THE GAZETTE
Thursday, January 30, 2014 lr
Page A-5
Laurel library gets Berwyn Heights ES heads to finals temporary location Team wins close competition in Science Bowl n
Branch to begin transition in February n
BY
EMILIE EASTMAN STAFF WRITER
Laurel library staff and patrons no longer have to worry about where they will go once demolition and reconstruction of the branch begins this spring. In a long-awaited decision, the Prince George’s County library system has finalized a temporary location for the branch that will open about three weeks after the current building closes its doors on Feb. 18, according to library officials. The temporary facility will be on the first floor of an office building located at 8101 Sandy Spring Road, behind the Laurel Municipal Center. Michael Gannon, the library system’s associate director for support services, said the county’s first choice for a temporary location fell through because it was purchased by another party. The Sandy Spring Road location was the second one the city considered. “I think it is a better site,”
Gannon said. “It’s closer to the existing site. It’s in a newer building. It was worth the wait.” Gannon said the temporary location will be about 5,000 square feet and will still accommodate story times and book clubs, although meeting room space will not be available. The temporary location will include about 20 computers, a DVD dispenser machine and a book drop, Gannon said. Kathleen Teaze, county library system director, said between 27,000 and 28,000 people visit the Laurel library each month. To notify these patrons of the change, the library system distributed bookmarks and hung posters at the current branch, Gannon said. “I think they’ll probably be some confusion at first,” he said. “I hope people are patient with us.” During the three-week transition to the temporary location, Laurel branch patrons can visit www.pgcmls.info for homework help, reservations and renewal services. For phone renewals, call 301-3333111. eeastman@gazette.net
BY
EMILIE EASTMAN STAFF WRITER
After three grueling rounds of science trivia that even judges described as “intense,” Berwyn Heights Elementary School is the first of four teams to obtain a coveted spot at this year’s Science Bowl finals. On Tuesday, the team beat Northview Elementary School of Bowie 235 to 170 in the final round after beating Mattaponi Elementary School of Upper Marlboro 215 to 185 in the first round. “I’m just sorta like ‘What in the world happened?’” said winning team member Alexander Swisdak, 10, of College Park. “I thought we were going to lose because we were 30 points behind them and then we became a lot more behind them, but we won.” The Science Bowl is an annual tournament where Prince George’s County elementary and middle schools compete in teams of three and answer Jeopardy-style questions related to science. The Berwyn Heights team will have a chance at the county
title during the April 1 elementary school finals. Esther Woodworth of Cheverly has been judging the Science Bowl competition for several years and said the very close rounds are her favorite. “This type of game is just wonderful,” she said. “I can’t get enough of these where you don’t know until literally the last question who is going to win.” Woodworth said that the competition on Tuesday was an enjoyable one to watch and judge. “We’ll have a lot of games where its close, but very few where it’s this close,” she said. All four teams were neckand-neck during the two preliminary rounds, with Northview and Berwyn Heights each edging out their opponents by around 30 points. Northview Principal Jason Simmons attended the competition and said he was very pleased with the performance of the Northview team members, who wore white lab coats during the competition. “I’m very proud of all the hard work they’ve done,” he said. “These guys do a really great job because lot of times they’re going against kids who are older than them and they do a really, really good job.” Owen McCloskey, 11, of Col-
EMILIE EASTMAN/THE GAZETTE
Alexander Swisdak, 10, of College Park; Elias Herrera, 12, of College Park; and Owen McCloskey, 11, of College Park advanced their Berwyn Heights Elementary School team to the Science Bowl finals on Tuesday. lege Park said his team practiced diligently for the Jan. 28 competition. “We kept doing practice rounds of Science Bowl with questions from previous [Science Bowls],” he said. But even with all the preparations, Owen
Brown, Gansler, Mizeur hammering out schedule BY
KATE S. ALEXANDER STAFF WRITER
Maryland’s Democratic gubernatorial candidates will debate one another ahead of the June 24 primary. Exactly how many debates will be hosted has yet to be determined. Gubernatorial hopeful Lt. Gov. Anthony G. Brown requested on Friday that his opponents Del. Heather R. Mizeur
and Attorney General Douglas F. Gansler and their campaigns work with him and his team in scheduling the debates. Brown proposed holding five debates — three between the candidates for governor and two between their running mates — at locations across the state. “It is up to us to ensure that voters have an opportunity to make an informed decision on June 24th,” Brown wrote to his opponents. Gansler and running mate Del. Jolene Ivey (D-Dist 47) of Cheverly will participate, campaign spokesman Bob Wheelock said. Wheelock said they will participate in as
smile
visit away NOW ACCEPTING NEW PATIENTS!
many debates as are held. Mizeur and running mate the Rev. Delman Coates will also participate, campaign manager Joanna Belanger said in an email. However, Mizeur (D-Dist. 20) of Takoma Park hopes the candidates develop a “more robust schedule” than Brown has proposed, Belanger said. “Real problems deserve real debates to show Maryland voters which candidate has real solutions,” Belanger said. “Three gubernatorial debates are not sufficient to address all the important issues.” kalexander@gazette.net
• Metal-free tooth-colored fillings • Implant tooth replacements • Affordable, effective tooth bleaching • Denture Replacements for difficult-fit patients • Veneers • Invisaline® 1911706
Knee Pain?
Want to Avoid Knee Replacement? Come Learn about a New, Safe, FDA-Approved, Non-Surgical Treatment
RSVP for one of these free seminar dates: Wednesday, 2/5, 2/12 and 2/19 at Noon at Sakura Buffet, 9031 Baltimore Ave., College Park, MD. Attend one of our FREE lunch educational seminars to learn: • Causes of knee pain • How to avoid surgery • Why many treatments don’t work • What you can do!
Imagine walking, climbing stairs, or running without knee pain! Over 2,500 physicians and 36 medical institutions nationwide including the Cleveland Clinic and Columbia University - are successfully using this innovative procedure to alleviate knee pain in thousands of knee pain sufferers.
For more info, visit
www.terrapincarecenter.com
CALL NOW: 240.821.6664
1911363
eeastman@gazette.net
A new is just an office
Democratic governor candidates plan debates n
said he was in shock over winning. Team captain, Elias Herrera, 12, of College Park, agreed. “I’m still not sure if I won,” he said.
Dr. Leonard Bers Master in the Academy of General Dentistry
Melwood Professional Center
9650 Marlboro Pike Upper Marlboro
301-599-0303 Visit my website at www.DrBers.net