Around Maryland

Baltimore County Public Schools will no longer pay for all secondary students to take college courses at the Community College of Baltimore County. Facing a tight budget and new academic standards set by the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future, the state’s education reform plan, BCPS will conclude the “Tuition Free” program, which included the cost of students’ books and fees, for ninth and 10th-grade students at the end of this academic year.

It may not look like much, but the empty Baltimore County shopping center surrounded by a sea of empty gray concrete is one of Maryland’s most divisive, and consequential, pieces of land. Purchased by a Baltimore-based developer in 2020, Lutherville Station stands a few yards away from a light rail stop that connects Baltimore County to the city and Anne Arundel County. It has been eyed for new development that would add retail stores, commercial tenants and housing — lots of it — to the grounds.

The federal government recently gave some climate homework to each state’s department of transportation, and Maryland believes it was the only state to turn it in early. Maryland’s DOT has set new targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions on the state’s 716 sections of the National Highway System. By the end of next year, MDOT hopes to reduce emissions by 4% from what was recorded in 2022 on its portion of roadway.

Maryland leaders are launching investigations into school systems statewide amid confusion over state funding. Millions of dollars are being sent from the state government to nearly two dozen schools under the Blueprint for Maryland's Future. A new report by the Maryland Office of the Inspector General found a serious lack of oversight for how the funds are being used, leaving millions unspent or even sent back to the state.

Rockville-based health system Kaiser Permanente announced Monday a call for grant proposals for up to four $50,000 grants to be awarded to community organizations and nonprofits in the Maryland, Washington and northern Virginia areas. The grants will be used to improve community health and promote health equity in the region.

When Mark and Monika Bauman became lab partners at Anne Arundel Community College in 1987, the pre-nursing program was tough, and they were focused on making the grade. She was fresh out of high school. He was working on a second career. “He came up and he just said, ‘I’m Mark. Do you happen to have a partner yet?’” she said. “I said, ‘No, I don’t. Have a seat.’ And we just connected very well.”

Allegany and Garrett counties have partnered to launch a marketing campaign to help in attracting lifestyle manufacturing companies to Western Maryland. The regional business and workforce attraction initiative, announced in a joint press release this week, is titled “Make it. In the Mountains.” The effort includes a newly created website, MakeItInTheMountains.com. Officials in the tourism departments of both counties have been pursuing plans that would capitalize on the outdoor features in Western Maryland, which include mountain vistas, numerous trails, state parks, lakes and rivers offering year-round outdoor activities.

Johns Hopkins researchers say they’re getting closer to developing a blood test that would identify changes in the brain associated with psychiatric and neurological disorders — an advancement that could enable doctors to detect the early signs of mental health emergencies. In a study published last month in the peer-reviewed scientific journal Molecular Psychiatry, researchers focused on the potential of particles called extracellular vesicles to provide a window into what’s happening inside a person’s brain.