Maryland Association

Jim Becker didn't have much of an interest in chess until high school. He went to Bishop McNamara, a college preparatory school in Prince George's County whose class schedule left students with free time. Another student was an outstanding chess player who had little trouble beating others - and repeatedly let them know it. Watching this student's antics greatly annoyed Becker, so he decided to do something. Becker had played chess when younger, but he bought books about the game and studied hard to learn more.

SAYING HE THINKS there's room to run to the right in the Democratic primary, former Baltimore County Executive Dennis F. Rasmussen said he is "very much leaning toward" running in the U.S. Senate race to replace retiring Sen. Paul S. Sarbanes. He said he has done polling and was pleased with the results - although he wouldn't say what they were - and is working on fundraising and outreach to community leaders. He and the two major declared Democratic candidates, Rep. Benjamin L. Cardin and former NAACP head Kweisi Mfume, all spent time in Ocean City last week working to drum up support at the Maryland Association of Counties conference.

This past winter, student leaders at Atholton High School proposed holding a dance - fun for students but a logistical headache for administrators. With only three weeks to plan the event, Susan Karlheim, a faculty adviser for Atholton's Student Government Association, figured Principal Connie Lewis would reject the idea. But after some negotiation over the type of music, dancing and lighting that would be allowed, Lewis gave the go-ahead. For Lewis, "it's about the kids," Karlheim said.

The region's home sale market rose to a fever pitch last month during what is usually the slow season, stretching out a sustained boom that has economists and real estate agents shaking their heads. The average price of a Baltimore-area home sold last month rose to $253,916, which was 23.4 percent more than in February last year, according to numbers released yesterday by Rockville-based Metropolitan Regional Information Systems Inc. Buyers snapped up 2,709 homes, an increase of almost 15 percent.

Sagging roofs. Boilers about to burst. Crowded schools ringed by students learning in trailers. From Frederick County, where student growth is exploding, to Baltimore County and Baltimore City, home to the state's oldest schools, officials paint a bleak picture of crowded and deteriorating schools. Maryland's local governments are making a pitch for more state money for school construction and repairs, an issue that Republicans and Democrats agree is a top concern on their agendas for the 90-day General Assembly session.

Man sentenced to life term for 1998 rape, murder A man already in prison for an armed-robbery conviction was sentenced in Baltimore Circuit Court yesterday to life in prison without the possibility of parole for the rape and murder of a Woodlawn teenager in 1998. Roy Sharonnie Davis III was convicted in July of first-degree murder and first-degree rape for strangling Jada Lambert, 18. Her body was found May 1, 1998, in a stream in Herring Run Park. The crime went unsolved until 2002 when Davis' DNA, which had been entered into a Maryland State Police computerized database after his armed-robbery conviction, was matched with DNA taken from Lambert's body.

Area real estate agents are asking the public to work with them as they reiterate the need to exercise caution when showing homes for sale. Safety is back in the spotlight after a man suspected of assaulting a female Realtor in April was spotted at an open house in Harford County this month. The assault occurred at a model home in Eldersburg. State Police are investigating. The incident renewed a sense of urgency among Realtors to be careful when showing homes since the rape and murder of Realtor Lynne McCoy in Baltimore 11 years ago while she was showing a house.

Liberty High School's Florence Oliver wins principal of year Florence Oliver, principal of Liberty High School, was recently named Principal of the Year by the Maryland Association of Student Councils. Nomination letters for Oliver were sent by Robyn Surette, president of the Liberty Student Government Association; Estelle Sanzenbacher, adviser to the Carroll County SGA; and Doug Denison, president of the Carroll County SGA. The letters detailed Oliver's dedication to empowering students to take a role in their school and education.

In the wake of congressional calls to crack down on charity abuses, a Maryland group is going national with a program that recognizes well-run nonprofits with a "seal of excellence." The Maryland Association of Nonprofit Organizations launched the Standards for Excellence Institute yesterday to promote self-regulation, an expansion of its local certification initiative. Groups must measure up against 55 performance standards to earn the seal, though the institute expects to help many others make incremental improvements.

Mayor's new tax on nonprofits imperils services The Maryland Association of Nonprofit Organizations opposes Mayor Martin O'Malley's telephone and energy tax proposals because they would tax nonprofits' ability to serve people ("Budget deadline near; tax plans aired," June 10). Nonprofit charitable and educational organizations exist to serve the public and community. They are inherently different from commercial businesses. They have no shareholders and return their revenues in service to citizens and communities usually with more efficiency than government.