Parole Elementary

As Pasadena Elementary School Principal Rocco Ferretti was busy opening a farewell present, third-grader Courtney Ryan looked at a visitor and said, "He loves me more than pizza and chocolate chip cookies."Then there was Sallie -- with an "i" and an "e" -- who gave him the book she entitled, "52 Reasons Mr. Ferretti is a Great Principal."And Scott Sturgeon, an 11-year-old fifth grade "graduate," who said he thought Mr. Ferretti was the greatest because "he thinks it's fair for everybody to sit where they want at lunch."

School board members are scheduled to vote tonight on plans to change school attendance boundaries for three Anne Arundel county high schools: Northeast, Meade and Annapolis.The Annapolis redistricting plan would affect the most students -- 865. It also is the most controversial. Five plans, including the superintendent's, are under consideration.Superintendent C. Berry Carter II's plan would relocate students into neighborhood schools as a way to encourage parents to get more involved. However, his plan would change the racial balance of some schools, leaving some schools with a higher minority population than others.

Merlan C. E. Banks didn't want his three children to grow up suffering the indignities of racial intolerance that he endured."I just had to get involved, honey," says the Annapolis man with 40 years of activism behind him. "If you want things to change, you've got to get involved."So he did -- in the 1940s before he thought about children, in the '50s when he had his children, in the '60s as they were in school, in the '70s as they were graduating, and beyond."You always want to improve the community and make it better for your children," says the Bestgate neighborhood resident, recipient of the 1993 county NAACP's Morris H. Blum Humanitarian Award.

Seven-year-old Shannon Dee moved his fingers across the computer keyboard with the skill of a budding pianist.But instead of hearing beautiful music, Shannon's keyboard playing produced geometric shapeson the computer screen.Eight long, thin rectangles and six tiny squares appeared, followed by a message telling Shannon he had counted 86 correctly.But Shannon didn't revel in his triumph. Instead, he moved on to the next number, 27. No problem. A few quick strokes on the keyboard and Shannon had punched out another correct answer: two rectangles and seven squares.

ANNAPOLIS MERCHANTS DESERVE PATRONAGEFrom: Joseph M. Coale IIIPresidentHistoric Annapolis FoundationHistoric Annapolis would like to recognize the construction, integrity and visual quality of the State Circle resurfacing and wire-undergrounding project that is being funded and administered by the city government with state participation.The attention to detail and craftsmanship of the brick work, granite curbs, pedestrian crossings, and soon-to-be-installed period street lamps all show great sensitivity to the adjacent streetscapes and to the architectural integrity of the historic district.