Schools In Baltimore

A Harford County middle school and high schools in Baltimore City and Carroll County have been recognized by state officials for excellence in academic and extracurricular activities.The Blue Ribbon School of Excellence awards -- announced by the State Department of Education Thursday -- went to Bel Air Middle School, Baltimore City College and South Carroll High School, as well as six other Maryland high schools and a middle school. The award recognizes achievement in every facet of school life, from curriculum to community service.

Hundreds of students poured out of classes yesterday as four schools in Baltimore County and two in Baltimore City were forced to evacuate after bomb threats.They weren't alone.The District of Columbia public school system ordered all 72,000 of its students cleared from their buildings after a caller warned police that a bomb was set to explode in an unidentified school.No bombs turned up at any of the schools. But it was the second straight day of such disruption at schools in the Baltimore-Washington area.

When the state threatened that it might take over just one failing Anne Arundel County elementary school 3 1/2 years ago, the reaction was immediate.A top-notch principal was assigned to the school. All teachers were forced to reapply for their jobs.And barely a day went by without someone from the system's central office offering training or other help.But when the state sounded the same alarm over the past five years for 83 of Baltimore's 182 schools -- threatening to take over or close schools that don't improve, in a process known as "reconstitution" -- the city didn't respond in the same way.The city lacked enough top-notch principals and teachers to carry out wholesale staffing changes at the 83 troubled schools.

Sister Mary Noreen McGraw, 83, elementary school teacherSister Mary Noreen McGraw, a longtime member of the Religious Sisters of Mercy who helped teach generations of children to read, died of cancer Friday at The Villa, a retirement convent in Rodgers Forge. She was two days from her 84th birthday.A resident of The Villa since her retirement in 1992, Sister Noreen spent most of her life teaching in elementary schools in Baltimore and other communities. A specialist in remedial reading, she also taught reading instruction to adults later in her career and after her retirement.

Ask a random group of Walbrook Senior High School students whether they know of anyone killed by gun violence and, without hesitation, nearly every head rocks in acknowledgment."

The Maryland National Guard wants to spread its anti-drug and alcohol efforts in Carroll County, implementing a prevention program at the high schools and beginning an after-school program for at-risk middle-school children, officials say.The effort, which could begin in September, is contingent on receiving a federal grant and the approval of Carroll County school officials, said Lt. Col. Robert L. Finn, who works for the National Guard's director of...

Towson High School, 9: 35 a.m. The bell for third period rings, the halls are teeming with humanity, and we're looking for slobs.You know the type: tattered jeans, T-shirts from some sleazy bar with a sophomoric name, sneakers that look like they're used to tap-dance in a mulch pit.Boy, you hate to see teachers looking like that.Right, on this overcast weekday morning, we're visiting area high schools to look for grungy-looking teachers. This is because there is a bill before the House Ways and Means Committee in Annapolis that would mandate a dress code for teachers.

A Maryland child-advocacy group is recommending state officials take a more aggressive approach to fixing the state's most troubled schools, including intervening when the efforts of local school boards fail.A report released today by Advocates for Children and Youth says that at many of the schools identified two or three years ago as failing, test scores have not risen significantly, particularly in Baltimore.Since 1994, the state has put 89 schools in Maryland, including 79 in Baltimore, on a list of failing schools based on their performance on statewide tests that measure reading and math skills.

The State Department of Education is operating a toll-free hot line for parents, teachers and staff members from the 29 low-performing schools in Baltimore that were added to the list of schools in need of state supervision.The number is 1-888-246-0016, and it operates from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays.State officials also added nine schools in Prince George's County to the list Jan. 28. The 38 schools need special attention and must follow a state schedule for submitting improvement plans and getting started on those planned changes in school management and curriculum.

In straw hats and stovepipes, knickers and shawls, McDonogh School students who will live most of their lives in the 21st century gathered yesterday to see how a band of poor boys helped establish their school in the 19th.The re-enactment of McDonogh's founding, played out on a multi-colored morning on the Owings Mills campus, gave the school's 1,233 students a look at what it might have been like on Nov. 21, 1873, when the first city youngsters came by train to the "school farm" provided for in the will of Baltimore native John McDonogh Jr.The students representing those first McDonogh boys ran and stumbled up a grassy hill from McDonogh Road, as a student portraying William Allan, the first principal, yelled from above, "Hurry up, you scrubs."

The third-graders at a Catonsville elementary school recently took a break from the usual cafeteria fare of corn dogs and pizza to sample organic, field-grown salad greens mixed with black olives, apple cider vinegar and oil, Maryland strawberries and honey. And they became chefs for a day, mixing their own salads and making their own dressing. Their experience last week was a culmination of a three-morning seminar, called "Days of Taste," which teaches children about what's produced on Maryland farms, tells them about non-processed foods and encourages them to grow a little more adventurous at mealtime.

Dozens of high school students heard their names called, listened to the cheers of the crowd and climbed onto the stage of the Hippodrome Theatre on Sunday night to receive Cappie awards recognizing achievement in high school theater. But for Carole Lehan, program director for the Cappies of Baltimore, the scene that really captures the spirit of the event happened a few hours earlier, when the daylong rehearsal for the Cappies gala was complete. In a large ballroom, 500 students crowded together and held their hands out toward the middle of the room for a final show of encouragement.

Teachers and principals at 11 low-performing schools in Baltimore and three in Baltimore County face the likelihood of reapplying for their jobs this spring as part of restructuring mandated by the federal No Child Left Behind Act. All the schools have failed to meet standards under No Child Left Behind for several years. If they don't meet standards again this year, they are required to restructure in one of four ways: replacing staff deemed responsible for low student achievement, converting to a charter school, contracting with an outside operator to run a school or appointing a principal designated by the state as "distinguished."

A 22-year-old college student who was pulled out of class in New York two weeks ago and arrested in the fatal shooting of a Woodlawn teenager nearly six years ago has been brought back to Baltimore County by authorities, police said yesterday. Nicholas Dudley Pinderhughes Weaver of Baltimore has been charged with first-degree murder in the death of David L. Baskin Jr., an aspiring rap musician who was shot in July 2002 near his Woodlawn home, a day after his 18th birthday. Baskin's mother has said that police told her he was the unintended victim of a group of West Baltimore youths who were feuding with a group from Woodlawn over a girl.

Frederick debates immigration Frederick County Commissioner Charles Jenkins proposed a law that would deny county services, including schooling, to immigrants who entered the country illegally. Response to attack criticized Relatives of a 9-year-old Baltimore girl attacked by a pit bull are angry about what they describe as an excessive delay between when they called 911 and when paramedics arrived. Manslaughter conviction overturned The Court of Special Appeals overturned the conviction of a Columbia woman in the choking death of a fellow Loyola College doctoral student in 2005, ruling that detectives waited too long to advise her of her Miranda rights.

The Dulaney sophomore midfielder lay curled in a fetal position after being knocked out by a vicious check. His coach, the first to reach the injured lacrosse player, called 911. Then they waited 20 minutes for an ambulance to arrive. For Dulaney coach Jake Reed, the consequences of not having a trainer present were scary. The state only requires medical personnel at football games. "As a coach, [I am] not a trained medical person," Reed said. "There is a fine line between whether a kid just got hit hard or whether he had a head injury.

Marlene A. Seivers, a retired elementary school teacher, died April 28 at Genesis HealthCare Long Green Nursing Center in North Baltimore. She was 74. Marlene Alfreida Tilghman was born in Baltimore and raised on Carey Street and in Sparrows Point. She was a 1949 graduate of Sollers Point High School and attended Coppin State College and what is now Bowie State University. Mrs. Seivers, who earned a teaching certificate, was a substitute teacher and later taught at public elementary schools in Baltimore city and county for 16 years.

Onstage at the Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall, musicians and choristers from Harford's high schools were positioned among members of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra and the Baltimore Choral Arts Society. As the lights dimmed, a hush descended on the hall filled with about 1,800 middle school students - Harford's largest field trip ever - as well as teachers, parents and county officials anticipating the county's first "Side by Side" concert. "For our musicians, it's like playing in Little League and getting a chance to play with the Yankees," said James Boord, supervisor of music for county schools.

Dorothy Mattie Thompson, a retired label inspector and former nurse's assistant, died of a blood clot Dec. 23 at Keswick Multi-Care Center. She was 68 and lived in Baltimore. Born Dorothy Allen in East Baltimore, she attended private schools in New York City and public schools in Baltimore. As a nurse's assistant, she worked at Union Memorial Hospital and Long Green Nursing home, and then worked as a label inspector at Lawson Mardon. She retired in 1999. She married Joseph Thompson in 1956.

The Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation has announced a $3.5 million challenge grant aimed at boosting enrollment at 20 Catholic schools in Baltimore. The goal is to provide tuition assistance to attract 500 students to Partners in Excellence schools, increasing enrollment to 2,250 from kindergarten through eighth grade. Matching funds raised through the program could support financial aid for current students in need. Since its start a decade ago, Partners in Excellence has provided $13 million in aid to families - many of whom are not Catholic - who sacrifice to send their children to Catholic schools, Cardinal William H. Keeler said at a news conference yesterday.