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Gazette-Star SERVING SOUTHERN AND CENTRAL PRINCE GEORGE’S COUNTY COMMUNITIES
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Thursday, November 28, 2013
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Upper Marlboro may raise officials’ salaries n
Commissioners say increase is to help town attract residents to run for office BY CHASE COOK STAFF WRITER
Upper Marlboro is considering increasing the pay for its commissioners and making its top position a full-time job. In the 2010 and 2012 elections, the three incumbent commissioners ran unopposed for re-election. Town officials said they are concerned about a lack of interest in running for the seats, especially with two commissioners not planning to return for a new term in 2014. “It is to sweeten the pot to try and attract someone to be president,” said Commissioner Joe Hourclé, who introduced the ordinance. “But the pay isn’t so high that it would attract someone as a job instead of a passion.” Under a proposed ordinance, the
commissioner president’s new salary would rise from $3,600 to $28,200 if the elected official runs the town full-time, as many commissioner presidents have done in Upper Marlboro’s past. The ordinance also raises the pay of commissioners from $600 to $1,200 and gives the president an additional $600, for a total of $1,800. That means the president would receive $30,000 if he or she runs the town full-time. The president’s salary is set by town ordinances and cannot be enacted during the term the president is in office, so the ordinance would go into effect next fiscal year. The town’s elections are coming up on Jan. 6, and there has been concern about who would take over as commissioner president, Hourclé said. Current President Steve Sonnett plans not to run in 2016 if he is elected for a fourth term in 2014,
See SALARIES, Page A-8
Teacher retention is a key strategy for schools Nearly 1,200 new educators hired this year n
GREG DOHLER/THE GAZETTE
Gary Allen of the Bowie Coin Club with a portion of a his coin collection at his home in Bowie.
a little change is always fun Now in its 27th year, group continues drawing in collectors BY CHASE COOK STAFF WRITER
Bowie resident Gary Allen, 71, said he’s been collecting coins since 1955 when he was a newspaper boy trying to earn a little extra money each week. “I think it is the fascination with
the history that specific types of coins represent,” Allen said. “I’m interested in U.S. commemorative coins from the 1890s through the 1950s.” Allen is part of the Bowie Coin Club, a group of coin lovers who come together to talk about coins, trade coins and auction coins. The club celebrated its 25th anniversary in Bowie in 2011. The group is comprised of mainly older members, and Allen said it has
ANFENSON-COMEAU STAFF WRITER
FOR BOWIE COIN CLUB,
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BY JAMIE
a strong following with more than 100 members and about 35 to 55 members showing up to each monthly meeting. The group even has a member from Dublin, Ireland, the club proudly displays on its website. “We have a lively exchange of coins at every meeting and lively input and discussion among them,” Allen said.
See CHANGE, Page A-8
After a large exodus of teachers last year, the Prince George’s school system is putting in place new measures to improve teacher and administrator recruitment and retention. “We must focus on getting the right people in the right positions, measure their performance through fair and accurate evaluations, and support them so that they continuously grow and develop, and make data-driven performance decisions so that we have our staff positively impacting student achievement,” said Robert Gaskin, chief of human resources, during a Nov. 21 report to the school board. The school system had 983 voluntary departures during the previous school year, said Debra Sullivan,
recruitment and retention officer in the Office of Human Resources. Sullivan said many of those departures were due to the issue of employee compensation, based on voluntary online exit interviews. The school system hired 1,195 new teachers for the current school year, more than double the number of teachers hired two years ago, when the school system’s budget was tighter. During the summer, the school system finalized a negotiated pay increase with the county teacher’s union, providing teachers their first pay increase in three years, and during the meeting, the board approved a 2 percent salary increase for employees represented by the county principals and administrators union. The average Prince George’s teacher salary is $63,566, and the county ranks fifth highest in teacher pay out of 10 metropolitan area
See SCHOOLS, Page A-8
Protesters: Redskins’ name ‘a local issue’ n
Community leaders say term is offensive, want use to end BY CHASE COOK STAFF WRITER
TOM FEDOR/THE GAZETTE
Hakim Muhammad, president of the Coalition of Prince George’s County Leaders and Organizations, speaks at the Monday press conference requesting that Washington Redskins owner Dan Snyder change the NFL team’s name.
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BUILDING BLOCKS IN PLACE Clinton Christian hopes to transform into national boys’ basketball powerhouse.
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Arguing that the Washington Redskins’ name is offensive to Native Americans and thus reflects poorly on Prince George’s County, community leaders called on residents to stop using the name. The NFL’s Redskins plays its home
games at FedEx Field in Landover and according to Forbes’ August update, the franchise is the third most valuable NFL team out of 32 squads, earning $381 million in revenue in 2012. Despite the history of the team, which began in 1932, county leaders say now is the time for a name change. “This is a local issue,” said Bob Ross, president of the Prince George’s County NAACP branch. “If it is something that is offensive to Native Americans, we need to support the Native Americans.”
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Ross was part of a press conference held Monday in Landover, where county community leaders urged residents to stop using the team’s name because of its offensive nature. The controversy around the name has gained traction throughout the year. Team owner Dan Snyder released a letter on Oct. 9 to season-ticket holders to address the controversy and increased criticism.
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