Maryland 529 board chair Peter Tsirigotis turned in his resignation Friday, one day after facing withering criticism from state lawmakers for the agency’s handling of problems with one of Maryland’s college savings plans. Tsirigotis, who did not immediately respond to requests for comment, appeared before the Maryland House Appropriations Committee on Thursday to explain why hundreds of families have been unable to access all of the money in their Maryland Prepaid College Trust accounts. “As a parent of college-age children, I can relate to and share the frustrations expressed by the account holders,” Tsirigotis told lawmakers. “We are focused on resolving the issues for the account holders as swiftly as possible. However, we realize in retrospect that more could have been done to provide account holders with updated information.”
The oldest continuously operating African American community theater in the country has received $5.2 million in state and federal funding to upgrade its aging building. Arena Players Inc., located at 801 McCulloh St. in Baltimore, will use the funds to upgrade its building, which the theater has used since 1962 and bought in 1969, according to its website. U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen and Ben Cardin along with Congressman Kweisi Mfume helped secure the $4 million in federal funding as part of the recent omnibus funding legislation. The theater was also allocated $1.2 million for the project through the state's fiscal year 2023 capital budget last year.
As Maryland’s official state dessert, Smith Island Cake is a standout dish on any chef’s table. Now, the famed cake is set to receive a new sign marker in recognition of its historical significance. Smith Island United was recently awarded a grant from the William G. Pomeroy Foundation, whose mission is supporting and celebrating the preservation of community history. The Pomeroy Foundation, through the Hungry for History Program, is funding a new sign marker for the Smith Island Cake. As Maryland’s official state dessert, Smith Island Cake is a standout dish on any chef’s table. Now, the famed cake is set to receive a new sign marker in recognition of its historical significance.
THE RECAST: Maryland voters passed a referendum legalizing recreational weed, and your administration will be responsible for creating this apparatus where the state will be ready for business later this year. How will this work?
As well-wishers gather in Annapolis on Wednesday for the inauguration of Gov.-elect Wes Moore and Lt. Gov.-elect Aruna Miller, the Maryland Department of Health will have more than 14,000 at-home COVID-19 tests on hand “to encourage Marylanders attending the event to stay COVIDReady through the winter,” the department said Friday. The historic inauguration of Moore, soon-to-be Maryland’s first Black governor, and Miller, who will be the first woman of color as lieutenant governor, will occur at the State House on Wednesday. Maryland Health Secretary Dennis R. Schrader emphasized the importance of the capitol’s COVID testing site, calling it “an essential continuity of government service offering legislators and the general public convenient access to both rapid and PCR testing.”
Morgan State University is on track to be the first Historically Black College and University, or HBCU, in nearly half a century to open a new medical school. The proposed name is The Maryland College of Osteopathic Medicine and it is scheduled to welcome its first class in Fall 2024. As of this month, only four HBCUs have affiliated medical schools: Howard University College of Medicine, Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science, Meharry Medical College, and Morehouse School of Medicine. By 2025, Xavier University in New Orleans plans to launch its medical school.
Look closely at the lime green wood bench at Fawn and Albemarle Streets and see the faint remnants of an old slogan —The Greatest City in America — still painted on it. The moniker was on thousands of benches as part of a city campaign in the early 2000s, and years later the words have become iconic — often featured as part of Baltimore-inspired art. “The Greatest City in America” is one of a string of nicknames, taglines and slogans Baltimore officials have adopted over the decades. They typically spoke to the vision of the time and were often used to counteract negative perceptions of a city often hammered by outsiders for its socioeconomic issues. Usually, these slogans were part of a advertising and branding campaign.
A dead humpback whale was found on the beach at Assateague Island National Seashore on Monday, according to the U.S. National Park Service. The Maryland Department of Natural Resources and the National Aquarium are attempting to determine how the 20-foot whale died, according to a park service news release, which also says there are “no obvious signs” to the cause of the whale’s death. When the necropsy is completed, the whale will be moved from the upper part of the seashore’s oversand vehicle area to the sand dunes, where it will dry out before being buried. Those who come across the whale are asked to keep a distance and to keep their dogs leashed, the release says.
The challenge of rolling out the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future, the state’s landmark public school reform plan, will grip the attention of education leaders for years to come. The ambitious plan became law in 2021, kicking off an enormous effort across multiple state departments, agencies and 24 public school systems that will take a generation of students to complete. Officials leading the endeavor forecast that its effects might not be fully apparent until the cohort of students entering prekindergarten in fall 2022 graduate from high school in 2036.
Gov.-elect Wes Moore built his campaign around a central motto — leave no one behind — and the details of the events leading up to Moore’s inauguration this week show how the administration is planning for inclusivity. That, he says, is no accident. “It’s the reason why we wanted to have the most inclusive inaugural gala, the swearing-in, the day of service, the events on Sunday evening,” Moore told The Baltimore Banner.
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