Spring Break is here! Please enjoy a safe and relaxing break and we’ll be looking for everyone on Tuesday, April 10^th.

News from the Administrative Team ….

It has been quite some time since we last updated our Mustang Families on all of the wonderful things that are taking place at Marriotts Ridge.  Enjoy reading …there is no particular order …as there are so many things to report, we will probably forget one or two things … we will do our best to include them later. 

· Our outstanding PTSA hosted our recent Dessert with the Administration and Conversation with Frank Aquino, Board of Education Member assigned to Marriotts Ridge.  We had an excellent discussion about a variety of issues related to our school and school system.

· Our fantastic Boosters organized a wonderful “Luck O’The Mustangs” Dinner and Silent Auction.  Everyone had a great time and raised a lot of money for our athletic teams and clubs.

· Junior Interview Day was very successful.  Thanks to the many family members and staff members who participated in making this a great experience for our students.  Special Thanks to our awesome Guidance Team – Will Schwarz, Jodi Robinson, Farah Evans, Susan Bradley, and Marilyn Pratt.

· The National Honor Society Induction Ceremony was another Famous First at Marriotts Ridge.  We really enjoyed highlighting the achievements of the students who were accepted for membership this spring.  We will continue building this important part of our school culture in the fall when we invite all rising juniors and seniors who have achieved 3.4 cumulative grade point averages through the end of this year to apply.  We urge all students to explore leadership and community service opportunities as they prepare for this process.

· Wasn’t it great to see our students shine in FAME?  The singing and dancing was super … nice to see students working hard and having fun.  Congratulations to Sally Livingston, Terry Eberhardt, Trish Spruill, LaVerne Miers-Bond, Jaye Ayres, and everyone else who helped make the show a success!  Our Drama students must also be recognized for their work as play critics in the Cappies Program …Eric Stishan, Abby Schwarz, and Kelly Harrigan are the latest students to have their local play reviews included in local papers or featured on Channel 72’s Arts A La Carte television show.

· Robin Grey, English Teacher and Soccer/Lacrosse Coach extraordinaire, was chosen by our junior class as 2006-7 Teacher of the Year.  Ms. Grey is an exceptional educator … we couldn’t agree more with our students on their choice.  Congratulations to all of our staff members who received nominations … there are so many deserving educators who impact our students on a daily basis.

· Baltimore Magazine, in the April 2007 issue, named Marriotts Ridge as one of the Five Best Area Public High Schools in the Baltimore Metro area … a total surprise to us, but it says a lot about what we … students, staff, and families working together … have accomplished in a short time.

· Several of our students participated in Howard County History Day.  Competing against high schoolers from across the county, Courtney Miller achieved first place and Wendy Zhang was awarded second place in the Senior Individual Performance category.  Laura Chilcoat and Shuna Gao were chosen for top honors in the Group Performance category.  Well Done, ladies!  Thanks to Paul Higdon and our PTSA for sponsoring our History Alive Social Studies Project.

· Many of our students earned awards at the Howard County Math, Science, and Technology Fair.  Congratulations to Shirley Weng, Patrick Talcott, Alec Vlahos, Elly Kokes, Alison Murphy, Stephanie Massuda, Lowell Safren, Nima Sarfarez, Wendy Zhang, Malena Silva, and Dan Schonfeld who were all recognized for their research and efforts.  At the state level, Wendy Zhang earned the Overall Grand Prize among all high school students in the Baltimore metro area … a Famous First and an outstanding honor for Wendy, our Science Department, and our community.  Good Luck to Wendy at the national competition!

· The Mustang Math Team concluded their eight meet season, achieving a third place finish in our division.  Congratulations to our coaches, Eric Ebersole and Melissa Barbieri, and all our “mathletes.”  In addition, several of our students took the American Mathematics Competition Exam.  Alex Lee, Greg Mitchell, and Willis Zhang scored high enough to qualify for the American Invitational Mathematics Exam …good scores on this exam could lead to consideration for the National Math Olympiad team.  Congratulations and good luck!

· Our FBLA Club continues to earn high accolades … in the Regional Conference Championship that included over 20 schools, the following students achieved Top 4 status in a variety of categories:  Dean Yang (1^st), Tyler Dunn (1^st), Melissa Navarro (1^st), Jimmy Yoon (1^st), Alex Ha, Kathleen Molinaro, Calvin Tan, Willis Zhang, Eric Krokos, Igor Khrustalev, Sarah Hess, Kevin Tran, Patrick Talcott, and Thomas Conchie.  At the State Competition, Dean Yang came in second in Computer Applications and the Website Design Team of Rohit Ramesh, Patrick Talcott, Darius Engineer, and Tyler Dunn also earned second place honors… Dean and the Website Team are eligible to compete at the National FBLA Competition this summer.  Congratulations to Reg Hahne, Lorene Cannella, Bob Fleming, and all of these wonderful students!

· Congratulations to our Orchestra, Madrigals, Band, and Dance students on their fine performances in the countywide adjudication festivals over the past few weeks.  We are very proud of our students and their teachers …Terry Eberhardt, Rosemary Lather, Nick Ellis and Trish Spruill.

· Our MRHS Poms placed second in the Kickline Category at the Maryland State Poms and Dance Competition.  Captain Kathleen Molinaro earned individual second place honors also.  We commend these students and their sponsor,     Trish Spruill, on this exemplary achievement.

· Our Art Department is proud to announce that the works of Katelyn Jurney, Jiangjiang Cao, and Chelsey Curtin were selected by an outside juror to represent MRHS at the Annual Junior/Senior Howard County Art Exhibit.  In the Howard County “Portrait of a Community” Photography Exhibition, Anthony Thomas achieved Gold Level status and Ali Kapustin was awarded Silver Level.

· Representing Marriotts Ridge in a variety of ways … Rahul Rajagopalan was selected as a recipient of the 2007 International Yes I Can! Award in Academics.  Antwoine Johnson received the Academic Achievement Award from Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity.  Kevin Seker was selected by the Baltimore Touchdown Club for inclusion on the Super 22 Football Team.  Jacob Beschner, Will Bowman, Andrew DiFerdinando, and James Lindsay were selected for the Howard Club Team Conference All Star Ice Hockey Game – way to go!

· Finally … recognizing two more staff members for recent honors... Mark Dubbs, Social Studies Team Leader and AP Economics Teacher, has been selected as one of 45 participants nationwide for an Economics Symposium hosted by a Nobel Prize winner.  In addition, Lorene Cannella, Computer Science Teacher, has been selected as an evaluator for the national AP Computer Science Exam. 

As we conclude Third Quarter, we want to commend all of our students who are succeeding academically and remind those who are not doing as well that the last quarter is so crucial in terms of this year and when looking forward to academic placement and extracurricular eligibility next year.  Our Evening Academic Intervention Program will continue to offer academic support and high school assessment preparation on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday nights.  Please email our Academic Intervention Coordinator, Bernadette Allman, with any questions regarding this program.

Please remember that the Advanced Placement Exams and High School Assessments will take place in May.  Please help us in making sure that students are here as much as possible in the upcoming weeks as we prepare for these very important tests.  Also, make sure to read the eSchool newsletter that was recently sent out regarding the HSAs. 

We look forward to the spring athletic season, upcoming concerts, the sophomore ring ceremony, our year end awards, and many other events … hope to see you around The Ridge.

Go Mustangs!

Pat Saunderson    Lisa Veslany                  James LeMon                 Cara Moulds