Student Population

Shalini Uttamsingh has watched International Night at Fulton Elementary School grow from an event that featured a handful of countries and attracted a couple of hundred people last year, to a major production spotlighting 20 countries and drawing a crowd of about 500. The growth of the event over just two years also serves as a reflection of the shift in the ethnic diversity among the county's student population. "You got an insider's view to the culture," said Uttamsingh, a parent and co-organizer of the event.

President is intent on prolonging war By now it should be completely clear to the American public that this administration has absolutely no intention of ever removing itself from Iraq and bringing our troops home ("Bush resists bid to curb Iraq mission," July 16). In my more than 50 years as an American, I have never been more disgusted or less tolerant of a government that refuses to do the will of the people. President Bush, Vice President Dick Cheney and company care only about furthering their interests.

PROVIDING an additional $9 million for school construction was a wise move by Howard County Executive Charles I. Ecker. Too bad he won't similarly improve the school operating budget to serve the growing student population.After years of austerity, Howard can finally afford new reading and school discipline programs. But Mr. Ecker doesn't want to provide the money, and the County Council is marching to his beat.Putting more local money into the schools' long-range capital budget became necessary after the state allocation came in at $13 million, instead of the $20 million expected.

Almost 800 more students in Howard County were suspended during the 1997-1998 school year than in the previous year, with the number of incidents increasing at every level except middle school, according to a report presented to the school board last night.The report said 2,624 students were suspended last year, compared with 1,857 during the 1996-1997 school year. There were 1,748 students suspended in 1995-96, the report said.The majority of the incidents continue to occur in the high schools and involve boys, the report said.

The affluent Howard County school system might be catching a glimpse of the future. For the first time, the majority of students at two of its schools are considered poor.That's not measured by Howard standards, but by the federal government's: More than 50 percent of students at Running Brook and Talbott Springs elementaries -- both in Columbia -- qualify for free or reduced-price lunches.Running Brook provides a clear look at the changing face of some schools in Howard and other suburban areas.

AN ORDERLY classroom is absolutely essential to education. That lesson was learned when teachers operated under the maxim "spare the rod, spoil the child." But times have changed. Removing unruly students who disrupt the education of their classmates is preferable to corporal punishment. Of course, it's also more expensive.The county board of education has voted to create a new school for "troubled" students that could cost several million dollars. The "alternative learning center" will serve disruptive students now sent to the Gateway School, as well as emotionally disturbed students in the Bridges program and violent students in the Passages program.

Carroll County public schools would seem to function like a well-run business. With conservative spending, schools turn out a product -- in the form of student academic performance -- that is consistently rated among the best in Maryland.But in his proposed operating budget for 1998-1999, departing Superintendent Brian L. Lockard has sent a message that the bottom-line mentality that has prevailed on school spending has to change. Otherwise, he fears the quality of the final product will begin to deteriorate rapidly.

YOU WILL have to indulge me today. I'm not in the mood to write about new county officers, bonded indebtedness or the pace of development. A week later, I've still got a buzz from the thrill of watching Oakland Mills High School bring the Class 1A state football championship to Howard County.Yes, I have a child on the team. But even if I didn't I would be excited. The Oakland Mills squad came to represent more than a football team as its season wore on. Its championship was a victory for a community that in recent years has received several blows to its self-esteem.

Freedom area should oppose greater densityThe planning commission of Carroll County wants to hear from citizens of the Freedom area. The commission is considering rezoning 295 acres of agricultural land that is within Linton Springs Elementary School district from conservation to R-20, or half-acre lots.The land lies between Linton Springs Elementary, Linton and Klee Mill roads and Little Morgan Run. Allowing acreage for infrastructure such as roads and open space and areas that are not suitable for construction, 400 homes is not a low estimate.

WASHINGTON -- Professors, said Mencken, do not belong in government. Their proper business is teaching sophomores how to hate their fathers. But government is deeply involved in higher education, ''a remarkably unwatched industry,'' according to Anne Matthews. Her new book, which may make educators wish she were not watching, should be a sobering read for government officials.In ''Bright College Years: Inside the American Campus Today,'' Ms. Matthews, who teaches in New York University's graduate journalism program, casts a cool eye on an industry that employs 2.5 million people (more than the auto, steel and textile industries combined)

Shalini Uttamsingh has watched International Night at Fulton Elementary School grow from an event that featured a handful of countries and attracted a couple of hundred people last year, to a major production spotlighting 20 countries and drawing a crowd of about 500. The growth of the event over just two years also serves as a reflection of the shift in the ethnic diversity among the county's student population. "You got an insider's view to the culture," said Uttamsingh, a parent and co-organizer of the event.

Maryland ranked No. 1 in the nation in the percentage of high school seniors taking and passing the rigorous Advanced Placement exams, squeaking by New York, which has held the top position for decades, according to a report released yesterday by the College Board. The achievement comes years after Maryland strengthened the curriculum in middle and high schools to better prepare students for college. For instance, many students now take Algebra I in eighth grade so that they can take calculus by the time they graduate.

Bad time to cut funding to community colleges Historically, during an economic downturn, students turn more than ever to community colleges for workforce training and an affordable alternative to more expensive public and private four-year institutions. Howard Community College is already experiencing significant increases in the number of high school graduates enrolling. Additionally, this fall's full-time equivalent student enrollment increased 6.26 percent over last year - more than double the projected increase of 3 percent.

President is intent on prolonging war By now it should be completely clear to the American public that this administration has absolutely no intention of ever removing itself from Iraq and bringing our troops home ("Bush resists bid to curb Iraq mission," July 16). In my more than 50 years as an American, I have never been more disgusted or less tolerant of a government that refuses to do the will of the people. President Bush, Vice President Dick Cheney and company care only about furthering their interests.

Minorities constituted more than half of Maryland's preschool population in 2006, according to a state analysis of U.S. census data that show minorities have fueled virtually all of the state's population growth this decade. The data - released today by the U.S. Census Bureau - indicate that Maryland's population is increasing because of immigrants and minority families arriving from other states, as the white population declines slightly. An analysis of the data by the Maryland Department of Planning shows that the diversity is most apparent among young people, with minorities constituting 51 percent of children under age 5. Maryland's figures follow national trends in which one in three U.S. residents is a minority and nearly half of all children under 5 are minorities.

The numbers were reason enough to protest 14 years ago. Then, the Johns Hopkins University had a black student population that made up 4.5 percent of its undergraduate body. And the 330-member undergraduate faculty included just two blacks, according to newspaper articles. Members of the Black Student Union protested this, among other things, confronting university officials, holding a sit-in at the library and engaging in heated confrontations with other students when a controversial speaker came to campus.

The local branch of the NAACP has called on the Anne Arundel County Board of Education to put together an affirmative action plan to increase what it called an "appalling" number of minority teachers and administrators. Gerald Stansbury, Anne Arundel chapter president, decried the results of an internal school system study, which found that African-Americans and Latinos make up 8 percent of the teachers and 1 percent of administrators, while nearly 25 percent of the student population falls into one of those racial groups.

Doing more with less. Getting more bang for your buck. These are just a couple of ways to describe how Carroll County educators have been managing, year after year, to maintain the district's stature as one of the state's highest-performing systems despite lacking the funding of some of the state's wealthier counties. "We do very well because of the great staff we have and because of our parents," said Superintendent Charles I. Ecker. "Certainly our staff does a lot ... but we can't do it without the parents.

A committee studying crowding at North Carroll High School has recommended that an addition be built on the Hampstead school, expanding its capacity from 1,360 students to 1,960 and making it the county's largest school building. The proposal drew a mixed reaction from school board members interviewed yesterday, as they disagreed on the effectiveness of such a large high school and the viability of easing crowding through redistricting. The expansion plan will be presented publicly for the first time at a board meeting tomorrow night.

Melanie Lo went to high school in Alabama and had trouble finding many people who could identify with her experiences as an Asian-American. Now a student at the University of Maryland, College Park, she had to adjust to living farther north, and to being part of a larger Asian-American community, something she did not have in high school. "I always felt like the outsider looking into all these other cultures," Lo said. "Coming here to Maryland, I found a lot of different organizations and finally felt like I was part of a community."