County will sponsor a series of discussions this month and next for mothers and their teenage daughters, "Mean Girls: Queen Bees, Gamma Girls and Surviving the Female Hierarchy." The workshops, to be held at Howard County Library branches, will give participants a chance to discuss social and peer pressures on girls. A free dinner is included. Admission is free, but reservations are required.

HCPSS TV airs NASA educational programs NASA's science and math educational programming is available on HCPSS TV. The addition of the NASA Education Channel makes available Destination Tomorrow, NASA Connect, SCIence Files and other programs designed specifically for teachers and students. The NASA Education Channel will be simulcast live on HCPSS TV using new digital satellite technology. The programs can be seen at various times Mondays, Wednesdays and Sundays on Comcast Channel 95 and Verizon Channel 42. For specific broadcast dates and times go to www.hcpss.

Library stays on top The Howard County Library is continuing to rank first in the country for its educational program, according to Hennen's 2008 American Public Library Ratings. The survey rates public libraries across the country using 15 measures, including visits, borrowing, staffing, instruction and funding levels. Customers visited the Howard County Library 2.6 million times last year, a 26 percent increase from the previous year, and borrowed more than 5.6 million items last year, a 15 percent increase over 2007.

Summer camp to focus on jazz The Howard County Department of Recreation and Parks, in partnership with Contemporary Arts Inc., a nonprofit organization working to advance jazz in the community, will offer a Music and Arts Academy Summer Camp where campers of all skill levels can study instruments, singing and dance. Jazz saxophonist Carl Grubbs will direct the camp. Instruction will be available on saxophone, clarinet, trumpet, guitar, drums and keyboards, and in African, modern and tap dance, as well as jazz singing.

Over two years, Choose Civility in Howard County has grown into a public campaign of workshops, book discussions and school programs supported by 40 community partners, but it may still be best known for its bumper stickers. People have taken more than 35,000 of the green magnetic reminders to "Choose Civility," and displayed them throughout the county on automobiles, refrigerators and file cabinets. The campaign "began taking off after the car magnets became a visible thing," said Valerie Gross, executive director of the Howard County Library, which is the lead partner for the campaign.

Former Baltimore Colt and NFL star Joe Ehrmann, a community activist, will speak at a "Choose Civility Spring Symposium," to be held from 8 a.m. to noon May 14 at Grace Community Church, 8200 Old Columbia Road, Fulton. The focus will be on making a difference in your community. The program is part of the Choose Civility in Howard County initiative to make the county a national model of respect, consideration, empathy and tolerance, sponsored by the Howard County Library and about 40 community partners.

In 2004, Howard County Library contracted with Providence Associates Inc. to develop and present the Howard County Library Facilities Assessment and Master Plan: Facilities and Services, 2005-2030. Providence convened focus groups to assess community needs and desires, which were incorporated into the Program of Requirements (POR) for an 82,500 square feet Charles E. Miller Branch and Historical Center to replace the existing 23,500 square feet branch. Two years later, the county purchased 10 acres of land for our most pressing project: the new Miller Branch.

"Whose Homework is it Anyway?: Promoting Academic Self-Reliance during the Teen Years" will be presented at 7 p.m. today at Long Reach High School. Brad Sachs, a Columbia-based psychologist, will talk to parents about students learning to handle responsibility independently. The presentation will be followed by a question-and-answer period. The event is being sponsored by HC DrugFree, a nonprofit organization based in the county. WomenHeart to meet today WomenHeart, a support group for women with heart disease, will meet at 10 a.m. today in the Nordstrom's cafe on the second floor of The Mall in Columbia.

County Executive Ken Ulman, Chief Administrative Officer Lonnie Robbins and Budget Director Raymond S. Wacks will attend a budget hearing at 1 p.m. Tuesday at the Ellicott City Senior Center, 9401 Frederick Road. The meeting has been scheduled to give residents who might find it difficult to attend the usual nighttime budget hearings an opportunity to discuss their budget priorities and concerns. Sign-up for those wishing to testify will begin at 12:30 p.m., and testimony will be heard on a first-to-sign-up, first-to-speak basis.

Youngsters in grades six through 12 are invited to submit up to three original poems to the Howard County Library's Word Up! Poetry Contest. Winners will be invited to read their poems at a spring event and will receive cash prizes. The deadline to submit entries is March 14. The contest is being held in partnership with the Friends of Howard County Library and the Howard County public schools. Poet and teacher Michael R. Clark will help contestants and others, ages 11 to 17, revise and perfect poems they have been working on from noon to 2 p.m. Jan. 26 at the Miller branch library, 9421 Frederick Road, Ellicott City.