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October 03, 2008 - Hundreds of preschool children in D.C. took part in "Read for the Record," a national campaign to promote early childhood education. Along the outfield grass of Washington Nationals Field, hundreds of pre-schoolers scream and squirm as a volunteer reads from Corduroy, the fabled children's book about a teddy bear.
Tara Meehan has more from the event...
October 03, 2008 - More than 140 students in the Georgetown University neighborhood have gotten food poisoning in recent days. Health officials in the District are blaming the sickness on the norovirus, which spreads through contaminated food or direct contact with infected people. Officials say the virus has been linked to a dining hall Georgetown University dining hall, known as "Leo's," which has been closed since Wednesday. All of the affected students have been treated and released.
Stephanie Kaye has more...
October 03, 2008 - Parents wondering whether to give cold and cough medicines to their kids may not get help from the government anytime soon. At a public hearing Thursday, officials from the Food and Drug Administration said they need to gather more data on whether over-the-counter remedies are safe and effective for children ages 2-6. The FDA is also worried that a ban as sought by leading pediatricians' groups might only drive parents to give adult medicines to their youngsters.
Meymo Lyons reports...
October 03, 2008 - Students assembled at West Springfield High School to protest what they called censorship in their libraries. In partnership with the group Focus on the Family, they had attempted to donate religious books that, among other things, purport to show how gays and lesbians could change or suppress their sexual orientation. Many students complained their views were being discriminated against, since there were hundreds of books accepting of homosexuality present in school libraries, according to the students and Focus on the Family.
Susan Thorniley, coordinator of Library Information Services for Virginia's Fairfax County, said each library decided individually which books went on their shelves, but there were several common reasons for the rejections. She said many were not research or fact-based, and no professional reviews were available - something required by county guidelines. Reviews provided by students were from church newsletters or by authors themselves. Thornilly also said there were already materials in the libraries that presented different viewpoints on homosexuality.
Sabri Ben-Achour reports...
October 03, 2008 - The 5th annual All Roads Film Festival runs this weekend, Oct. 2-5. The four-day fest aims to highlight work by and about indigenous and under-represented cultures -- bringing filmmakers and film lovers together from around the world. It's all happening at the National Geographic headquarters in downtown D.C.
Stephanie Kaye speaks with festival director, Francene Blythe...
October 03, 2008 - As House members take up the revised financial rescue plan, Todd Zwillich reports on how the votes might shake out.
October 03, 2008 - The two former governors of Virginia vying to represent the state in the U.S. Senate square off tonight in their only debate to be televised statewide, and the last before the election.
Tommie McNeil reports...
October 03, 2008 - Officials in the District are preparing for the upcoming election following an investigation into problems with vote tallies during the primary. One member of the D.C. Council says she wonders what other problems might occur as election officials verify the initial vote tallies.
Ward Three Council member Mary Cheh says there are races that can be very close , particularly the city's contests for ANC positions. On the Kojo Nomdi Show, Cheh said she's heard stories from other places with election problems.
Earlier, election officials in the District said they won't release early vote tallies on election night until they review the numbers to make certain they are accurate. In September's primary about 4,700 phantom votes showed up in the tally when, investigators say, some employees moved to fast and released results too quickly.
Bill Redlin reports...
October 03, 2008 - Security breakdowns and poor staff supervision allowed three teenage offenders to escape from the Cheltenham Youth Center in Maryland's Prince George's County this August, a report released by an independent monitor concluded.
The escape was the 11th in 16 months from Maryland's secure detention facilities.
In the the report Juvenile Justice Monitor Marlana Valdez said staff at the facility did not answer an alarm and did not notice that one of the detainees had stolen a wire cutter from the wood shop. Valdez also said that the Center did not have camera surveillance around a fence that the teens cut through in their escape. She recommended that the Department of Juvenile Services issue a set of precautions to prevent future escapes.
A spokeswoman for the agency acknowledged the security breaches, but pointed out that the teenagers were caught. She said two supervisors and two staff members were fired or reprimanded after this latest incident. She said the perimeter alarm was ignored because of false alarms before the escape, and the surveillance system had not been reset after a test.
Rebecca Blatt reports...
October 03, 2008 - The fastest growing airline at Baltimore Washington International Airport in Maryland is adding more flights. AirTran Airways is continuing its expansion at BWI by announcing it will add twice a week flights to Cancun, Mexico starting in March. While most carriers are cutting back on service, in the last several months AirTran has expanded at the airport. It now has a 13-percent market share at BWI, after seeing a 26 percent increase in passengers in the first half of this year.
Pat Brogan reports...
October 03, 2008 - Funeral services are scheduled this morning for a Maryland State trooper killed last weekend in a medevac helicopter crash in Prince George's County.
Trooper First Class Mickey Lippy was a flight paramedic. His funeral service starts later this morning in Gamber, Maryland. Services will be held tomorrow for two others killed in the crash. Emergency medical technician Tanya Mallard will be remembered in Waldorf, and pilot Stephen Bunker in White Plains. Two young women who had been in a car crash were also on the helicopter. There was a memorial for Ashley Younger yesterday in Accokeek. She'll be buried tomorrow in South Carolina. Jordan Wells was the only survivor, she suffered multiple injuries but is expected to recover.
Rebecca Blatt reports...
October 03, 2008 - Maryland`s Department of Human Resources now says it did investigate a neglect complaint in January of this year involving Renee Bowman, the woman now suspected of killing her two adopted daughters. The department had initially said it had no contact with Bowman, but officials say they have since learned that she was using a fictitious name while living at a residence in Charles County.
Jonathan Wilson reports...
October 03, 2008 - D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty has introduced a new crime bill to combat the District's growing gang problem. The Omnibus Anti-Crime Amendment Act is a 36-page piece of legislation that covers everything from stalking to fresh khat -- a street drug that's popular in North Africa. But at its heart, the measure is a response to the increasing presence of national gangs in the District. Peter Nickles, D.C.'s attorney general, says the bill will let authorities go after street gangs by using the same special laws that typically target organized crime families. The bill would also strengthen penalties for possession of illegal guns and expand the District's use of DNA technology to solve crimes.
Patrick Madden reports...
October 03, 2008 - Congressman Chris Van Hollen of Maryland says the federal financial bailout plan is the first step toward restoring confidence in the economy.
Jim Asendio reports...
October 03, 2008 - Football players at McKinley Tech High School in DC stayed home today instead of playing a scheduled game against Fort Hill in Maryland. The reason: some players on the Fort Hill team are accused of using racial slurs when they took on another school in D.C. a few weeks ago.
Jonathan Wilson has more...
October 03, 2008 - It was a roller coaster week for an unprecedented government intervention in the economy, A.K.A. the Wall Street bailout.
Elizabeth Wynne Johnson recaps the legislative ride...
October 03, 2008 - As the presidential and vice-presidential candidates stump for votes, theyve been saying very little if anything about what theyll do to protect the nation`s Social Security system.
Commentator Barbara Kennelly, a former member of Congress and now President and CEO of the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare, says their silence is not acceptable...
WAMU Disclaimer The views expressed do not necessarily reflect the opinions of WAMU 88.5 or American University.
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October 03, 2008 - (Oct 3-24) CURING TO CREATING The creative works of two physicians come under examination in the exhibit "Curing to Creating" at the Orchard Gallery in Bethesda, opening today and running through October 24th. The show features colorful, dreamy landscapes and abstracts painted by psychologist Louise Sennesh and striking sculptures in stainless steel, crafted by hematologist and oncologist Richard Binder.
(Oct 3-5) WATERFORD HOMES TOUR The 65th Waterford Homes Tour & Crafts Exhibit brings visitors from around the country to Waterford, Virginia today, Saturday and Sunday. This showcase of visual arts and photography is being held at venues throughout the National Historic Landmark Village of Waterford, home of the oldest juried crafts fair in the state. Many works, including oils, watercolors, collages and pristine drawings in pen-and-ink, will be on sale at the fair`s Art Mart.
(Oct 3) ANAT COHEN Enjoy a musical evening with Anat Cohen tonight at the National Museum of Women in the Arts at 7:30pm. As part of the continuing Duke Ellington Jazz Fest, Israeli-born Cohen makes magic on multiple reed instruments, blending improvisational and global music, modern and traditional jazz, classical, Brazilian choro, Argentine tango, and Afro-Cuban rhumba on saxophone and clarinet - all in a single evening. A meet-the-artist discussion follows the concert.
(Oct 4 & 5) SPX And for a little comic relief, the Small Press Expo brings independent cartoonists and cartoon lovers to a comics arts festival at the Marriott Bethesda tomorrow from 11am to 7pm and Sunday from 12pm to 6pm. More than 300 cartoonists and fans convene for talks and workshops, digging into everything from graphic
The works of physicians Louise Sennesh and Richard Binder appear in "Curing to Creating" at Bethesda's [Orchard Gallery](http://www.orchardgallery.com/) through October 24, 2008.
courtesy of: Louise Sennesh
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