Washington Informer

In celebration of Black History Month, the Pioneer Award was created by the Washington Wizards and Amtrak to recognize African-Americans within the Washington, D.C. community, who through hard work and dedication, have positively impacted the communities in which they live. During halftime of the Wizards vs. Magic game on Wednesday, Feb. 29, 2012, the Wizards and Amtrak recognized this year's recipients: Dr. Betty Jo Gaines, Executive Director at Bright Beginnings, Inc.; Natalie Randolph, Head Coach of the Coolidge High School varsity football team; and Neal Henderson, Founder of the Fort Dupont Ice Hockey Club. All three recipients are pioneers in their own right, and their ongoing contributions continue to enrich the Washington, DC community. "We are excited to join forces with Amtrak to present these deserving individuals with the Pioneer Award," said Washington Wizards Executive Vice President Greg Bibb. "They have distinguished themselves and provided an outstanding example by improving our community and we are proud to honor them for their efforts."/Photo by John E. De Freitas.

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Wizards guard John Wall (2) out-sprints fellow No.1 draft pick Kyrie Irving in the second half of NBA action at Verizon Center on Saturday, March 3. The Wizards defeated the Cleveland cavaliers 101-98 snapping a six-game loss. John Wall (24) and Jordan Crawford (31) were the leading scorers. At the end of the game to the surprise of fans confetti and streamers came down from the rafters. Former Wizards all-stars Antawn Jamison, playing his first return game at Verizon Center, scored 29 points. Wizards Head Coach Randy Wittman commenting on Wall's play said,"John (Wall) has been playing well. I like where he's been going with his decision making. As a coach you want to prepare them, get them ready and let them play. John's getting a understanding of where I want the ball, whose hands I want the ball in, what plays to run without having to look over at me every time. That's the growth of the point guard and he's made great steps over the past couple of weeks."/ Photo by John E. De Freitas

More sports photos at www.informerphotos.com

Pop music legend Whitney Houston, who died early last month at age 48, has left all her possessions to her daughter, Bobbi Kristina.

According to reports, Houston's will was signed in 1993 and filed March 7 in Atlanta. She leaves all of her furnishings, clothing, personal effects, jewelry and cars to her only child, who turned 19 earlier this month.

While Houston's money will be put in a trust, Bobbi Kristina --- whose father is Bobby Brown of New Edition fame -- will get part of it on her 21st birthday.

She will reap another portion when she reaches age 25, and the remainder will be turned over to Bobbi Kristina at age 30. Meanwhile, she can receive money from trustees of Houston's estate to pay for college, purchase a home or to jump-start a business.

Options Include Standalone School, Two New Programs at Existing Schools

District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS) will offer compelling new programs for middle grades at three Ward 5 schools, including a stand-alone Arts Integration and World Language middle school at Brookland; an International Baccalaureate program at Browne Education Campus; and a middle school Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) integration program at McKinley, DCPS officials announced March 6 at a Ward 5 community meeting.

The announcement, which followed months of community visioning and feedback meetings as part of the Ward 5 Great Schools Initiative, also included proposed grade configurations for these schools and other Ward 5 schools that either feed into these schools or accept their students at the high school level.

A total of 1,180 middle school seats will be available through these three options that cover neighborhoods in the northern, central and southern parts of Ward 5.

"When families in Ward 5 demanded better educational options for their children at the middle school level, we listened and responded with rigorous and compelling programs that will prepare students for success in high school and beyond," DCPS Chancellor Kaya Henderson said. "I am excited by the portfolio of middle grade programs that we designed with the input of the community and expect Ward 5 families to agree and respond by filling the seats we're creating."

In surveys conducted during fall 2011, most Ward 5 families and community members signaled a preference for a standalone middle school (38 percent of about 800 respondents); 29 percent preferred a preschool to Grade 8 education campus; and 24 percent preferred a grades 6-12 program. Families also emphasized a need for more rigorous academic curriculum and a variety of compelling middle grade options.

Currently, middle grades in Ward 5 are served by seven education campuses. To maximize the resources needed to provide a quality education in an education campus, ideally, schools should have a minimum 300 middle school students in each site (or a total 2,100 students for the current Ward 5 configuration). Ward 5 middle grade programs currently enroll 790, a shortfall of 1,310 students.

Those numbers, combined with community preferences, led to a proposal in November to create a portfolio of one education campus, a middle grades program at McKinley Technology, and a standalone middle school for a total 1,180 quality middle school seats for the 2013-2014 school year. Over the past three months, DCPS officials have worked with Ward 5 families and community members to determine a final plan for school sites, grade configurations, feeder patterns, and programming for these options.

That plan includes the following: Brookland Middle SchoolA standalone Brookland Middle School would cover the northern portion of Ward 5, offer 500 middle grade seats and feature arts integration and world languages programs. In an arts integration programs, teachers weave the arts into lesson plans; schools host at least two guest artists or performances a year; students present what they learn in at least two public showcases; and half of the teachers participate in artist-in-residence programs each year.

In world language programs, schools offer at least two languages; provide high school credits for some classes; provide yearlong programs with a goal of 135 minutes of instruction time each week; and educators specialize in the languages they teach. Browne Education Campus

Browne Education Campus, which already offers a grade 6-8 program, will serve the southeastern portion of Ward 5 with 300 and feature an International Baccalaureate (IB) for the primary years (preschool-Grade 5) and the middle years (grades 6-8). An IB curriculum is one of the ways we can see more rigor, increased student outcomes, and a specialized curriculum.

In an IB primary years program, teachers and students assess student work; the curriculum covers traditional subjects and interconnects them as well (for example, a social studies lesson may incorporate math concepts); and students acquire a holistic understanding of six themes: Who we are; where we are in place/time; how we express ourselves; how the world works; how we organize ourselves; and sharing the planet.

In an IB middle years program, student work is assessed with guidance from the International Baccalaureate; there is an emphasis on formative assessment; courses include Language A and B, physical education, sciences, arts, math, technology, and humanities; and five perspectives, or ?areas of interaction? are factored in each subject. McKinley Middle School STEM integration

In a STEM integration program, features include grade-level team collaboration; at least two showcases of student work; STEM-related competitions; and interaction with STEM professionals each year. Next steps

At the March 6 meeting, families and community members were asked to sign up for committees and working groups that will focus on recruitment and outreach, school-based transition, and building renovation.

These committees and working groups will work with DCPS officials over the next year and a half to finalize details before the 2013-14 school year, the targeted opening date.

The National Urban League is set to release the 2012 State of Black America (SOBA) report at historic Howard University on March 7, launching a yearlong campaign, "Occupy the Vote to Educate, Employ & Empower" at a monumental Town Hall event.

The 2012 State of Black America report includes the Equality Index providing a statistical diagnosis of the status of Blacks, Hispanics, and Whites as well as essays by a host of political, business, and community leaders including Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, president and CEO of the National Urban League Marc H. Morial, singer John Legend, Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter, entrepreneur and author Steve Stoute, and a host of others with prescriptions for the employment and education crisis facing the nation. With new voter ID laws and voting rights under attack, the 2012 State of Black America will inspire you to "Occupy the Vote" in this important election year.

Free and open to the public, the Town Hall will feature community and thought leaders, a coalition of Civil Rights organizations, and YOU, as we "Occupy the Vote to Educate, Employ, and Empower!"

LIVE WEBCAST

If you are not in the Washington D.C. area, you can view the LIVE WEBCAST on www.iamempowered.comand be a part of the national conversation on Facebook and Twitter (#SOBA12, #OccupyTheVote). Be sure to TUNE IN and join the conversation!

BALTMORE, MD -- A coalition of African American Clergy recently announced the launch of a new voting initiative entitled "The Empowerment Movement." The faith-based voting initiative will bring together leaders of the faith based community of all denominations, designed to move the African American Community forward in politics, education and economics with the use of Christian principles.

The Rev. Dr. Jamal Bryant, pastor of the Empowerment Temple in Baltimore, has been named president of the organization. Their mission is a massive undertaking, with a goal to register one million voters on one day, Easter, April 8, making Guinness World Book history for democracy, by challenging every black church in the United States to register 20 people on that day.

There are an estimated 500,000 black churches in America, and more than 5 million unregistered voters within the black church. Recently, representatives of leading black Christian organizations held a closed door summit to strategize on a collective effort of the church preparing for the November elections. As a result, the Empowerment Movement was formed.

The Empowerment Movement, a non-partisan organization, was launched with the support of the AME Church, AME Zion, Cogic, Progressive, Bible Way Churches, Full Gospel, Gospel Music Workshop of America, CME, United Covenant Churches, Harvest Churches, Fellowship of international Word of Faith, Church of God, Rep. Elijah Cummings, members of the Congressional Black Caucus, the NAACP and the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, to name a few.

Bryant, 40, has broken the stereotype of yesterday's clergyman. He is the leader of a new breed of ministers who embrace the idea of capitalizing on the ever- increasing marketplace of Internet and technological innovations to spread the gospel.

With more than 8,000 members, Empowerment Temple in Baltimore, and approximately 35,000 followers on Twitter, Facebook and MySpace, Bryant believes that "God is not just in the church; He is also in technology."

As a result, Bryant's mission is to "empower people spiritually, develop them educationally, expose them culturally, activate them politically, and strengthen them economically."

Bottom Line: CostsWill Decrease

The District of Columbia Public Service (DCPSC) has authorized a decrease in supply rates. Based on the results of a competitive auction, District customers who buy their electricity through the Standard Offer Service (SOS) program will see decreases in their electricity bills beginning June 1, 2012. SOS represents about 70 percent of a residential customer's bill. The change will decrease average monthly residential electricity bills by about 5.8 percent. The average residential customer uses about 825 kWh per month in the summer and 615 kWh per month in the winter. The monthly bill for an average residential SOS customer will decrease by $5.25 adjusting the average bill from $90.00 to $84.74.

The supply cost of electricity (including generation and transmission) for SOS customers will decline from 9.75 cents per kWh in the summer to 8.86 cents per kWh and from 9.22 cents per kWh in the winter to 8.61 cents per kWh. As a result the supply portion of the average residential electricity bill will decline from $63.71 to $58.45. The average monthly residential bill (including supply and delivery charges) will be about $84.74.

"This is great news for our District of Columbia customers because the cost of electricity has the greatest impact on their bills," said Thomas H. Graham, President, Pepco Region.

The SOS program is administered by Pepco under rules established by the DCPSC. Under legislation passed by the D.C. Council in 1990, Pepco no longer owns any power plants. The DCPSC has designated Pepco to purchase electricity for SOS customers through power supply contracts in an annual auction.

For more information and updates, visit www.pepco.com and follow Pepco at www.twitter.com/PepcoConnect

"Special Music Program to Feature Arts Songs and Spirituals"

 An extraordinary musical concert, "A Celebration of Black Composers in Art Songs and Spirituals," featuring five outstanding up and coming young opera superstars and an equally accomplished pianist on a concert Steinway who will celebrate the works of black composers of historic spirituals and rarely heard art songs. Operatic vocalists will include Samantha McElhaney (soprano), Alia Waheed (soprano), Bridgette Cooper (mezzo-soprano), Issachah Savage (Tenor), Kevin Thompson (Bass) and accomplished pianist, Victor Simonson.

The event will be held at 4 p.m., March 11 at First Baptist Church of the City of Washington, D.C., 1328 16th Street, NW.

The concert, which is free and open to the public, will feature soloists with world-class operatic-size voices who thrill audiences with their artistry and musical presentations of art songs and familiar spirituals - the unique American folk music beloved by peoples around the globe.

For more information, please visit www.firstbaptistdc.org

Animated Series for Ages 2-7 Premiers March 23 on Disney Junior

Emmy Award-winning Ty Burrell ("Modern Family") guest stars in Disney Junior's "Doc McStuffins," an animated series that models good health, hygiene, compassion and nurturing for kids age 2-7.

The series premieres Friday, March 23 on the popular Disney Junior block on Disney Channel (10:00-11:00 a.m., ET/PT) and the new 24-hour Disney Junior channel (4:00-5:00 p.m., ET/PT).

The heartwarming stories, each featuring an original song, introduce a little girl named Doc who can talk to the stuffed animal and toy world -- and they talk to her too, especially when they need her help repairing a stitch or bandaging a boo-boo. Along the way, Doc and her friends Stuffy, Lambie, Hallie and Chilly impart helpful tips about self care and care for others, and chase away the worries over visiting the doctor.

Burrell voices Big Jack, a nurturing Jack-in-the-Box, who takes his son Little Jack to get a check-up from Doc in the first story of the premiere episode titled "Out of the Box." In the second story, Doc helps her little brother Donny's toy race car recharge in "Rundown Race Car."

The series voice cast includes: Kiara Muhammad as Doc; Loretta Devine as Hallie; Lara Jill Miller as Lambie; Robbie Rist as Stuffy; Jess Harnell as Chilly; Jaden Betts as Donny McStuffins; Kim Brooks as Mom McStuffins; and Gary Anthony Williams as Dad McStuffins. The series' theme song is performed by the star of Disney Channel's hit series "A.N.T. Farm" and Hollywood Records recording artist, China Anne McClain.