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George Mayo, a teacher at Silver Spring International Middle School, is being recognized for his work by Cox Communications, Comcast and Cable in the Classroom, and is a finalist for the 2009 Cable's Leaders in Learning. Mayo is being recognized in the Media Literacy Education category for a series of social networking projects he created to encourage students to become active and critical thinkers about media, and to learn to analyze and evaluate media for accuracy, completeness and appropriateness. In one project, titled "The Many Voices of Darfur," his classroom set out to raise awareness about Darfur's genocide through blogging, setting up a Wiki page to share information with classrooms around the country, and participating in live Skype conferences with those students and teachers.

Sligo Creek ES student

is geographic bee semifinalist

Howard T. Tripp IV, the son of Kerry and Howard Tripp, is a semifinalist in the 2009 Maryland Geographic Bee. Tripp is a fifth-grader at Sligo Creek Elementary School. Bees were held in schools with fourth through sixth grade students throughout the state to determine each school's geographic bee winner. Winners then took a qualifying test which they submitted to the National Geographic Society, who invited the students with the top 100 scores to compete at the state level.

Silver Spring residents inducted into honors society

Marymount University students Debra B. Broyles and Sheila A. Martinez, both of Silver Spring, were recently inducted into the Delta Epsilon Sigma National Scholastic Honor Society.

Blake High School students win awards at theater festival

James Hubert Blake High School's Shakespearean actors from the Acting Company's HAMLET presented a series of scenes from the epic tragedy March 5 at the annual Emily Jordan Folger Theatre Festival at the Folger Shakespeare Library.

Major acting prizes were taken by Erin Washburn for her monologues by Hamlet. Aurelia Akpan's portrayal of Polonious received a special prize, and Isabel Smith-Bernstein was awarded a Distinguished Acting Award as Ophelia. The Acting Company is directed by teacher Mike D'Anna.

Montgomery College collects from the county for exhibit

The Public Arts Trust is pleased to announce the opening of an exhibition of works from the County's Art Collection at Montgomery College. The "County Collects" is a selection of works on paper (prints, drawings, and collages) that have been collected by Montgomery County since the mid-1970s. The exhibition began March 11 and will run through April 11 at the King Street Gallery of The Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation Arts Center at 930 King St. in Silver Spring. Admission to the exhibition is free and open to the public.

The "Works of Art in Public Places" program was begun in 1975 with $7,000 for the County to purchase works of art from local, area and national artists. The collection includes works by local artists Carla Klevan, Kevin McDonald and Raya Bodnarchuk as well as nationally known artists such as Jim Dine, Ilya Bolotowsky, and Ellsworth Kelly.

Pieces from the collection were selected by Montgomery College and the Public Arts Trust and will showcase the breadth of the collection. It is the first time in several years that such an exhibit from the collection has been put together. 

The Public Arts Trust is administered by the Arts and Humanities Council of Montgomery County. For more information about this exhibit or the Visions Exhibition Space, please contact the Arts and Humanities Council of Montgomery County at 301-565-3805.  

Spencerville Adventist Academy performs ‘The Sound of Music'

During the last two weeks of April the drama team of Spencerville Seventh-day Adventist Academy will stage nine performances of "The Sound of Music," featuring 48 cast members representing grades 2-12. The orchestra is comprised of Spencerville students, parents, staff and alumni.

The drama began with auditions the first week of September and continued throughout the school year with weekly rehearsals. Not only are the students active with other extracurricular activities, including a mission trip to the Dominican Republic, they also manage to maintain academic honors, according to a news release from the school. The director, Jane Lanning, claims the greatest reward is to see all the kids "come back!" There are alumni represented in the orchestra, behind the curtain, and doing make-up. This year's play marks the 10th anniversary of the drama department. The alumni of the inaugural performance of "The Sound of Music" are making their way back to Maryland for a reunion.

Automotive Technology Program needs your help

Donate your vehicle to the Montgomery County Students Automotive Trades Foundation, a nonprofit foundation, for use by Montgomery County Public Schools Automotive Technology students. You will be providing automotive students with a valuable educational experience, while giving yourself the added tax deduction.

ATF programs are located at Damascus HS, Gaithersburg HS, Seneca Valley HS and Thomas Edison HS of Technology; vehicles may be donated at any of these locations. Most vehicle donations accepted.  For details, contact Mike Snyder at 301-929-2164, Michael_c_snyder@mcpsmd.org or visit www.autocareers.org

Ciao Bella Prom 2009

offers prom dresses

The Hilton hotel in Silver Spring will host the second-annual Ciao Bella Prom 2009 on April 19. The event sponsored by St. Anthony's Bridal offers free prom dresses to area high school seniors who are unable to afford the costs associated with prom attendance. Ciao Bella Prom 2009 will provide high school seniors with the opportunity to enjoy their special night of looking fabulous and feeling beautiful without the financial burden often associated with such a night.

There will be three sessions serving 70 students each for a total projected attendance of 210 students. The first session will run 10 a.m. to 11 a.m., the second session 11 a.m. to noon, and the third session will run 12:45 p.m. to 2 p.m.

Students will be registered according to their geographic area on a first-come, first-serve basis with 53 spaces each reserved for students from Montgomery County, Prince George's County, and Washington, D.C., and 51 spaces reserved for Fairfax County students.  Reserved spaces which have not been claimed by April 11 will be released to wait-listed students.

To make this event special and enjoyable, the volunteers of Ciao Bella Prom are seeking donations of prom gowns and accessories of all sizes and are asking donors to take clean and serviceable prom gowns to local drop off stations. Drop off boxes are located at Brookstones in Montgomery Mall, MWTUX in Lakeforest Mall and the Greenbelt Curves. More information on Ciao Bella Prom 2009 is available www.bellaproms.com.

Realty group offers scholarship

The Rhonda Mortensen Group of Long & Foster Realtors is offering a $3,000 scholarship to a graduating high school senior in the 20901 and 20910 ZIP codes. Students must be accepted to a junior or four-year college in the 2009-2010 school year and have a minimum 3.0 grade-point average (include high school transcript with application). The deadline is May 1.

To be considered, applicants must submit a 300-word essay on the importance of a positive attitude on your life and successes, including: the importance of maintaining a positive attitude, the role a positive attitude has played in your life and the role you see a positive attitude playing in your future.

Include your name, address, phone number, name of your high school and the college you plan to attend; three letters of recommendation reflecting the applicant's positive attitude.

Get an application at www.helpmerhondarealestate.com or by a request at rhondamortensen@aol.com. Mail to Rhonda Mortensen at the Bethesda Gateway Office, 4650 East West Highway in Bethesda.

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