media

Horticulture club starts gardening

By Ruth Aitken, Hannah Weintraub | April 26, 2012, 11:51 a.m. | In Print News »

Blair's Horticulture club broke ground on the school's new water conservation landscape on April 14 with the cooperation of parents and student volunteers.

Math raps engage students

By Srividya Murthy | April 26, 2012, midnight | In Print News »

On March 14, in honor of Pi Day, Superintendent Joshua Starr tweeted a link to math teacher Jacob Scott's music video "Triangle Experts," raising the number of views of the video to nearly 7,000. Scott has gained countywide acclaim for pioneering a new genre of music: math rapping.

Blair staff continues AP push

By Michelle Chavez | April 26, 2012, midnight | In Print News »

Blair is holding its first Advanced Placement (AP) boot camp this year with a grant from the Montgomery County Education Foundation. Media Specialist Andrea Lamphier worked with the social studies department to organize the boot camp for two Saturday sessions and two after-school sessions.

Council evaluates dropout prevention spending

By Srividya Murthy | April 26, 2012, midnight | In Print News »

The Montgomery County Office of Legislative Oversight (OLO) released a report on county-funded alternative programs for students at risk of dropping out. The study was sponsored by the County Council to evaluate the success of these programs in preparing at-risk students for college and the workforce.

The other side of Blair sports

By Sarah Wilson | March 29, 2012, 2:05 p.m. | In Print Sports »

"First of all, I don't like Frisbee, I love it. And second of all, 'Frisbee' is a wham-o disc, 'Ultimate' is a lifestyle," jokes junior Devin Rutan, a co-captain of Blair's Ultimate Frisbee team, "Home Cooked." The Ultimate team, along with crew, paddling, running, ice hockey, are Blair's club sports, meaning that they don't receive school funding, their coaches and referees are not paid for by the school and they don't follow country established schedules for competitions.

Restrictions are the driving force behind safe roads

By Puck Bregstone | March 20, 2012, 12:12 p.m. | In Print Opinions »

In a recent study, the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) recorded and analyzed the deaths of teens in the age range of 16-19 in order to access the effectiveness of the Graduated Licensing System (GLS). According to their findings, after the implementation of the GLS, states have suffered 1,348 fewer fatal automobile accidents with 16-year-olds behind the wheel. But in the same period of time 1,086 more 18-year-olds have been killed behind the wheel.

Pro/Con: Should MCPS raise the high school dropout age from 16 to 18?

By Peter McNally, Claire Koenig | March 14, 2012, 12:10 p.m. | In Print Opinions »

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The place of a parent

By Claire Koenig | March 14, 2012, 11:30 a.m. | In Print Opinions »

The Latin expression in loco parentis gives schools and institutions the right to speak for their students' best interests in dire instances. Administrations in schools have saved lives in crises and protected students when their parents could not. But although our schools can shoulder that legal burden while we are behind their gates, does it hold that they should keep it with them at all times?

Blair slam poets move to their own beats

By Emma Bergman | March 14, 2012, 11:18 a.m. | In Print Features »

"Beautiful black women mother of the earth/A skin who's been embraced by the sun but led by a curse." These words begin senior Andy Mbala's poem entitled "Black Women."

On the tip of the tongue

By Puck Bregstone | March 14, 2012, 11:09 a.m. | In Print Features »

At the age of four, junior Tranelle Dodson was sitting in her living room when her aunt collapsed from a stroke. Dodson rushed into the kitchen to warn her mother, but the words just would not come out.

Inspirational epics

By Claire Sleigh, Claire Koenig | March 13, 2012, 2:28 p.m. | In Print Entertainment »

Second semester seniors can smell the end of the school year from months away. It's the light at the end of the tunnel; a carrot dangling from a very, very long stick. And sometimes the tantalizing taste of oh-so-close freedom can be a little…distracting. We lose the drive, the focus. We loaf.

Earlier tracking hurts at all levels

By | March 13, 2012, 2 p.m. | In Print Opinions »

MCPS may already go above and beyond the Maryland State Board of Education's newly adopted guidelines for gifted and talented (GT) education, but the county has yet to take GT labeling to the state-condoned extreme. The Feb. 28 GT legislation suggests that schools monitor their students from pre-kindergarten, a dangerous move that threatens to widen the achievement gap and contribute to the deceleration of curricula across MCPS.

For news, timing is everything

By Claire Sleigh | March 13, 2012, 12:06 p.m. | In Print Opinions »

Currently, Silver Chips puts out seven issues a year, which is fairly infrequent. It's up to the editorial staff of Silver Chips to strike a balance between length and quality on the one hand, and timeliness and relevance on the other. Silver Chips print should consider shifting gears to a ten-issue paper to keep the readers up-to-date through more timely and relevant sports and news stories, and to establish a greater Silver Chips presence throughout Blair.

There's an App for that: iPhone favorites

By Puck Bregstone | March 13, 2012, 11:58 a.m. | In Print Entertainment »

With friends, there's always a home court advantage

By Emma Bergman | March 8, 2012, 11:35 a.m. | In Print Features »

Some friendship roles are universal: the jokester, the listener, the leader. Not so common is a friend group that also has the forwards, the point guard and the captains. For best friends and senior varsity basketball players Morgan Chase, Adrienne Jackson, Johanna Lopez, Olivia Nono and Myla Sapp, friendship and basketball are inseparable.

Board of Education releases budget

By Josh Schmidt | March 8, 2012, 11:11 a.m. | In Print News »

The Board of Education (BOE) unanimously agreed upon and announced a $2.13 billion operating budget for the fiscal year (FY) 2013. MCPS superintendent Joshua Starr initially requested a $2.1 billion budget.

GT policy enacted

By Srividya Murthy | March 8, 2012, 12:30 a.m. | In Print News »

On Feb. 28, the Maryland Department of Education (MSDE) adopted the first statewide policy on Gifted and Talented (GT) programs, which will establish minimum standards for such programs in school systems across the state.

Iron Sharpens Iron launched

By Srividya Murthy | March 8, 2012, midnight | In Print News »

Assistant Principal Dirk Cauley and Blair Sports Academy director Jose Segura have piloted a leadership program, Iron Sharpens Iron, to empower male Latino students at Blair.

Seniors scramble for SSL

By Katie Pohlman | March 8, 2012, midnight | In Print News »

The counseling office is mailing letters, making phone calls and sending emails to teachers, students and parents to make sure seniors who are missing Student Service Learning (SSL) hours get them. As of Feb. 10, roughly 30 percent of the class of 2012 did not meet the minimum number of hours needed to graduate, and about 20 to 30 students need 10 hours or less to do so.

Country in Profile: Kenya

By Zoe Waldrop | Feb. 17, 2012, 11:45 a.m. | In Print Features »

At her boarding school in the Central Province of Kenya, Eunice Muchemi's English teacher often moved the lesson to a field in the wildlife reserve just outside campus where monkeys, giraffes and antelopes mingled.

Starting their first year at Blair, but also their last

By Katie Pohlman | Feb. 17, 2012, 11:33 a.m. | In Print Features »

Bertha Garcia walked in the door on the first day of school and was shocked by the number of students she saw and intimidated by the size of Blair. Although she tried her hardest, she got lost several times. She took wrong turns here and there, and walked into stairwell hallways instead of real ones. This may sound like a typical first day for freshman Blazers, but Garcia is a transfer student and this is her senior year.

Pro/Con: Should clubs at Blair receive funding from the school?

By Katie Pohlman, Maggie Shi | Feb. 9, 2012, 11:28 a.m. | In Print Opinions »

MCPS lacks food options

By Katelin Montgomery | Feb. 8, 2012, 4:15 p.m. | In Print Opinions »

For most Blazers, the lunch line is safe, inviting and full of options. However for me, that line is perilous and fraught with danger.

JV Journal

By Josh Schmidt | Feb. 6, 2012, 12:16 p.m. | In Print Sports »

It's the second half, and the boys' JV basketball team (3-7) is just starting to get in rhythm. But only getting energized towards the end of the game is normal for the team, as they have three buzzer beating wins so far this season, and have made a name for themselves as a comeback team when they have won.

Athletes of the Month

By Katelin Montgomery, Josh Schmidt | Feb. 6, 2012, 11:38 a.m. | In Print Sports »

Wearing jersey number 43, senior Olivia Nono's presence captivates on the court as she selflessly leads her team. Standing poised and at the ready, she calls out to teammates, giving direction, and then sprints, blasting ahead of the crowd, as she rushes to defend the basket.