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The Gazette Reluctant horror film host to haunt AFI Silver festival. B-7
DAMASCUS | CLARKSBURG
DAILY UPDATES ONLINE www.gazette.net
Wednesday, October 9, 2013
Schools working to solve math equation n
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Thousands remain idled in shutdown
Oktober in Clarksburg
Walter Reed employees return to work; Navy scrubs birthday concert
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Clarksburg High focuses on Grade 9 algebra BY
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STAFF WRITER
LINDSAY A. POWERS STAFF WRITER
Montgomery County public high schools now all have a plan of action when it comes to math. The plans stem from Montgomery County Public Schools efforts to study students’ performance in math courses following the release of poor math exam scores, said Christopher Garran, associate superintendent of high schools. Each high school was charged with developing a plan that incorporated both practices already in place as well as new efforts to help students struggling in math. Through the plans, Garran said, the school system aims to address not only exam scores, but “math achievement overall.” Garran said that he and others recently completed meeting with representatives from each high school — including principals, math resource teachers and math department heads — to discuss their plans. Schools, however, were encouraged to start implementing their plans before those meetings, he said. Garran said schools’ plans go “beyond interventions and supports” and also address how the delivery of instruction might be changed, such as through group learning or adding more critical thinking. The plans also were required to “name names,” and therefore be specific about exactly which students are struggling. “The names are going to
See MATH, Page A-13
KATE S. ALEXANDER
GREG DOHLER/THE GAZETTE
Above, Kevin Beabout of Damascus holds a pair of pants as his son Owen Beabout, 9, stuffs them with hay to make a scarecrow Saturday during Oktoberfest at High Point Farm in Clarksburg. Below, Kaia Sanders, 6, of Montgomery Village puts the finishing touches on her scarecrow.
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esidents celebrated Oktoberfest on Saturday in Clarksburg with food, dance and drink. Kids at the family-friendly event stuffed their own scarecrows and learned German songs. Police officers serving in the area received awards at the annual event, which was held at High Point Farm.
— SYLVIA CARIGNAN
Employees at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda went back to work Monday, despite the lingering federal government shutdown. The Department of Defense, under the direction of Secretary Chuck Hagel, eliminated furloughs for employees whose responsibilities contribute to the morale, well-being, capabilities and readiness of service members, based on a legal interpretation of the Pay Our Military Act, Hagel said in a statement Saturday. However, the law does not allow for a blanket recall of all Defense Department employees, Hagel said in the statement. Walter Reed ordered all general schedule employees back to work Monday at their regularly scheduled times, according to the hospital. Still, thousands of federal workers remain out of work, as do federal contractors.
Bethesda defense giant Lockheed Martin, one of Montgomery County’s largest employers, started furloughing about 2,400 employees companywide on Monday because of the political standoff. The number of sidelined employees was 600 fewer than what Lockheed officials thought on Friday. After Hagel said Saturday that most of the roughly 400,000 civilian employees in that department had been deemed essential for national security, Lockheed officials decided to reduce the number of furloughs. Most of those affected work in civilian programs in the Washington region, said Gordon Johndroe, a Lockheed spokesman. Since the first day of the shutdown on Oct. 1, Maryland has had 16,078 requests for federal unemployment benefits, Maureen O’Connor, spokeswoman for the Maryland Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation said Monday. Typically, the state sees about 2,500 to 3,500 applications a year from federal workers, but on the first day of the shutdown alone, it received nearly 4,000
See IDLED, Page A-11
Harris Teeter sets Nov. 20 opening in Clarksburg n
Grocery to interview 150 applicants for new supermarket
BY
VIRGINIA TERHUNE STAFF WRITER
The Harris Teeter grocery chain will interview 150 prescreened job applicants on Thursday for its new store due
to open in the Clarksburg Village shopping center on Nov. 20. “Our management team has been hired for this location, and approximately 130 associates will work at our Clarksburg location once all hiring is complete,” said Catherine Becker, Harris Teeter’s communication manager, in an email on Tuesday.
“This will be a combination of full-time and part-time associates,” said Becker, adding that Harris Teeter’s recruiting department has partnered with Snagajob.com to coordinate staffing events. Applicants can continue to apply online at Snagajob.com or at harristeeter.com to work at the Clarksburg store and at a new Harris Teeter store due to
open in Crown Farm in Gaithersburg in January 2014. The new grocery store is the first to open in the fast-growing Clarksburg area, where the influx of young families is outrunning the supply of local services, at least until now. An unnamed supermarket is also planned for the still-tobe-built Clarksburg Town Center further north, which is also
expected to include a county library branch, but the opening could be years away. A Hair Cuttery shop, which opened Monday, is the first business to open in the Clarksburg Village shopping center still under construction at the corner of Little Seneca Parkway and Snowden Farm Parkway.
See TEETER, Page A-13
Cities, towns upgrade sites to enhance services
Digital overnment
Part two in a two-part series
Governments take different approaches to using the Web
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ONLINE EXTRAS n Data mining has both positive and negative sides. TOM FEDOR/THE GAZETTE
Kyung Lee is Web content manager for Montgomery County’s Office of Public Information.
NEWS
HALLOWEEN OVERLOAD? Neighbors say display will overwhelm streets with curious visitors.
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n Trends and statistics for municipal governments’ and county entities’ websites. www.gazette.net
SYLVIA CARIGNAN AND ELIZABETH WAIBEL STAFF WRITERS
Early next year, the city of Gaithersburg plans to roll out a new website with better search capabilities and a more user-friendly design. “We’re switching over to a services-based model,” said Andrew
SPORTS
NEW LOOKS GOOD Paint Branch has a new stadium, weight room, one of the county’s top offenses and an undefeated record.
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Automotive Calendar Celebrations Classified Community News Entertainment Opinion School News Sports Please
Barnes, a programmer for Gaithersburg’s website, which currently presents information sorted by departments. The “modern-day look and feel” of the new site will make it easier for residents and business owners to access basic information and services, such as finding out how to apply for a permit or get a recycling bin. With the contractor’s redesign, Gaithersburg joins local governments nationwide trying to meet the demand of higher Web use
while dealing with dwindling resources. “Some see technology as a way to extend services at a lower cost through their websites, while others view it as a cost center that could be cut,” said Todd Sander, executive director for the California-based Center for Digital Government. Gaithersburg, Rockville and Takoma Park are among the Montgomery communities trying to provide
See SERVICES, Page A-17
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