May 2003 Newsbriefs

MCPS field trips suspension eased

After the national security level was lowered from orange to yellow, MCPS relaxed its suspension on school-sponsored field trips more than 75 miles from Montgomery County. The decision allowed Blair's Magnet sophomore class to attend their annual Wallops Island field trip and the computer team to plan to participate in the national American Computer Science League competition in Fullerton, California on May 24.

Blair server hacked, students locked out of accounts

An unauthorized user temporarily gained access to Blair's Internet server over spring break, forcing system operators to disable all BEN and binx accounts. The server, known as binx, was undamaged, but the hacker may have collected personal information. Junior John McManigle, a binx system operator, said the hackers were probably trying to gather passwords. All binx accounts were locked until students changed their passwords. According to McManigle, every program and configuration was hand-checked by the system operators, and all insecure binx functions such as File Transfer Protocol (FTP) have been disabled.

SGA candidate disqualified

Freshman Sebastian Johnson, one of two candidates running for Blair SGA President, was disqualified after reading an unapproved speech. Johnson's speech contained promises that were impossible to fulfill, such as the reinstatement of freak dancing and DIVA and break dancer performances at pep rallies, according to SGA Sponsor Rondai Ravilious. The speech also criticized the SGA for not representing the students in a competent manner. "He violated a rule that he was very much aware of," said Ravilious.

HONORS

•Seniors Matthew Baron, Kristina Cammen, Joshua Chang, Kevin Chang, Evan Karlik, Lisa Leung and Anatoly Preygel received National Merit Scholarships in various fields of study.

•Junior Emily Tsui placed in the top 20 nationally in the U.S. National Chemistry Olympiad competition.

•Blair's It's Academic team and several other students won third place in the spring International Knowledge Master Open.

•Blair Media Assistant Susan Madden, Media Specialist Lisa Hack and student volunteers received an MCPS Educational Foundation grant for the Blair After Hours Program.

•Junior Janae Bosby won a first-place award in the Health Knowledge Bowl of the 30th annual Maryland State Skills USA-VICA Championship, a contest for career and technical students.

•Senior running back Jermaine Jack was named an alternate to the first annual Maryland Football Coaches Association East-West All-Star game.

•Two freshmen teams placed in the top two at the state Destination Imagination competition and will move on to the international round. The team of Abby Goldman, Sally Lanar, Tess Minnick, Jordy Goldstein and Sarah Janesko competed in the "video adventure" challenge, and the team of John Silberholz, Pratik Bhandari, Rohit Dewan, Yao Xu and Chelsea Zhang entered the "connecDID" challenge.

•Blair took the first eight places in the Montgomery County Envirothon competition. The team of juniors Easha Anand, Daozhong Jin, Rebecca Pass, Valerie Shen, Emily Tsui and Paula Wang won first place for the second year in a row and received $100 each.

UPCOMING EVENTS

•The Junior-Senior Prom will be held on Saturday, May 24 from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. at the Hyatt Regency Bethesda. Tickets are $40 per person.

•After Prom will take place on Sunday, May 25 from 1 a.m. to 5 a.m. The theme is "Catch a Wave…"

•Graduation rehearsal will be on May 30 at 8 a.m. in the auditorium. The rehearsal is mandatory for all seniors, who should bring their caps and gowns. The senior class picture will be taken at 10 a.m. in the main gym following the rehearsal.

GUIDANCE CORNER

Guidance Counselor Melba Battle's suggestions for rising seniors:
•Visit campuses this summer to determine what you are looking for in a college or university.

•Narrow your list of colleges based on such factors as size, academics and location.

•Apply to colleges with varying levels of admission standards.