School news

Friday, March 12, 2010

Middle school career expo planned

All students in grades 6 through 8 and their parents are invited to explore career options at St. Mary's public schools' 2010 Middle School Career Expo on Wednesday, March 24, from 6 to 7 p.m. at Spring Ridge Middle School located at 19856 Three Notch Road in Lexington Park. For more information, contact Gersende Schleicher at 301-863-4031 or by e-mail at gbschleicher@smcps.org.

Robotics regional set

The FIRST Robotics Competition's premier event in Maryland will be held at the Baltimore Convention Center March 11, 12 and 13. The Chesapeake Regional, featuring more than 1,000 high school students in 49 robotics teams from around the nation, has been held at the Naval Academy in Annapolis for the past seven years, and comes to Baltimore to a larger facility and a greater base of attendees, sponsors and volunteers. Included in the competitors is a team from the Dr. James A. Forrest Career and Technology Center in Leonardtown.

Testing for talented youth scheduled

The Johns Hopkins University Center for Talented Youth will hold local testing on Saturday, March 27, at 8:30 a.m., at Evergreen Elementary School at 43765 Evergreen Way (at the end of Wildewood Parkway in California).

Performance on the test may qualify students for participation in all or some of the programs available through Johns Hopkins University, including talent search, summer academic programs, CTYOnline, family academic programs, diagnostic and counseling center and study of exceptional talent.

For more information contact Laura Carpenter, supervisor of instruction for gifted and talented programs, at 301-475-5511, ext. 142, or visit http://cty.jhu.edu.

Kepferle scholarship deadline is May 3

The annual $1,000 Pat Kepferle Friendship Memorial College Scholarship is available to at least one college-bound student from a St. Mary's County high school.

The scholarship was established to help increase awareness among all county high school students and their families regarding the dangers of meningococcal meningitis and the vaccine that can help prevent it. The vaccine is recommended for students of all ages; parents should consult the health department or their family doctors regarding vaccine availability.

The scholarship was established in memory of Joseph Patrick "Pat" Kepferle, a 1999 Great Mills High School graduate and Towson University freshman, who became a victim of meningococcal meningitis on March 5, 2000, just before his 19th birthday. Last year's scholarship recipient was Davi Clark of Leonardtown High School. Applications must be postmarked by May 3 this year. Students should contact their high school counseling offices for more information.

School employee awards for February

St. Mary's public schools' Work Hard and Be Nice Award recognizes accomplishments of school system employees in connection with official employment. The award recipients for February are Edward Boswell, Alex Jaffurs, Keith Lawrence, Bonnie Peterson and Anne Wincelowicz.

Professor wins grant

John Ramcharitar, assistant professor of biology at St. Mary's College of Maryland, was awarded one of four grants awarded nationally from the Support of Mentors and their Students from UnderRepresented Minorities.

The $9,000 grant will go to researching the impact of several FDA-approved pharmaceuticals that can produce toxic effects (ototoxic) in the inner ears of humans. Ramcharitar of California and his student assistant, Diana Roman of Westminster, will test the drugs on zebra fish.

A recent National Science Board report underscores the need to enhance recruitment and retention of students in the sciences.

SOMAS-URM addresses this need using a two-pronged strategy: junior faculty receive mentoring and instruction in launching research programs that engage student collaborators; and college students are introduced to discovery in the neurosciences by conducting original research with their professors.