Clarksburg's Ryan focuses on school, transportation issues

Feb. 20, 2002

Jason Feirman
Special to The Gazette

Dale Ryan of Clarksburg, who has been on the Upcounty Citizens Advisory Board since 2000, sees transportation and school issues as some of the most important matters that the board must deal with over the next few years.

Ryan, 47, who graduated from Temple University in 1977, has lived in Clarksburg for 17 years. She lives with her husband Scott and sons Christopher and Jonathan. She works in the computer industry and loves animals such as her sheep and rabbits. She also enjoys candy making, gardening and participating in volunteer work.

When she joined the board, Ryan had specific tasks in mind that she hoped to accomplish.

"I joined the board in order to help our community get a higher profile with school needs and area facilities," she said. "Clarksburg, which currently has 6,000 residents, will expand to 40,000 [residents] over the next 10 years, and I want to ensure that the right decisions are made during this expansion."

Ryan, who is the only member on the board from Clarksburg, pushed for money to build a new Rocky Hill Middle School. The school is scheduled to open in September 2004. The existing Rocky Hill Middle School is scheduled to open as a high school in 2006.

This year, Ryan hopes to take a closer look at transportation issues as well as the possibility of building a library in Clarksburg. She will also help organize celebrations for the 250th anniversary of Clarksburg, and she is chairing a committee on youth involvement for the celebration.

"What I like about Clarksburg is the rural community," said Ryan, who lives on a 10-acre farm. "The people are very friendly as well."

The Upcounty Citizens Advisory Board represents more than 280,000 county residents living north of Shady Grove Road. The 20-member board advises the director of the Upcounty Regional Services Center, the county executive, and County Council on area needs and priorities such as transportation, human services, environment, public safety, and other issues of local importance.

Members serve three-year terms without compensation and attend meetings one Monday a month, September through June, at the Upcounty Regional Services Center in Germantown.

The board will meet Monday at 7:15 p.m. at the Upcounty Regional Services Center, 12900 Middlebrook Road, Germantown.

For information, call 240-777-8000 or go to the Web site http://www.co.mo.md.us/upcounty.