Student Groups

WASHINGTON -- Reacting to widespread complaints from Christian legal advocates, the Supreme Court said yesterday that it will reconsider a lower court ruling that bars a state university from subsidizing a student magazine because it espouses an "avowedly Christian" perspective.In recent years, Christian legal groups have complained that the high court's insistence on a strict separation of church and state sometimes translates into discrimination against mainstream religious groups.For example, some school and state college officials have said that their institutions may subsidize student groups which promote feminism, environmentalism, gay rights or a variety of other causes but they may not subsidize student groups that promote religion.

Anti-abortion activists at the Johns Hopkins University who had fought to form an official club have been fully recognized, clearing the way for them to use the institution's logo and raise cash on campus. The university announced Wednesday that an earlier decision by the Student Government Association to block the group, Voice for Life, was reversed by a panel of student judges. The issue has set off a storm of debate over free speech and whether anti-abortion "sidewalk counseling" constitutes harassment at the private university.

Love story -- The Drama Learning Center, 9130-1 Red Branch Road, will present a love story set to music, Once on This Island, performed by Teaching Young Actors (the center's teen professional company) at 7 p.m. tomorrow, Thursday, and Dec. 14 and 15, and 2 p.m. Sunday and Dec. 15. Tickets are $12 for the evening performances. Reservations are recommended. Matinees for student groups, which are open to everyone, feature a backstage tour, a chance to learn choreography and an opportunity to get autographs.

After the Anne Arundel County school board received its annual update on the system's five-year strategic plan for student achievement, board member Solon Webb directed one question to school officials: "Are we winning or losing?" Webb's query prompted a discussion Wednesday almost as lengthy as the presentation of the 2012 Strategic Plan, which tracks students' five-year progress in Maryland School Assessments and High School Assessments, as well as International Baccalaureate, Advanced Placement and honors participation and testing.

AS A COLLEGE student, I am acutely aware of both the legal and social effects of the USA Patriot Act on my life and on the lives of my peers. Passed after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, the Patriot Act has led to a broadening of governmental power to define protest as terrorism and to intrude on our fundamental rights as citizens. I am concerned by the Patriot Act's impact on the lives of all citizens, but especially on my peers in colleges across the country. No matter what provision of the Patriot Act we examine, its effects are tenfold on a college campus.

Actor Kevin Bacon brought his star power to a charity event Wednesday at the University of Maryland, College Park. But the cheers the actor received were not as loud as the hoots and hollers directed toward the six student groups competing for $5,000 toward their favorite causes. The competition — called the "Do Good" Challenge — is part of an effort by the school to make philanthropy more of a focus in academics and student life. The winner was The Food Recovery Network, which developed a system of collecting food from campus dining halls that would otherwise go to waste and distributing it to homeless shelters.

After the Anne Arundel County school board received its annual update on the system's five-year strategic plan for student achievement, board member Solon Webb directed one question to school officials: "Are we winning or losing?" Webb's query prompted a discussion Wednesday almost as lengthy as the presentation of the 2012 Strategic Plan, which tracks students' five-year progress in Maryland School Assessments and High School Assessments, as well as International Baccalaureate, Advanced Placement and honors participation and testing.

With Howard County's average SAT score at its highest ever, school officials are encouraged by what they see as a gradual improvement among the school system's black and Hispanic students, who have consistently lagged behind their white and Asian counterparts. Results released last week by the College Board show that the county's class of 2005 posted an average score of 1113 on a 1600-point scale - a 16-point jump compared with last year. The verbal score averaged 552; the math score averaged 561. Each section is scored on a scale of 200 to 800. The school system's data analysis, which aimed to weed out errors, produced a slightly higher average of 1115.

Maybe it has been the years of emphasis Howard County schools have placed at the pre-school and kindergarten level. It could be increased interventions -- one school suggests that offering more field trips increases vocabulary. One thing is for sure: Fourth-graders in the county recorded the biggest increases on this year's Maryland School Assessments. Fourth-graders had the highest percentage of students in the county scoring at proficient or above on the assessments -- 93 percent in reading and 91 percent in math.

COLLEGE PARK -- With Maryland losing its fifth game in a row, at least Terps fans could focus Saturday on the achievements of Torrey Smith, the star of this season's team. Smith had already broken his own Atlantic Coast Conference mark earlier this year for single-season kickoff return yardage. On Saturday, the wide receiver needed just 35 yards to break LaMont Jordan's single-season school record of 1,840 all-purpose yards. He broke the record with a 21-yard reception from Jamarr Robinson in the second quarter.

Annapolis Middle School teacher Beth Foster trumpets the importance of STEM — science, technology, engineering and mathematics — programs for all students, convinced that science and math disciplines aren't, as she puts it, "just for brainiacs. " The school's science department chair said her convictions were bolstered by her work on a research project during a recent fellowship at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in Richland, Wash. Foster was one of just 20 teachers nationwide selected to work with a team of scientists in a fellowship that offers practical applications for STEM instruction.

Suspensions and other disciplinary actions for African-American students fell at Anne Arundel County schools last year because of new practices, said a school system team examining purported racial disparities in punishments. The audit, design and planning team was created by schools Superintendent Kevin Maxwell as part of efforts to address concerns about school discipline, particularly among African-American students, who school officials say make up 22 percent of the school district's enrollment but account for a higher percentage of suspensions.

Quote: "Nobody cares about what's happening to John Edwards anymore - he's old news. […] Attacking John Edwards for the Republicans would be like attacking George McGovern. " -Donnie Fowler, a technology and political consultant and former senior advisor to President Obama. Former Democratic candidate Edwards' trial regarding alleged illegal campaign contributions began Monday morning. Digit: 3,600: The number of runners/walkers who showed up despite the weather on Sunday for the inaugural Susan G. Komen breast cancer race in Ocean City . The event raised more than $254,000.

Actor Kevin Bacon brought his star power to a charity event Wednesday at the University of Maryland, College Park. But the cheers the actor received were not as loud as the hoots and hollers directed toward the six student groups competing for $5,000 toward their favorite causes. The competition — called the "Do Good" Challenge — is part of an effort by the school to make philanthropy more of a focus in academics and student life. The winner was The Food Recovery Network, which developed a system of collecting food from campus dining halls that would otherwise go to waste and distributing it to homeless shelters.

A controversial student group at Towson University has again drawn criticism from other students who claim it is racist. But school administrators say they won't be taking any action against the group. On Saturday night, the group, Youth for Western Civilization, chalked messages that included the words "White Pride" at several visible locations on campus, including the Student Union and Freedom Square, said its president, Matthew Heimbach. When discovered Monday, the messages angered other student groups, who saw them as having nationalist connotations.

Among the first things that hip-hop performer Damon Holley showed the assembled students at Ellicott Mills Middle School was that, as in schoolwork, learning about hip-hop requires undivided attention. Hip-hop artists simply go about getting that attention differently. "Every time you hear me say, 'What's the name of the game?' I want you all to say, 'Pay attention!' And then I want you to remain completely quiet," said Holley of Illstyle and Peace Productions, a Philadelphia-based dance company that staged a high-energy performance, "The History of Hip-Hop," at Ellicott Mills on Thursday.

WASHINGTON -- Caught in the conflicting currents of its past rulings on free speech, the Supreme Court groped uncertainly yesterday to find a way to rule on a major new dispute over university students' rights.At issue is a claim by University of Wisconsin students that the First Amendment protects them from having to subsidize, through mandatory activity fees, student organizations whose views they oppose.At the end of a one-hour hearing yesterday, the justices appeared to be no nearer to agreeing on a response to that claim.

Suspensions and other disciplinary actions for African-American students fell at Anne Arundel County schools last year because of new practices, said a school system team examining purported racial disparities in punishments. The audit, design and planning team was created by schools Superintendent Kevin Maxwell as part of efforts to address concerns about school discipline, particularly among African-American students, who school officials say make up 22 percent of the school district's enrollment but account for a higher percentage of suspensions.

COLLEGE PARK -- With Maryland losing its fifth game in a row, at least Terps fans could focus Saturday on the achievements of Torrey Smith, the star of this season's team. Smith had already broken his own Atlantic Coast Conference mark earlier this year for single-season kickoff return yardage. On Saturday, the wide receiver needed just 35 yards to break LaMont Jordan's single-season school record of 1,840 all-purpose yards. He broke the record with a 21-yard reception from Jamarr Robinson in the second quarter.