More News

The Universities at Shady Grove last week announced Dr. Nancy Noben-Trauth and the late Stephen Purcell as winners of the 2010 Kendall Service Awards.

Established by former USG board members and supporters Cliff Kendall and his wife Camille, the honors are handed out annually to celebrate one faculty member's excellence in teaching and one staff member's outstanding service to students.

Receiving the Excellence in Teaching Award, Noben-Trauth, of Rockville, is the assistant program director for the University of Maryland, College Park, biological sciences program at The Universities at Shady Grove in Rockville. An advocate of student success both inside and outside the classroom, she combines a keen sense of humor with a strong scientific rigor that connects and motivates her students, USG officials reported.

"She creates a student community where program participants can absorb difficult and complex material in courses such as cell biology and physiology, and always is willing to go the extra mile to help a student apply for an internship or organize a seminar," Dr. Stewart Edelstein, executive director of The Universities at Shady Grove, said in a prepared statement.

Awarded the 2010 Outstanding Service to Students Award, Purcell was first an academic advisor for University of Maryland University College and most recently a program coordinator for the University of Baltimore at The Universities at Shady Grove since 2007.

Assisting and advising students from enrollment to graduation, Purcell built personal and professional relationships that fueled students' success in the five University of Baltimore degree programs offered at USG, college officials said. He passed away in November.

Individuals, organizations to be honored for serving youths

The Montgomery County Commission on Children and Youth will honor five people and organizations for role they play in the lives of the county's youth.

The commission, in conjunction with The Gazette and Adventure Theatre, will host the 23rd annual Nancy Dworkin Outstanding Service to Youth Award Ceremony on March 24. The program will begin at 7 p.m. at Adventure Theatre in Glen Echo Park.

The 2010 award recipients are: Judge Katherine D. Savage, child advocate; Manna Food Center, organization; Officer Joseph Lowery, service provider; Robyn Holstein-Glass, director of Project Change, volunteer; and Carla Romero, youth.

The Nancy Dworkin Outstanding Service to Youth Awards recognize individuals and organizations whose dedication, vision and service to children and youth have made a difference in the lives of others.

The award is named in memory of the past chair of the commission, who passed away in 1987. She was the director of the Center for Unique Learners, a Rockville school for children with learning disabilities. The program was established to encourage the community to emulate Dworkin's teaching philosophy of encouraging all students to develop skills and reach their own potential, the organization reported.

Richard Montgomery student

is Poetry Out Loud champ

Nora Sandler, a senior at Richard Montgomery High School in Rockville, took home first prize in the state championship of the Poetry out Loud competition on Feb. 27.

She defeated eight other Maryland high school students and earned a $200 prize.

The competition, which was held at the Enoch Pratt Free Library in Baltimore, is part of the national Poetry out Loud contest. Competitors recite poems and are judged on presence, articulation, understanding of the poem and the difficulty of their selections.

Sandler will move on to compete at the national championships, which will be held at the George Washington University Lisner Auditorium in Washington, D.C. Semifinal rounds will take place all day on April 26 and the finals will be held in the evening on April 27. Admission is free and open to the public.

Book sale at Rockville Library this weekend

On March 13 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., the Friends of the Library will hold a book sale in the first floor meeting room of the Rockville Library.

Some of the book types on sale include children's, young adult, gardening, diet, exercise, cook books, fiction, and non fiction books on politics, religion and history. Most books will sell for $1 or less.

On Campus

-Elisa Walker of Rockville was named to the president's list for the fall semester at the University of Mary Washington in Fredericksburg, Va., where she is a senior.

-Erica Sieg of Derwood, a first-year student at Gettysburg College, was named to the dean's honor list for the fall semester.

-Elizabeth Walker of Rockville was named to the dean's list for the fall semester at Champlain college in Burlington, Vt. She is majoring in multimedia and graphic design and is the daughter of Michael and Shelley Walker of Rockville.

-Several local students were named to the dean's list for the fall semester at Ithaca College in New York. They are: Daniel Wolk, son of Lawrence and Susan Wolk of Potomac, School of Health Sciences and Human Performance; Jessica Kirschner, daughter of Jonathan and Brigitte Kirschner of Rockville, School of Humanities and Sciences; Susan Landau, daughter of William and Gail Landau of Potomac, School of Humanities and Sciences; Amy Pijanowski, daughter of Brian and Donna Pijanowski of Potomac, Roy H. Park School of Communications; Karilynn Rockhill; Caryn Stark, daughter of Roger and Debra Stark of Rockville, Roy H. Park School of Communications; and Heather Mueller, daughter of Michael and Janice Mueller of Potomac, School of Communications.

-Several area students were named to the dean's list for the fall semester at St. Mary's College of Maryland. They are: Emily M. Sillcox of Derwood, and Nava Behnam-Shabahang, Gabrielle R. Cantor, Amy E. Eaton, Christine H. Gilfrich, Laura G. Hausheer, Manuel Antonio Lleras, Mary Katherine Mansius, Alyssa L. Miller, Dominique Marie Perez, Sarah E. Platt, Samantha L. Rockler, Elizabeth Ann Vicini, Ariel C. Webster and Claire Ellen Wedderien, all of Rockville.

Items appropriate for this column should be sent to Nathan Carrick, The Rockville/Aspen Hill Gazette, 9030 Comprint Court, Gaithersburg, Md. 20877; faxed to 301-670-7182 or 301-670-7183; or e-mailed to ncarrick@gazette.net. Deadline is Thursday at 5 p.m. for consideration for the following week. Items are subject to editing and used on a space-available basis.