Around Maryland

More than 170 local students from 24 teams across 17 elementary and middle schools recently participated in the Allegany County FIRST LEGO League Qualifier at Allegany College of Maryland. Roughly 60 volunteers and 300 spectators supported and cheered on the student competitors. The event was organized by Robotics and Engineering in Allegany County Together.

Anne Arundel County Executive Steuart Pittman and members of the county library system handed out more than 200 Chromebook laptops at the Linthicum library location Wednesday as part of a program aiming to bridge digital and internet access gaps. The county will eventually hand out 7,000 laptops across 16 public library locations over the coming months. The program is expected to be complete by June.

The largest Maryland school district has significant shortcomings in how it handles complaints of employee wrongdoing. That’s what a second investigation into Montgomery County Public Schools found following another probe back in September, which looked into the alleged sexual misconduct by former middle school principal Joel Beidleman. Separately, the school system confirmed that as of Wednesday, Beidleman, who had been placed on leave since the allegations came to light, is no longer employed by the school system.

Fifteen years ago, Dr. Esa Davis encountered a situation that millions of Black women in hospitals and birthing centers had faced before her: She was sick, and her doctors wouldn’t listen to her. Davis, a family physician who now serves the University of Maryland, Baltimore as its inaugural associate vice president for community health, had experienced a relatively uneventful pregnancy before delivering her firstborn child. But about two or three days after her cesarean section, she couldn’t walk without being short of breath and had swelling from her feet to her waist.

Various projects aimed at increasing pedestrian safety highlight the town’s annual transportation priority list. On Monday, the town council approved a letter that will be sent to the Worcester County Commissioners outlining the projects municipal officials would like to see as transportation priorities. Officials are requesting sidewalks on Route 346, crosswalks in various locations and a pedestrian bridge over Route 113.

The Montgomery County government could be doing more to support its transgender residents, a Jan. 16 report found, recommending that officials consider creating a resource center and lobbying the state to require cultural competency training for medical providers. Council Vice President Kate Stewart (D-Dist. 4) commissioned the 57-page report created by the Montgomery County Office of Legislative Oversight (OLO) in early 2023. Stewart has taken on the lack of resources for LGBTQ+ residents in the county as a key part of her work as a councilmember.

Washington County’s new comprehensive plan emphasizes redevelopment of previously developed areas as a means of meeting growth needs while preserving rural areas. But giving new life to older properties can be an expensive proposition. So county planners are exploring expanded options to help property owners afford it. “You’re talking about different kinds of costs” for redevelopment,” said Washington County Planning Director Jill Baker, particularly when you’re “trying to reclaim some of these areas that have not been very well taken care of.”

The Baltimore City School Board voted Tuesday night to scale back virtual learning by eliminating the elementary grades of Charm City Virtual, despite significant parent pressure to keep it going. The board did vote to create a new virtual school that will serve grades six through 12 by merging the middle grades of Charm City Virtual and the high school program at Port Virtual. The creation of a new virtual school would have to be approved by the Maryland State Department of Education. Only one other school system in the state — Anne Arundel County — has created a virtual school.