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State officials tell judge they’re still years away from fixing health care in Baltimore jails

State attorneys told a federal judge this week that Maryland’s corrections department won’t meet the court’s December 2024 deadline to fix health care and mental health in Baltimore jails. Instead, officials are targeting the end of 2025 to be fully compliant with the terms of a 2016 settlement. The shifting timelines come despite the fact that the judge already gave the state a six-month extension on the deadline two years ago.

College behind bars: How a Md. university and maximum security prison work toward change

Nine prisoners at the Jessup Correctional Institution in Maryland are working toward their college degrees, and the hope is that the positive change they’re experiencing will be contagious. At a gathering inside the prison library in Jessup, Maryland, Secretary of the Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services Carolyn Scruggs talked about what’s behind the Bowie State University degree program at the prison.

Read More: WTOP
Muslim parents in Montgomery Co. opposing LGBTQ curriculum in schools point to principals’ concerns for support

Muslim residents in Montgomery County, Maryland, who seek to opt their children out of LGBTQ+ inclusive literary curriculum are pointing to a memo from elementary school principals to support their argument. Muslim civil and religious rights groups held a news conference Tuesday to make a memo from November public that they said shows leaders of a union of principals telling school leaders their concerns about the content of some of the LGBTQ story books, possible religious bias in teacher discussion guides and a lack of teacher training.

 

Read More: WTOP
hospital, emergency room, entrance
DC-area hospitals ranked among best in the nation

Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland, is once again near the top of the rankings of the nation’s best hospitals, and Inova Fairfax Hospital is ranked the No. 1 hospital in the D.C. area in the annual rankings by U.S. News and World Report. “Our results are intended to be a source of information, a data driven decision guide to patients for them to weigh along with other factors including recommendations from their physician,” said Ben Harder, managing editor and chief of health analysis at U.S. News and World Report.

 

Read More: WTOP
Family of Henrietta Lacks settles HeLa cell lawsuit with biotech giant, lawyer says

The family of Henrietta Lacks agreed Monday to settle a lawsuit against Thermo Fisher Scientific, a Massachusetts-based biotechnology company that sold products derived from the Baltimore County resident’s cells, according to civil rights attorney Ben Crump. The terms of the settlement are confidential, Crump said in a statement shortly before midnight Monday.

Read More: Baltimore Sun
FCPS to buy local produce for cafeterias using state grant funds

A state grant will allow some Frederick County Public Schools cafeterias to serve more food from local growers this fall. The district received a $95,000 award from the Maryland State Department of Education through its Local Food for Schools program. FCPS will use the funds to procure fresh fruits and vegetables, coordinate engagement programs and hire a new specialist, said Robert Kelly, the system’s director of food and nutrition services.

 

 

Prince George’s Co. middle school has new look just in time for back-to-school

Prince George’s County’s Drew-Freeman Middle School looks a lot different these days: Students will have a new attitude when they see the new building this fall. County Executive Angela Alsobrooks and Prince George’s County Public Schools Superintendent Millard House II toured the new school on Monday. “We had to push through because getting to this day took a lot of hard work even in the face of obstacles, like a global pandemic,” Alsobrooks said.

Read More: WTOP
How many MCPS families want to remove their students from LGBTQ+ class discussions?

The volume of Montgomery County families asking to opt their elementary students out of classroom discussions on LGBTQ+ inclusive content became too overwhelming for schools to manage, the district alleged in legal documents. But MCPS cannot determine how many families are opting out, a district official told MoCo360 last week. Some pro-opt-out advocates say that MCPS officials have told them a different story in private meetings.

Read More: MOCO360
Baltimore Beltway ramps to close temporarily for Triple Bridges project in August, September

Several elevated ramps will be temporarily closed on the Baltimore Beltway and the “Triple Bridges” interchange on I-70 in Woodlawn for four separate nights in August and September for inspections. The first closure is Wednesday from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. The Maryland Department of Transportation State Highway Administration advises drivers on I-70 and I-695 and near the interchange to plan for extra travel time and detours. All ramp closure and detour dates are weather-permitting, MDOT SHA said.

 

Read More: Baltimore Sun
Poe Baltimore receives major funding commitment from Wells Fargo

Poe Baltimore, with the support of La Cite Development, Monday announced it has received a major investment from Wells Fargo Bank to support the Annual International Edgar Allan Poe Festival & Awards, taking place Oct. 7-8. The commitment of $300,000 over a three-year period will provide for the Edgar Allan Poe House & Museum’s largest program, keeping the festival a free community event and premier tourist destination for Poe-lovers from all over the world.

 

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