IMPROVED ACCESS Bill would create an easier path to public information. A-5
NEWS: Sandy Spring Museum hosts tales of local immigrant teens. A-4
The Gazette ROCKVILLE | ASPEN HILL | POTOMAC | OLNEY DA I LY U P DAT E S AT G A Z E T T E . N E T
Wednesday, March 18, 2015
25 cents
Pike plan stuck on the details
Gaming for GRLL power Program helps Parkland Middle girls tackle technology
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RYAN MARSHALL STAFF WRITER
The school day had already ended, but pairs of girls sat in a dimly lit computer lab at Parkland Middle School, hunched over tablets as they worked their way through a series of games. They were beta-testing a new program from the Bethesda company Dig-It Games, which specializes in educational games. The game was “Roman Town,” based in the ancient city of Pompeii. It featured challenges such as “Artifact Identification,” in which they had to name a series of artifacts within a certain time; “Code Breaker,” in which they used logic to decipher a coded puzzle; and “Pipes,” which required connecting a series of pipes to let water flow through the town. Periodically through the hourlong session, Dig-It programmer Jessica Dommes would collect feedback from the seven girls on what features they liked and didn’t like, and which worked well and not so well. The event was a meeting of the GRRL Tech — Girls Really, Really Love Technology — program at the Rockville school. The program is designed to boost participation among middle
Property tax rate would drop; employees would get 2 percent raise BY
KATE S. ALEXANDER STAFF WRITER
Montgomery County’s property tax rate could drop in the coming fiscal year, but assessed values could mean some homeowners pay a little more, according to
Rockville mayor, council haggle over parking, new access roads BY
RYAN MARSHALL STAFF WRITER
TOM FEDOR/THE GAZETTE
Ana Marroquim (left), 12, and Allison Ramirez, 14, become engrossed in computer tablets during Thursday’s presentation by Dig-It Games of Bethesda at Parkland Middle School in Rockville. school girls in technology-related activities. The program is run through Passion for Learning of Silver Spring. Passion for Learning has been around since 2004, and was started after its organizers kept hearing from teachers that middle school girls were losing interest in technology, said Cynthia Rubenstein, the nonprofit’s executive director. Girls approach technology differently from how boys do, Rubenstein said. They can often be more hesitant to try things rather than just winging it, and want to know that technology has a purpose, rather than just using technology for technology’s sake.
Ana Marroquim, 12, and Allison Ramirez, 14, played with their tablet, whispering intensely as they worked their way through one of the games. Allison said she wants to be a video game designer when she grows up, and came back after the other girls had left to thank Dommes for coming to talk to them. Seeing how it works really helped her figure out what types of classes she needs to take as she goes forward with her education, she said. Not only has technology changed a lot in re-
See GAMING, Page A-12
Leggett proposes $5.1 billion spending plan n
SPORTS: The Gazette previews high school baseball, softball, track, boys lacrosse. B-1
County Executive Isiah Leggett’s proposed budget. Leggett (D) introduced his proposed $5.1 billion budget Monday, up 1.4 percent from the current year. The tax rate would drop about 1 cent for every $100 of assessed home value. “Although the gap was smaller than some challenges we’ve had in the past, this was a very challenging budget to put together,” he said.
The county faced a $238 million budget shortfall for fiscal 2016, which starts July 1. The shortfall — due to lowerthan-expected income-tax revenues and property sales — led to a midyear hiring freeze and forced a spending reduction in the current fiscal year of 3 percent for every county department. Despite the shortfall, Leggett’s proposed budget used savings, spending reductions and set-
The clock continues to tick on Rockville officials’ consideration of a proposal to reinvent a section of Rockville Pike, but their preferences for the plan are beginning to take shape. The mayor and council are scheduled to finalize and approve a letter Monday to the city’s Planning Commission on the changes they’d like to see in the plan before it’s formally submitted to them in September. Among a plethora of changes to the draft plan discussed Monday night were local access roads
See PIKE, Page A-12
Players’ shirts spark policy Some criticized basketball team’s social stance n
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LINDSAY A. POWERS STAFF WRITER
asides to meet state requirements for education funding and to give all county employees a 2 percent raise. It also keeps taxes at the charter limit of inflation and increases funding for priorities such as libraries. Leggett said not everyone will be pleased with his plan. As proposed, the spending plan provides 97.6 percent of the money
The Blake High School boys varsity basketball team agreed in February to shake up their warmup routine, wearing a now-iconic phrase on their shirts — “I Can’t Breathe.” As they prepared for a home game against Paint Branch High School, players from the Silver Spring school wore shirts with the words of Eric Garner, a black man who died after being put in a chokehold by police in New York City last year. The players’ decision, and reactions it elicited,
See LEGGETT, Page A-11
See SHIRTS, Page A-11
Two Good Counsel High students bond over battling cancer Duo raise more than $7,000 during St. Baldrick’s fundraiser n
BY
TERRI HOGAN STAFF WRITER
Joey Norris of Kensington is a high school junior who plays baseball. Kyle Fritschi of Olney is a freshman who plays soccer. They attended different grade schools. But their unfortunate circumstances have brought them together, and their friendship and spirit have inspired their classmates at Our Lady of Good Counsel
INDEX Automotive Business Calendar Classified Entertainment Obituaries Opinion Sports
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High School in Olney. In August 2008, while attending Our Lady of Mercy School, Joey was diagnosed with high-risk T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia. He relapsed in August 2010. In January 2014, he had his final chemotherapy treatment, and as of this January, he shows no evidence of disease. Throughout his battle, Joey has remained positive and worked to bring awareness to childhood cancer. During his treatment, he has participated in many fundraisers and worked with several organizations including the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society; Terp Thon:
For the Kids; Marymount: For the Kids; D.C. Thon; Tebowing while Chemoing; and Special Love. His family also started Lights Out Leukemia, a Facebook group that supports families of children with cancer. Joey also has been active with the St. Baldrick’s Foundation, which supports children with cancer through research funding. Cassidy Williams, a family friend, organized the first head-shaving event at Good Counsel a few years ago in Joey’s honor. She has since graduated. Because people with cancer often lose their hair during chemotherapy, “shavees ” for the foundation show their sup-
port by shaving their heads, and inspiring friends and family to support childhood cancer research. Joey’s uncle calls him “the poster child for poster children.” He recently was featured on a poster for the Children’s National Medical Center’s employee giving campaign, wearing his Good Counsel baseball uniform. Last fall, Kyle, a recent graduate of St. Peter’s School, was diagnosed with stage 2 Hodgkin’s lymphoma. While being treated at Children’s Hospital,
See STUDENTS, Page A-12
A&E B-13 A-13 A-2 B-9 B-5 A-11 A-14 B-1
STILL AS SWEET Homegrown star Maggie Rose takes to the stage at Bethesda Blues & Jazz Club.
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Volume 28, No. 11, Two sections, 32 Pages Copyright © 2015 The Gazette Please
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PHOTO BY DAVID RADFORD
Kyle Fritschi, a freshman at Our Lady of Good Counsel High School in Olney and a cancer patient, shaves the head of staff member Carl Leverenz during halftime of the student-faculty basketball game Friday.