News from Baltimore County Public Schools, Maryland

BCPS News Tips - The Week of February 11-18, 2012: Activities, Events, and News from Baltimore County Public Schools

Fri, 10 Feb 2012 14:57:42 -0500

Monday, February 13

College Savings Plans meeting scheduled for Cockeysville Middle School

Cockeysville Middle School, 10401 Greenside Drive in Cockeysville, will host a parent information meeting presented by the College Savings Plans of Maryland, beginning at 7:00 p.m. The College Savings Plans allow parents to save for college through a variety of affordable and flexible programs. For more information, go to www.collegesavingsmd.org or call 1.888.4MD.GRAD.

Contact: Maribel Adia, College Savings Plans of Maryland, 443.769.1034

Tuesday, February 14

Young Pot Spring Elementary School students mark 100 days with peek into their own futures

Kindergarten students at Pot Spring Elementary School will observe the 100th day of school with a special activity - they will be dressed in what they will look like when they are 100 years old. The school is located at 2410 Springlake Drive in Timonium.

Contact: Michelle Doyle or Jane Martin, Pot Spring Elementary School, 410.887.7648

Wednesday, February 15

Southwest Area Advisory Council hosts health and fitness discussion

The BCPS Southwest Area Advisory Council will host a presentation on health and fitness at Woodlawn Middle School from 7:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Sally Nazelrod, coordinator of the BCPS Office of Physical Education, Health, and Dance, will discuss how the school system helps students to be more active. The discussion will include a question-and-answer session. The school is located at 3033 St. Lukes Lane in Woodlawn.

Contact: Sally Nazelrod, Office of Physical Education, Health and Dance, 410.887.4014

Kingsville Elementary School will "Open the Door to Kindness"

The doorways in Kingsville Elementary School will be adorned with messages of kindness through Wednesday, February 29, as part of the school's "Kindness Door" Decorating Contest. Sponsored by Grade 3 students of the Kingsville Kindness Kids, the contest has the theme "Open the Door to Kindness." In addition, the Kindness Kids will sell "Kindo-o-grams" in the lobby before school during the week of February 13. Students, faculty members, staff, and parents can purchase a personalized heart for one another for 50 cents and the message of kindness will be delivered during the school day. All proceeds will be donated to the Chesapeake Bay Foundation as part of Kingsville's Green School initiative. The school is located at 7300 Sunshine Avenue in Kingsville.

Contact: Susan Felts or Amy DeNike, Kingsville Elementary School, 410.887.5949

College Savings Plans meeting scheduled for Franklin Middle School

Franklin Middle School, 10 Cockeysmill Road in Reisterstown, will host a parent information meeting presented by the College Savings Plans of Maryland, beginning at 7:00 p.m. The College Savings Plans allow parents to save for college through a variety of affordable and flexible programs. For more information, go to www.collegesavingsmd.org or call 1.888.4MD.GRAD.

Contact: Maribel Adia, College Savings Plans of Maryland, 443.769.1034

Thursday, February 16

Family Math Night comes to Catonsville Elementary School

Catonsville Elementary School will host its annual Family Math Night, starting at 7:00 p.m. Activities for the evening include playing "Jeopardy" on a Promethean Board and connecting math to physical education with activities in the gym. Students also can purchase items from the CES store using "Bee Bucks." In addition, the BCPS Parentmobile, a traveling educational resource center for parents and families, will be available for those parents who seek to learn about selected resources and materials to assist learning at home. The school is located at 615 Frederick Road in Catonsville.

Contact: Nicole White, Catonsville Elementary School, 410.887.0800

Randallstown High School to host exchange students from China

Randallstown High School students are participating in the school system's China Cultural Exchange Program from May until July, and as a result, the school and its students will host two students from China from Thursday, February 16, through March 27. The exchange students will attend classes and participate in school activities with the goal of providing for them a meaningful cultural experience that includes exposing them to a variety of school and community activities. The school is located at 4000 Offutt Road, Randallstown.

Contact: Kia Isaacs, Randallstown High School, 410.887.0748

Ongoing!

Catonsville Elementary School striving to go green

Catonsville Elementary School, 615 Frederick Road in Catonsville, is working towards qualifying to become a Maryland Green School. As part of that process, students and staff are looking for ways to better their environment by reducing carbon emissions. On every second Wednesday of the month throughout the school year, the school will observe a "Walk, Bike Ride, Carpool or Take the Bus to School Day" in which students will look for green ways to get to and from school.

Contact: Nancy Henderson or Linda Miller, Catonsville Elementary School, 410.887.0800

161 BCPS' students qualify for statewide Future Business Leaders competition: Regional conference held at Dundalk High School

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 11:48:01 -0500

TOWSON, MD-Strong scores at a regional competition allowed 161 Baltimore County Public Schools' students, representing 19 high schools, to qualify to compete at the statewide Future Business Leaders of America conference.

The 2012 Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) Regional Conference was held at Dundalk High School on February 1, 2012. More than 350 BCPS students from 20 FBLA chapters competed: 263 students participated in online events, such as accounting, business law, cybersecurity, and global business; and 89 participated in performance events, including business ethics, public speaking, emerging business issues, and client service.

Students who earned qualifying places at this regional competition will compete at the Maryland FBLA Conference, to be held in April in Hunt Valley. Students who qualify at the state level will then compete in the FBLA National Conference in San Antonio, Texas, at the end of June. Last June, BCPS sent 25 student competitors from various schools to compete in the FBLA National Conference in Orlando, Florida.

This year marked the beginning of a new tradition for the FBLA Regional Conference in Baltimore County - the naming of an FBLA Region 2A Conference Champion. Based on the number of students participating and the rankings earned, an FBLA chapter will win the traveling trophy coined "The Walker Cup," named after Leila Walker, BCPS' Career and Technology Education coordinator. The first recipient of this honor, named at this year's conference, is George Washington Carver Center for Arts and Technology.

This is the second year that the regional conference has been held at Dundalk High. FBLA advisor Pat Holt and his Dundalk chapter organized the conference. Judges represented the Port of Baltimore, First Financial Federal Credit Union, and local area businesses. In addition to participating in events, students at the conference attended workshops on cybersecurity, a virtual business challenge, and college preparedness.

BCPS' Students Qualifying for State-Level FBLA Competition

ONLINE EVENTS

Accounting I
1st place Joshua Ikotun, Carver Center
2nd place Carlo Pastor, Eastern Tech
3rd place Nia Gipson, Randallstown
4th place Ryan Foard, Eastern Tech

Accounting II
1st place Danielle Cockey, Eastern Tech
2nd place Christopher Hook, Eastern Tech

Banking & Financial Systems
1st place Team BF Sparrows Point 1069 (Brendan Coley and Austin Gilkey), Sparrows Point
2nd place Team BF Dundalk 691 (James Reed, Kirsten Taylor, and Sean Raymond), Dundalk
3rd place Team BF Carver Center 872 (Essence Frederick, Keona Holden, Vincent Iyoriobhe), Carver Center
4th place Team BF Hereford 654 (Nick Hall and Kevin Payne), Hereford

Business Calculations
1st place Liangcheng Tao, Dulaney
2nd place Steven Glendsman, Carver Center
3rd place Konica Roache, New Town
4th place Mike Brown, Hereford

Business Communication
1st place Amy Gorovoy, Carver Center
2nd place Derek Nicholas, Perry Hall
3rd place Molly Flowers, Hereford
4th place Emonie Hall, Loch Raven

Business Law
1st place Chris Rohlfing, Dundalk
2nd place Alex Gianotti, Hereford
3rd place Timothy Jacobs, Western Tech
4th place Carly Compton, Overlea

Business Math
1st place Ryan Din, Western Tech
2nd place Matthew Yatovitz, Carver Center
3rd place Tom Irwin, Perry Hall
4th place Elizabeth Owalabi, Randallstown

Business Procedures
1st place Richard Bailey, Carver Center
2nd place Dylan Bethke, Perry Hall
3rd place Victoria Black, Chesapeake

Computer Applications
1st place Brittany Bowser, Eastern Tech
2nd place Alexander Fagan, Patapsco

Computer Problem Solving
1st place Shyam Patel, Catonsville
2nd place Rebecca Wroblewski, Chesapeake
3rd place Eric Brashears, Perry Hall

Cyber Security
1st place Brandon Holtzner, Catonsville
2nd place Anderson Jaggernauth, Chesapeake
3rd place Samantha Fitzpatrick, Catonsville
4th place Jeff Harris, Hereford

Database Design & Applications
1st place Jacob Rhein, Hereford

Economics
1st place Scott Seiss, Eastern Tech
2nd place Shoutik Mukherjee, Dulaney
3rd place Ethan Levy, Dulaney
4th place Matthew Wright, Eastern Tech

Entrepreneurship
1st place Team Entre Eastern Tech 967 (Nicholas Dorbit and Amanda Leap), Eastern Tech
2nd place Team Entre Hereford 671 (Tyler Graybill and Daniel Kozlowski), Hereford
3rd place Team Entre Perry Hall 1453 (Randall Gatton and Francisco Martinez), Perry Hall
4th place Team Entre Dundalk 695 (Chris Grafton and Taylor Walton), Dundalk

Future Business Leader
1st place Katie Lagatare, Hereford
2nd place Ashley Simmons, Randallstown
3rd place Adam Burgess, Lansdowne
4th place Tiffany Woodall, Perry Hall

Global Business
1st place Team GB Loch Raven 704 (Sarah Kerr and Tanner Muonio), Loch Raven
2nd place Team GB Dulaney 685 (Cindy Liu and Lulu Sun), Dulaney
3rd place Team GB Catonsville 1192 (Candra Hart and Krishna Pani), Catonsville
4th place Team GB Carver Center 882 (Nitin Sharma and Iryna Zinchenko), Carver Center

Health Care Administration
1st place Kaliyah Jordan, Western Tech
2nd place Meera Thenappan, Carver Center
3rd place Ramandeep Kaur, Catonsville
4th place Dyasia Downing, Overlea

Help Desk
1st place Kent Vaden, Carver Center
2nd place Dennis Young, Patapsco
3rd place Jasmine Gilliam, Randallstown

Hospitality Management
1st place Jen Stachowiak, Perry Hall
2nd place Myles Muehlberger, Carver Center
3rd place Taylor Bailey, Woodlawn
4th place Albertin Weah, Overlea

Intro to Business Communication
1st place Courtney Fuller, Hereford
2nd place Cassie Bienert, Hereford
3rd place Jasmin Thompson, Randallstown
4th place Akshayah Kayamboo, Carver Center

Intro to Parliamentary Procedure
1st place Vanessa Ward, Dundalk
2nd place Morgan Harrell, Eastern Tech
3rd place Sanjana Chowdhury, Eastern Tech
4th place Taylor Richter, Eastern Tech

Intro to Technology Concepts
1st place Paul Gibbs, Carver Center
2nd place Alana Powell, Overlea

Introduction to Business
1st place Thomas Cook, Carver Center
2nd place Alex Fasehun, Western Tech
3rd place Nicole Viscuso, Hereford
4th place Breanna Warren, Sparrows Point

Management Decision Making
1st place Team MDM Dulaney 684 (Vel Lian, Oladele Ojo, and David Tian), Dulaney
2nd place Team MDM Randallstown 1624 (Kim Brunson and Kyra Owens), Randallstown
3rd place Team MDM Perry Hall 1458 (Sam Nhira, Felicity Nimely, and Adaobi Udoji), Perry Hall

Marketing
1st place Team MKTG Carver Center 891 (Aisha Ali, Yoojin Park, and Sarah Stoll), Carver Center
2nd place Team MKTG Hereford 655 (Brendan Jennings and Jason Solomon), Hereford
3rd place Team MKTG Woodlawn 1631 (Danial Sheikh and Samir Zahid), Woodlawn
4th place Team MKTG Sparrows Point 1066 (Courtney Gilchrist and Courtney Wallace), Sparrows Point

Network Design
1st place Team ND Patapsco 752 (David Dickey, Heather Frantum, and Ashley Stivers), Patapsco
2nd place Team ND Kenwood 1680 (Carlo Grissett and Brandon Ramkissoon), Kenwood

Parliamentary Procedure
1st place Team PP Dulaney 687 (Arjun Rao, Chris Flower, Danny Iachan, and Tom Ko), Dulaney

Personal Finance
1st place Long Cao, Carver Center
2nd place Gabe Rivera, Hereford
3rd place Diamond Wynn, Sollers Point
4th place Jessica Macias, Eastern Tech

Sports Management
1st place Tyler Oleszczuk, Overlea
2nd place Cody Schmidt, Overlea
3rd place Quintin Branham, Patapsco
4th place Paramveer Grewal, Eastern Tech

Spreadsheet Applications
1st place Jesse Wilson, Sparrows Point
2nd place Alonzo Jackson, Eastern Tech

Technology Concepts
1st place Jasmine Stevenson, Chesapeake
2nd place James Larrimore, Hereford

Word Processing I
1st place Emanuel Olaleye, Randallstown
2nd place Dylan Brennan, Carver Center

Word Processing II
1st place Jamie Rosenberg, Carver Center
2nd place Treyvond Davis, Randallstown

PERFORMANCE EVENTS

Business Ethics
1st place Team 4 (Sara Barnett and Jonathan Luckin), Hereford
2nd place Team 12 (Marina Mizell, Bailey Pratt, and Stephen Daily), Sparrows Point

Business Presentation
1st place Beverly Atueyi and Debbie Fadoju, Western Tech
2nd place Team 3 (Brian McNair, Stephen Spriggs, and Donnell Lewis) Randallstown

Client Service
1st place Lauren Seward, Catonsville
2nd place Taylor Cole, Sollers Point

Emerging Business Issues
1st place Team 1 (Andre Keyser and Ashley Sauer), Overlea
2nd place Team 3 (Nevin Sugar, Lars Anderson, and Sean Najmi), Loch Raven

Impromptu Speaking
1st place Vashti Webb, Catonsville
2nd place Teja Mulpuri, Dulaney

Job Interview
1st place Jonathan Randolph, Woodlawn
2nd place Charles Paton, Hereford

Public Speaking I
1st place Kara Davis, Overlea
2nd place Morgan Smith, Western Tech

Public Speaking II
1st place Maria Barkley, Western Tech
2nd place Ryan Krimm, Sparrows Point

Baltimore County Public Schools Cancels Afternoon and Evening Activities

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 14:04:46 -0500

TOWSON, Md. - Due to inclement weather, Baltimore County Public Schools has cancelled all after-school afternoon and evening activities for Wednesday, February 8, 2012.

Artwork by two Randallstown High School students on display at Reginald F. Lewis Museum : Juried exhibition focuses on improving communities

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 09:16:47 -0500

TOWSON, MD - Artwork by two Randallstown High School students - Rachel Massalee, Grade 10, and Da'sha Newkirk, Grade 11 - was selected for exhibition as part of the Fourth Annual Reginald F. Lewis Museum High School Juried Art Show.

The exhibition, produced in partnership with the Maryland State Education Association, will be on display at the Reginald F. Lewis Museum of African American History and Culture in downtown Baltimore through Sunday, February 26.

The theme for this year's exhibition is "Building Community Through Civic Engagement." Both Massalee and Newkirk are students of Randallstown High School visual arts teacher Martha Jacobs. Linda Popp, visual arts coordinator for Baltimore County Public Schools, served as one of the judges for this juried exhibition.

Maryland's College Savings Plans program to host parent information meetings at 8 BCPS schools: Meetings to educate parents about saving for children's education

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 09:12:11 -0500

What: The College Savings Plans of Maryland program has scheduled “Parent Information Night” meetings through early March at eight of Baltimore County’s middle schools. The meetings are open to all Baltimore County parents who are considering a college education for their children.

When & Where: All meetings will begin at 7:00 p.m. on the dates and at the locations listed below.

Monday, February 13:
- Cockeysville Middle School, 10401 Greenside Drive, Cockeysville
Wednesday, February 15:
- Franklin Middle School, 10 Cockeysmill Road, Reisterstown
Wednesday, February 22:
- Pine Grove Middle School, 9200 Old Harford Road, Parkville
Thursday, February 23:
- Pikesville Middle School, 7701 Seven Mile Lane, Pikesville
Tuesday, February 28:
- Loch Raven Technical Academy, 8101 LaSalle Road, Towson
Wednesday, February 29:
- Catonsville Middle School, 2301 Edmondson Avenue, Catonsville
- Deep Creek Middle School, 1000 S. Marlyn Avenue, Essex
Wednesday, March 7:
- Perry Hall Middle School, 4300 Ebenezer Road, Perry Hall

Background:

The College Savings Plans of Maryland offers two options from the state of Maryland to help save for college costs. The Maryland Prepaid College Trust allows participants to lock in tomorrow’s tuition at today’s prices and offers the security of a Maryland Legislative Guarantee. The Maryland College Investment Plan offers a variety of different investment portfolios managed by T. Rowe Price. Both plans also offer state and federal tax benefits. The plans’ Parent Information Nights provide parents with information and application materials and are open to anyone interested in saving for a future college education. For more information, contact the program at 1-888-4MD-GRAD or on the Web site at www.collegesavingsmd.org.

BCPS News Tips - The Week of February 4-11, 2012 : Activities, Events, and News from Baltimore County Public Schools

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 08:25:57 -0500

Saturday, February 4

Baltimore County Public Schools’ All-Honors Jazz Ensemble to play at Walters Art Museum

The annual Baltimore County High School Honors Jazz Concert will be held at the Walters Art Museum at 7:30 p.m. The performance will highlight more than 35 high school students selected from an audition process to perform in a county-wide honors ensemble. Conductors include James McFalls of Towson University and Ira Shankman of New York University. Admission is free, and tickets are not required. The museum is located at 600 N. Charles Street in Baltimore.

Contact: Karl Stewart, Office of Music, 410.887.4024

Monday, February 6

Sen. J.B. Jennings to give citations to Chase Elementary School fifth-graders

Sen. J.B. Jennings will visit Chase Elementary School at 10:00 a.m. to visit Grade 5 students who participated in a “Good Citizen Essay Contest” sponsored by his office. Sen. Jennings will present all of the participants with individual letters of commendation that include quotes from their essays.One student, who won a grand prize for the district, will receive a citation by the senator on the Senate floor in Annapolis in March. The school is located at 11701 Eastern Avenue in Chase.

Contact: Douglas Elmendorf, Chase Elementary School, 410.887.5940

BCPS Honors Dance Ensemble to perform at Shady Spring Elementary School

The BCPS Honors Dance Ensemble will perform at Shady Spring Elementary School at 10:00 a.m. The ensemble was invited to perform at Shady Spring’s Achievement Assembly, which recognizes students who reach benchmarks of achievement. The ensemble’s half-hour performance will include a ballet, a modern dance, senior solos, and a "flash mob" dance with the audience. The school is located at 8868 Goldenwood Road in Rosedale.

Contact: Suzanne Henneman, Office of Dance Education, 410.887.4014

Riverview Elementary School hosts Family Reading Night and Scholastic Book Fair

As part of its Scholastic Book Fair running through Friday, February 10, Riverview Elementary School will host both a Family Shopping Night from 3:30 p.m. to 7:45 p.m.and a Reading Night from 6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Reading Night activities will include crafts, readers, and computer activities, and Riverview families can view student-created door decorations and receive materials from both county school and library offices. Refreshments will be served, and books and prizes will be awarded during the event. The school is located at 3298 Kessler Road in Lansdowne.

Contact: MaryBeth Padden or Ellen Stein, Riverview Elementary School, 410.887.1428

Tuesday, February 7

Red House Run Elementary School welcomes award-winning author

Red House Run Elementary School will feature author Mary Jo Amani at our school’s annual Reading Night from 5:45 p.m. to 7:15 p.m. She also will be at Red House Run during the day to visit classrooms. Amani will read her award-winning children’s book, Excuse Me, I’m Trying to Read, and share the work she does to promote community lending libraries in small villages and towns in Mozambique, Africa.For many years, Amani has worked overseas in Central America and Africa promoting reading programs and lending libraries.She is an enthusiastic speaker who shares her cultural experiences living and working in other countries as well as stories about her life as a reader and writer. The school is located at 1717 Weyburn Road.

Contact: Mary Ellen Castle, Red House Run Elementary School, 410.887.0506

Regional History Bee Competition to be held at Windsor Mill Middle School

The Regional Middle School History Bee Competition will be held at Windsor Mill Middle School, 8300 Windsor Mill Road in Randallstown, starting at 5:00 p.m. The first round of the competition took place at the school in December, when students took an 80-question test. Students from Windsor Mill Middle will compete against students from Maryland, the District of Columbia, and Delaware. The winner of the regional competition will compete in the National Middle School History Bee in Washington, D.C., April 21-22, 2012, for a chance to win a $50,000 scholarship. The championship will be telecast on the History Channel.

Contact: Gerald Oehler, Windsor Mill Elementary School, 410.887.0618

Carney Elementary School hosts Family Fun Night

Carney Elementary School will host a Family Fun Night from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. The school will welcome the BCPS ParentMobile during this event and will feature math and movement activities, everyday health and nutrition, recycled art, math programs in the computer labs, and make-and-take activities with help from the BCPS resource center. The school is located at 3131 E. Joppa Road in Carney.

Contact: Stacey Durkovic, Carney Elementary School, 410.887.5528

Elmwood Elementary School takes a virtual field trip to the Walters Art Museum

Grade 4 students at Elmwood Elementary School, 531 Dale Avenue in Fullerton, will take a virtual field trip via webcast to the Walters Art Museum in Baltimore, including a question-and-answer session about the museum’s medieval art collection. As a result of the field trip, students will create panels inspired by medieval art that show images of their personal values. The field trip will take place in the school’s gymnasium between 11:25 a.m. and 12:15 p.m.

Contact: Pat Quinn or Cara Liggett, Elmwood Elementary School, 410-887-5232

Thursday, February 9

Parkville High School will hold science fair

Parkville High School and Center for Mathematics, Science, and Computer Scienceswill hold its annual science fair from 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. About 150 students from various science classes will exhibit their science fair projects, and projects will be on display from the following science classes: GT Biology, GT Physics, AP Environmental Science, AP Physics, AP Biology, and Anatomy & Physiology. Parkville High School is located at 2600 Putty Hill Avenue in Parkville.

Contact: Alexandra K. Newman, Parkville High School, 410.887.5257

Dumbarton Middle School features play Heading For The Hills

DMS Pride Productions of Dumbarton Middle School will feature Headin’ for the Hills, a production that centers on two feuding hillbilly families, two people caught between romance and ambition, and a girl who can’t stop telling bad jokes. There will be two performances of Headin’ for the Hills on Thursday, February 9, and Friday, February 10, both at 7:00 p.m. in the Dumbarton Middle School auditorium at 300 Dumbarton Road in Rodgers Forge. Tickets are $5 and will be available at the door.

Contact: Eric Adams, Dumbarton Middle School, 410.887.3176

Reading Achievement Celebrated at Red House Run Elementary School

Students who have excelled in reading in Grades 3-5 are invited to “Cookies for Cool Readers” at Red House Run Elementary School, 1717 Weyburn Road in Rosedale. This event takes place at 2:30 p.m. when honorees will have punch and cookies with the principal, Drue Whitney, and the assistant principal, Stefanie Fogleman. Ms. Whitney also will read one of her favorite books to the students.

Contact: Mary Ellen Castle or Drue Whitney, Red House Run Elementary School, 410.887.0506

Friday, February 10

Sportscaster Shawn Madden to speak at Victory Villa Elementary School

Victory Villa Elementary School will hold its quarterly Principal’s Breakfast in the cafeteria from 9:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m.Students who receive high marks on their reports cards are invited to the Principal’s Breakfast. Sportscaster Shawn Madden of WJZ-TV will be the guest speaker. The school is located at 500 Compass Road in Essex.

Contact: Jen Dugan, Victory Villa Elementary School, 410.887.0184

Ongoing!

Pine Grove Middle hosts “Jeans Drive”

Pine Grove Middle School is hosting a “Jeans Drive” through Friday, February 10. Gently-used jeans collected at the school will be turned in at a local Aeropostale store and donated to the homeless or in-need families. A school that donates the most pairs of jeans in the store’s competition will win $5,000 for the school, as well as a new pair of jeans for every student. The school is located at 9200 Old Harford Road in Carney.

Contact: John Ward, Pine Grove Middle School, 410.887.5270

Catonsville Elementary School striving to go green

Catonsville Elementary School, 615 Frederick Road in Catonsville, is working towards qualifying to become a Maryland Green School. As part of that process, students and staff are looking for ways to better their environment by reducing carbon emissions. On every second Wednesday of the month throughout the school year, the school will observe a “Walk, Bike Ride, Carpool or Take the Bus to School Day” in which students will look for green ways to get to and from school.

Contact: Nancy Henderson or Linda Miller, Catonsville Elementary School, 410.887.0800

Sew much learning going on at Winand Elementary School

Students at Winand Elementary School are learning the art of sewing as part of a club at the school called the Sew Fun Sewing Club. In the club, students learn how to use a sewing machine and crafts creation, all on the way to eventually having the skills to make their own clothing. (Club members recently finished making an alphabet letter throw pillow.) Currently, students are creating personal aprons to be followed by a new project to be donated to the House of Ruth and a homeless shelter. The school is located at 8301 Scotts Level Road in Randallstown.

Contact: Margaret Garland, sewfabulousss@yahoo.com, or Meghan Covert, Winand Elementary School, 410.887.0763

Club at Patapsco High teaches students, staff to create apps for mobile devices

Shawn and Stephanie Grimes, owners of Shawn’s Bits and Campfire Apps and 1998 graduates of Patapsco High School and Center for the Arts, return to the school each Monday afternoon to lead a new club they founded. The group, which is teaching students and teachers how to create application programs (called “apps”) for mobile devices, began meeting in late October. Patapsco High is located at 8100 Wise Avenue in Dundalk.

Contact: Liberty Grayek, Patapsco High School and Center for the Arts, 410.887.7060 ext. 256

BCPS' school, teacher to be honored for excellence in technology, engineering education: Deep Creek Middle School and Christopher Putnam, Hereford Middle School teacher, to receive awards

Thu, 02 Feb 2012 12:57:08 -0500

TOWSON, MD - The Technology & Engineering Educators Association of Maryland (TEEAM) will honor Deep Creek Middle School with its Middle School Program Excellence Award and will recognize Christopher Putnam, technology education teacher at Hereford Middle School, with its Award of Excellence. The awards will be presented at the TEEAM Donald Maley Awards reception on Thursday, February 23, 2012, at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Lab in Laurel, Maryland.

Deep Creek Middle School began offering the Project Lead the Way Gateway to Technology (GTT) program during the 2007-2008 school year. This school year, under the leadership of Principal Dwan L. Pinamonti and instructors Steven Showalter, Eric McCray, and Timothy Ward, the program serves 302 students in Grades 7 and 8. GTT is a national initiative that uses a project-based curriculum to engage middle school students in technology and engineering. In addition to exploring science, technology, engineering, and mathematics-related careers, the program reinforces problem-solving skills, teamwork, and innovation. GTT units taught at Deep Creek are Automation and Robotics, Design and Modeling, Flight and Space, Magic of Electrons, and Science of Technology.

In addition to successfully implementing GTT at their school, Deep Creek Middle School administrators and faculty have helped the program grow in Maryland schools. During the summers of 2009 and 2010, McCray partnered with teachers from Chesapeake High School to offer the Gateway Academy, a weeklong camp developed by Project Lead the Way and the Society of Manufacturing Engineers Education Foundation.

After McCray and Meghan Jothen (a Deep Creek teacher currently on leave) led workshop sessions on the effective implementation of GTT programs at statewide conferences in 2009 and 2010, Deep Creek Middle School hosted school visits for staff from Harford County Public Schools and Queen Anne's County Public Schools. With input from the Deep Creek staff, these two school systems have now implemented GTT programs.

In addition to receiving an award on February 23, Deep Creek program instructors will represent Maryland at the 2012 International Technology & Engineering Educators Association Conference Program Awards in Long Beach, California, on Friday, March 16, 2012.

In nominating Putnam, a York, Pennsylvania, resident, for the TEEAM Award of Excellence, Douglas Handy, BCPS' technology education supervisor, noted that "Chris's work has been an integral part of the Association's mission to promote technological literacy for all students by supporting instruction of technology, innovation, design, and engineering."

At Hereford Middle School, Putnam teaches technology and advises the Engineering Club, which fosters an understanding of engineering and competes in robotics competitions. Beyond the school, Putnam, who is also TEEAM's past-president, has served as the organization's Web site coordinator since 2002 and continually enhances and updates the Web site. He has also established Facebook, Picassa, and PayPal accounts for TEEAM, along with an annual pre-conference newsletter and a PBWorks wiki site that members can use to share lessons and instructional strategies.

"Chris's contributions have enabled TEEAM to communicate more effectively with the membership and to conduct business in a much more efficient manner," Handy wrote.

All-County Honors Jazz Ensemble concert to be held this Saturday : Public is invited to free concert

Thu, 02 Feb 2012 08:56:10 -0500

What: The public is invited to a free concert by Baltimore County Public Schools' 2012 All Honors Jazz Band and All Honors Jazz Chorus. The groups feature students from high schools across the county who were selected through an audition process. The jazz band will be conducted by James McFalls, a Towson University Department of Music faculty member, and will perform selections including "Yardbird Suite," "Blue Train," "Over the Rainbow," and "Sky Dive." Conducted by Ira Shankman, coordinator of the choral program at New York University, the chorus will sing selections including "So Many Stars," "Soon It's Gonna Rain," "Dr. Jazz," and "Everybody Gets the Blues."

When: Saturday, February 4, 2012, at 7:30 p.m.
(snow date Saturday, February 11)

Where: The Walters Art Museum
600 N. Charles Street
Baltimore, Maryland 21201

Board of Education of Baltimore County to Meet on Tuesday, February 7

Thu, 02 Feb 2012 08:14:49 -0500

TOWSON, MD. - The next regularly scheduled meeting of the Board of Education of Baltimore County will be held on Tuesday, February 7, 2012.

The Building and Contracts Committee of the Board will meet at approximately 4:45 p.m. The full Board will meet in open session at approximately 5:15 p.m. to discuss upcoming school board association events, school system and community meetings, and items of interest to Board members. The Board will then move immediately into closed session. The Board will resume its open session at approximately 7:00 p.m.

The meeting(s) will be held in the ESS Building, Room 114, on the Greenwood Campus, 6901 Charles Street, in Towson. The public is welcome to attend all open sessions of the Board.

Board of Education to recognize honorees at Thursday, February 2, ceremony: About 150 students, staff, and schools to be recognized

Wed, 01 Feb 2012 07:28:45 -0500

What: The Baltimore County Board of Education will recognize about 150 individuals representing almost 60 schools, including students, teachers, volunteers, and community members, who have achieved success and contributed greatly to the goals and mission of Baltimore County Public Schools. Honorees include those who have won local, state, or national awards and others who have significantly benefited their schools and the school system.

When: Thursday, February 2, 2012, beginning at 7:00 p.m.
(Snow date: Thursday, February 9, 2012, beginning at 7:00 p.m.)

Where: Parkville Middle School
8711 Avondale Road, Parkville

Background: One of the highlights of the school system calendar, this winter ceremony is the second of three such events hosted by the Board of Education each school year. The names and school affiliations of the ceremony's recipients are available upon request.