Eastern Baltimore County News
–photo courtesy of Baltimore County Volunteer Fire Association-
Baltimore County Fire Crews reported a commerical building fire in Edgemere on Wednesday, April 22 at 9 a.m.
Crews arrived to heavy smoke conditions from a commercial building in the 8200 block of Fischer Road. Crews extinguished a conveyor belt fire around 9:24 a.m.
No injuries reported at this time.
As early as May 10, Baltimore County Public Schools will offer identified students the opportunity for four in-person learning days per week, an increase from two in-person learning days. Families may continue to choose five days of virtual learning.
For all students on Wednesdays, teachers will continue to provide virtual learning in addition to the opportunity to meet with small groups of students, provide tutoring, conduct individual student check-ins, plan for instruction, and engage in professional learning.
Through consultation with health experts and while continuing to implement mitigation strategies recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to the extent possible, students in the following groups may begin four days of in-person learning on the dates indicated. Schools will provide specific information to families about making the choice, and the deadlines for making the choice are Wednesday, Apr. 21, for elementary students and Friday, Apr. 23, for secondary students.
Four days of in-person learning may begin on May 10 for these students:
• All students in elementary schools, Preschool – Grade 5.
• All students in public separate day schools (Battle Monument, Maiden Choice, Ridge Ruxton, and White Oak schools).
• In Grades 6 – 12, students receiving special education services primarily outside of general education in cluster and regional programs, including Functional Academic Learning Support (FALS), Communication and Learning Support (CALS), Social-Emotional Learning (SEL), Hearing Impaired, and Visually Impaired).
Four days of in-person learning may begin on May 17 for these students:
• Any student in Grades 6 – 12 with an Individualized Education Program (IEP) or a 504 Plan.
BCPS has identified May 10 and May 17 as start dates for system planning purposes; however, we have learned that the nature of this pandemic is evolving, which could impact the scheduled timeline as more updated information is provided.
During weeks with previously-scheduled closures for students, there will be three in-person days for students. May 13 is a systemwide professional development day and May 31 is Memorial Day.
The expansion is aligned with recent CDC guidelines adopted by the Maryland Department of Health and the Maryland State Department of Education. Schools will continue to maintain the CDC’s recommended mitigation strategies, including the consistent and correct use of face coverings; social distancing to the extent possible; frequent hand washing and covering of coughs and sneezes; cleaning and disinfecting; and contact tracing.
BCPS phased in two days of hybrid in-person learning for all students from the week of Mar. 1 to the week of Apr. 6.
Middle River Volunteer Fire & Rescue reported that their dive team conducted a water rescue at Merritt Point Park in Dundalk.
A car was reported submerged under water on Thursday, April 15 around 5 p.m.
Police reported 72-year-old Alfonso Bryan was recovered from the scene along with his car
Bryan was reported missing and was last seen on April 9, in the area of Stemmers Run Rd. in Essex.
The circumstances surrounding his death remain under investigation.
Allie (Talis) Hill, a junior literary arts student at Patapsco High School and Center for the Arts, won a top prize in the Young Writers “Through Their Eyes” writing contest.
From thousands of entries received from across the nation, Hill’s poem “Growth” was one of only five selected to be honored. In addition to being published, Hill has won $100 and a trophy.
“Allie is an amazingly talented and prolific author with an incredible gift for conveying emotion in her writing,” said Trisha A. Dunn, Patapsco High’s magnet coordinator.
“Allie Hill joined Patapsco’s Literary Arts magnet last year as a sophomore,” said literary arts teacher Julie Cutlip, “She is quite a prolific storyteller — for a 20,000-word story, she limits herself to 40,000 words. Allie was insistent that she was ‘not a poet.’ Despite ‘having no talent’ for poetry, somehow, she managed to not only be recognized in the Young Writers’ Through Their Eyes writing contest but to actually win! Allie is currently a junior and writing amazing poetry every day in her poetry class. Today might just be the day she accepts that she is a poet.”
Since 1991, Young Writers has coordinated contests and offered online resources to encourage students to write.
Baltimore County Police continue their investigation into a single-vehicle crash that killed a woman this morning.
Officers responded to North Point and Maple Roads in the Dundalk on Thursday, April 15 just before 1:50 a.m. after a 2004 Chevrolet Silverado left the roadway and struck a tree. The occupant of the vehicle, 37-year-old Kristin Dewald, was transported to an area hospital where she was pronounced deceased.
The Baltimore County Police Crash Investigation Team is continuing their work to determine the factors involved in this fatal crash.
Baltimore County Public Schools will try to hold in-person graduation ceremonies this year. BCPS released a schedule of all the graduation ceremonies for all the high schools in Baltimore County. Most will be held at the SECU Arena at Towson University.
It appears that some of the larger schools such as Perry Hall, Kenwood, Parkville, Patapsco and Dundalk will have two separate ceremonies. Smaller schools such as Sparrows Point, Eastern Tech and Chesapeake will have only one ceremony. It was clear on how many people will be able to attend from each family.
The schedule stated times and dates are subjected to change based on health metrics. Families can expect to receive more detailed information about graduation from their school.
Kristine Saja, a science/special education teacher at Sparrows Point High School, is one of four educators from across Baltimore County as this year’s finalists for the BCPS Teacher of the Year.
The four finalists are among two high schools, a middle school, and an elementary school educators and were chosen from among 157 school teacher of the year nominees by a committee composed of BCPS administrators, staff, students, TABCO representation and current BCPS Teacher of the Year Robert Runk.
Stephanie Lawrence of Milford Mill Academy, Sheri Metzbower, of Carroll Manor Elementary School and Brianna Ross, a history teacher at Deer Park Middle Magnet School, are the other three BCPS nominees.
Saja has spent 11 of her 14 years at Sparrows Point. Certified in biology, chemistry, and special education, she has also taught mathematics in Harford County.
Saying she is an eternal optimist, Saja helped to begin a student-led Student Racial Justice Alliance at SPHS and has immersed herself in a variety of school activities ranging from curriculum writing to sponsoring the school’s LBGT club to leading a team to create the school’s motto and vision.
Councilman David Marks announced there will be a dedication ceremony for the bridge at White Marsh Boulevard/Belair Road in honor of Sergeant Eric M. Houck and Staff Sergeant Christopher O. Moudry.
The ceremony will be held on Saturday, April 24 at 10 a.m. at 8200 Belair Road, in the parking lot of American Freight Furniture and Mattress that overlooks the bridge. Participants must wear masks and observe social distancing.
Sergeant Houck was killed on June 10, 2017 when he and two other soldiers were attacked in the Peka Valley of the Nangarhar Province of Afghanistan. A graduate of Perry Hall High School, he was 25 at the time. He had married his high school sweetheart and had two children.
Staff Sergeant Moudry and three other soldiers were killed on October 4, 2006 in Taji, Iraq. A graduate of Perry Hall High School, he was an accomplished athlete and member of Boy Scout Troop 746. He was 31 at the time and is survived by two children.
The bridge dedication was approved by the Maryland State Roads Commission.
“Our office was honored to work on this dedication along with the Perry Hall Improvement Association,” Marks said about the dedication.
Baltimore County Police reported that 31-year-old Megan Frazier of the 1200 block of Fairley Way in East Baltimore died Saturday morning at Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center after she was hit by a vehicle last night.
Frazier was struck by a 2019 Toyota Tacoma as she crossed the eastbound lanes of the 11000 block of Pulaski Highway in White Marsh just after 11:30 p.m. on April 9. Frazier did not cross at the crosswalk. The driver of the Toyota remained at the scene.
The Baltimore County Police Crash Team is continuing its investigation to determine the factors involved in this fatal crash.
Elementary School to Built at Gum Spring Road and Rossville Boulevard
-by Councilman David Marks R-5-
[Baltimore County Board of Education Vice Chair] Julie Henn and I are happy to share the news that construction will start this month on the first of two new schools in northeastern Baltimore County.
The school is located in Councilwoman Cathy Bevins’ district, but it will serve neighborhoods in both the Fifth and Sixth Districts. Councilwoman Bevins has partnered with me for several years on this project, and I thank her for her strong support, as well as County Executive [John] Olszewski and our partners in the state legislature.
The 102,000-square foot school will serve 750 students from an area to be determined after a redistricting process. Funding is in place for a new middle school expected to open in 2024, and land is now identified for a new high school. Overcrowding is worse at the elementary school level as magnet programs and private schools have tended to absorb many older students.
