Inclusion

Don't look to Parris Glendening for soaring rhetoric or a profusion of "do it now" ideas. At least not in his inaugural address as Maryland's 59th governor. His first speech as chief executive was traditional in setting out a broad, philosophical vision; innovative in its use of song and family ties to showcase his inner feelings; pragmatic in its approach and inclusive in its embrace.Yesterday's speech marked the first glimpse many Marylanders have had of the true Parris Glendening. He remained a bit of a mystery even during the long campaign for governor last year.

For those who toil in the media, having an occasional door slammed in one's face comes with the territory. But being shut out of a meeting that is supposed to be open to the public or being barred from a public building isn't likely to put a halt to media scrutiny. In fact, it often spurs the opposite result. That's happening in Howard County, where school officials have refused to allow a reporter from The Evening Sun to observe classes in a program for emotionally disturbed students.The reporter, following standard procedure, asked for permission visit the program at Waterloo Elementary but was denied by Principal Karen Moore-Roby.

Recent events make it difficult to determine in which direction Howard County school officials are headed regarding special education.Restrictions on the number of students enrolled in a program for emotionally disturbed students at Waterloo Elementary School, along with a proposal to house some of those students at Stevens Forest Elementary next year, raise questions about which of the trends in special ed the school system is following.There are certainly elements of inclusion -- whereby special education students are integrated into mainstream classrooms -- that can be seen in the system's most recent moves.

The city of Westminster is looking for photos and memories of the West End School for inclusion in a multimedia presentation on the past and future of the building.Karen Blandford, administrator of housing and community development, is seeking "school photos, happy memories or senior center good times" to record for a production of the Carroll Community College's computer graphics department.The video will be shown at an open house Nov. 19.Information: 848-2261.FireWestminster: Firefighters from Westminster and Pleasant Valley responded at 9: 20 p.m. Friday for an alarm in the 200 block of W. Main St. Units were out three minutes.

A decision to remove Maya Angelou's autobiographical novel "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" from the ninth-grade curriculum of Anne Arundel County schools has angered black activists, baffled teachers and pleased some parents who say the book is too sexually explicit for 14-year-olds.The decision, made by Superintendent Carol S. Parham and announced in a departmental memo distributed two days before Christmas, came after about a dozen parents protested the book's inclusion in ninth-grade studies.

The train leading to a United States-Mexico free trade agreement has left the station and is heading down a fast track for approval before mid-decade. Now that Mexican President Carlos Salinas de Gortari has formally asked for negotiations, President Bush is in a position to request Congress' approval. He is expected to do so this week under a 90-day yes-or-no rule that should get officials to the bargaining table by next Spring.Despite presidential enthusiasm on both sides of the Rio Grande, the negotiations will be contentious and controversial.

For the past several years, Walt Whitman High of Bethesda has had one of the state's dominant girls cross country programs. Nothing has changed this season. However, if the Vikings are to win a fourth straight state Class 3A championship, they first may need to plead their case in court.Claiming they were not informed of a schedule change, Whitman's runners were not at the starting line for the beginning of the state 3A West Region finals Thursday at Watkins Mill High in Montgomery County.

City Councilman Robert Curran released a flock of white doves in the opening ceremony - one of the few new things at Baltimore's 90th Flower Mart yesterday. The spring fair is known for old-fashioned touches. Straw hats, maypole dances, horse-drawn carriages and lemon sticks all hark back to 1911, when it was founded by the avant-garde Women's Civic League. Now, close to a century later, it has evolved into a kaleidoscope of ages and races, a potent mix for drawing children out of schools and adults out of workplaces.

Compromising can help make inclusion workIt's easy to understand why so many parents and teachers are against inclusion. Fear and discomfort always accompany major change.It's not so easy to understand why they feel the process is being undertaken too quickly. Since the late 1970s and early 1980s, the ultimate goal of special education has been the mainstreaming of its children.Last week, one of the television networks featured a school in Johnson City, N. Y., where a program of inclusion had been implemented.

Derek Barber King Sr., nephew of slain civil rights leader the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., celebrated Black History Month at Woodlawn Middle School yesterday by urging pupils to believe in themselves and strive to be the best they can be. "Don't let anybody destroy who you are," King told pupils packing the school gymnasium. "Don't let anybody hate you more than you love yourself." Beguiling the crowd with a mixture of street slang and a preacher's oratorical flourishes, King said he hoped to see the pupils become doctors, lawyers, scientists, astronauts and entrepreneurs.