Sunday, February 12, 2012
Patch covered controversy in Howard County this week, from schools to CSX.
Howard County Schools made headlines this week, from warning parents of recent "stranger danger" reports to eliminating reading programs for middle schools. But CSX controversy and a locally-born web phenomenon made waves as well: Behind the Counter at Charity's Closet A new shop in Savage Mill seeks to raise money for local charity and get low-income residents employed. Board of Appeals Hearing Comes to a Halt An Elkridge auto repair shop was not the only agency under scrutiny at a hearing on Feb. 6. The county came under fire as well. Howard Lawmakers Say CSX Is Witholding Information Three months after CSX presented cost projections about a freight project it is considering putting in Howard County, it has refused to provide information…
Thursday, February 9, 2012
Howard County police met with parents in the wake of several reports of suspicious activity involving kids and strangers.
One day, when Jeff was away from home, someone threw a mailbox through his front window. “That’s when I got the camera,” he said, standing in the cafeteria of Rockburn Elementary School on Tuesday evening. Jeff, who asked that his last name not be printed, not only installed a security camera on his property, but also a license plate tag reader. He joined other parents from around Howard County on Tuesday to discuss child safety with members of the Howard County Police Department in the wake of several reported “suspicious circumstances” involving children. Since December, there have been seven reports of suspicious strangers attempting to engage or acting suspicious near children, according to the police department. “We don’t think any…
Saturday, January 28, 2012
"There's got to be a better way to communicate," Councilman Calvin Ball told the school board.
County Council members this week questioned Howard County Board of Education members about recent incidents that may have put children on school buses in danger and the ways those incidents were reported to parents. Council members Calvin Ball and Jen Terrasa Tuesday raised concerns about a group of young men who surrounded and harassed a bus near Laurel Woods with elementary school students onboard, an incident in which people threw rocks at a school bus, as well as multiple reports of suspicious activity near groups of children in Elkridge and Ellicott City. Laurel Woods administrators sent students home with a note about the "gang-like" activity, but Terrasa said she didn't find out about the incidents until a week after they occurred. …
Friday, January 20, 2012
With at least three reports of strangers trying to engage Elkridge and Ellicott City children in less than two weeks, officials and families emphasize vigilance, communication.
Schools, parents and police are on alert after a 9-year-old girl reported that a man she didn’t know approached her and offered her candy in Ilchester on Tuesday. Diane Mumford, principal at Elkridge Elementary School, sent an email to parents on Wednesday morning with information about what transpired at Ilchester, noting that Ilchester Elementary was less than a mile from Elkridge Elementary. “Yesterday, Jan. 17, after school…[a] 9-year-old girl was walking home from the bus stop in the Ilchester neighborhood [when] a man in a dark-colored car pulled up to the curb,” stated the email. “The man slid into the passenger seat and asked her if she had seen his missing dog. He then proceeded to offer her candy," said the email. "The student …
