09-2023 Hyattsville Life & Times

at city pool save a drowning child, P. 7

Hyattsville Middle alumna looks to inspire students with mural

By Torrence Banks

Muralist MISS CHELOVE, whose birth name is Cita Sadeli, was in her Brentwood art studio one morning when she saw an email from Jason Washington, director of public-private partnerships for the county school system. She had recently applied to paint a new mural at her alma mater, Hyattsville Middle School, as part of the first phase of the county’s Blueprint Schools Program — an investment by Prince George’s County Public Schools into the construction of new schools and the renovation of old ones, using an innovative public-private partnership model.

CHELOVE said she nervously opened the email — and then became ecstatic upon learning she'd been selected.

“This was definitely a love project where no matter what the parameters were, I just thought it was neat and wanted to come back and be a part of this new chapter for the school,” CHELOVE said in an interview.

CHELOVE and her three siblings were raised by their mother, Sri Sadeli Kuhns, who grew up on Java in Indonesia. Kuhns moved to the U.S., in 1965, to get a graduate degree in library science at Indiana University as a Fulbright scholar.

CHELOVE was born in Bloom-

Trail improvements underway for Hyattsville and beyond funded by federal government

By Jordan Williams

To the delight — and relief — of many bicyclists in the area, the county trail network is on the verge of numerous renovations, thanks to a $25 million federal RAISE grant. Rebuilding American Infrastructure with

Sustainability and Equity, or RAISE, is a federal program designed to fund local transportation infrastructure projects. The program was recently bolstered with funding from the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 to allow for more projects.

In partnership with agencies

in Montgomery County and the District of Columbia, Prince George’s County applied for a RAISE grant to help renovate existing trails and build new ones. County Executive Angela Alsobrooks said in a June newsletter, “The $25 million in RAISE funding will accelerate

more than $70 million in regional projects that help build the Central Avenue Connector Trail, Suitland Parkway Trail, and Prince George’s County Connector, complete the Anacostia Riverwalk Trail, and rehabilitate Sligo Creek Trail and Northwest Branch Trail.”

This is the second RAISE grant that the county has received. The first, received in 2022, allocated $20.5 million to fund construction of the New

CENTER SECTION: Check

Artist MISS CHELOVE sits in front of her 2016 mural “Amazon Love Letter” in Shirlington, Va.

TOP: MISS CHELOVE’S drawing of Hyattsville Middle School’s mural “Strong Roots, Big Wings, Bright Futures” COURTESY OF MISS CHELOVE

Carrollton Multi-Modal Transportation Station.

According to a 2021 survey from the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission (M-NCPPC), “19% of residents in county households reported unmet needs regarding walking, hiking and biking trails.” These projects are meant to address those underserved communities.

The most relevant projects

LEFT:

Prioritize teachers, not technology, for improved education outcomes

By Griffin Limerick

In August, the Local News Network at University of Maryland’s Philip Merrill College of Journalism released “Contracted Out” — an elucidation of every vendor payment higher than $25,000 made by Maryland public school districts to contractors between the school years 2018-19 and 2021-22.

In addition to quirky revelations like the $32,000 spent on pizza and pasta at Hyattsville’s Three Brothers Italian Restaurant, the report hints at a trend toward extravagant spending on technology: $331.9 million statewide to the tech services provider CDW Government Inc.; another $61.3 million to Dell and $15.6 million to Apple, solely from Prince George’s County Public Schools (PGCPS).

At the same time, ABC 7News estimates the county will be

short at least 2,000 teachers for the fledgling school year — 1,000 more than the estimate given by PGCPS. The higher number is corroborated by Dr. Donna Christy, head of the Prince George’s County Educators’ Association, who says teacher vacancies will lead to an “unsafe environment” due to lack of adult supervision, and a “massive amount of workload” for teachers forced to cover those vacancies. Stressed teachers will quit, leading to yet more vacancies.

All of this yields a well-trod, yet perennially relevant question: How do we improve education outcomes for students?

PGCPS benchmark data from the 2021-22 school year reveals that 75% of students aren’t meeting expected outcomes for English/language arts, and 95% are performing below grade level in math. How does one even begin to rewrite a tragedy like that?

For PGCPS, as with most school districts, the answer always seems to be: spend more money on the latest trends. Prioritize technology, not teachers. While touring the new Hyattsville Middle School in August, I heard the phrase “collaborative learning” repeated like a mantra. A high-tech, media arts magnet program TV studio would be used for collaborative learning. Expansive, open hallways with flat-screen TVs on the walls were deemed collaborative spaces. The classrooms themselves — partitioned with collapsible walls — are capable of being combined for the sake of collaboration. And yet, my tour guide also mentioned that those collapsible walls will allow teachers to cover multiple classrooms at once when facing staff shortages.

The latter point strikes me as key: Money is prioritized for technological innovation that artfully expands the classroom

and — along with it — the teacher’s workload, rather than for reducing classroom size by hiring more teachers.

In an interview with Capital News Service, PGCPS Director of Communication Meghan Gebreselassie said the $61 million paid out to Dell and $15 million to Apple were for 150,000 Chromebooks and 19,000 iPads, respectively — pandemic-era purchases meant to “support students during distance learning.”

The act of equipping every student with a computer as a metric of measurable success significantly predates the pandemic, however. Baltimore County Schools began its $147 million push to give every student a laptop back in 2014, and were already disappointed with the results by 2018. (“Contracted Out” shows they still gave Hewlett Packard $147 million over the past four years to perpetuate that policy.) When I was a high school teacher from 2018 to 2020, the school I worked for actively marketed to families the fact that every student would receive an iPad. It afforded the school a certain prestige. The iPads were trophies, a concrete thing to bran-

dish before parents with the word “progress” engraved at the base.

And yet, it’s no secret among teachers that technologies like iPads and laptops mostly serve as distractions in the classroom. Students chat with one another. Airdrop photos onto their peers’ screens. Play games like Fortnite or Minecraft. The school attempts to block any website it deems inappropriate or distracting, but students will always know more about new technologies than will older authorities attempting to control them. As a friend’s 10-year-old recently pointed out, kids can unblock a site by entering the pin number provided with the computer. Or by using a different VPN. Or — why complicate things — by simply Googling how to unblock it. “You can’t block Google,” the 10-year-old astutely noted.

Much of the teacher’s job, then, becomes monitoring whether a student is on task, as well as receiving the subsequent training involved in doing so effectively.

Further complicating things is the introduction of AI into SEE CLASSROOMS ON 7 

Hyattsville celebrates the opening of new middle school

By Matt Leviss

Years of frustration for Hyattsville parents over school infrastructure took a positive turn when the new Hyattsville Middle School (HMS) opened its doors, as scheduled, in August. An open house and celebration took place on Aug. 12, and — on Aug. 28 — sixth through eighth graders who had been divided among different campuses since the 2021-22 school year finally started attending classes under the same new roof.

Members of the community were invited to tour the new school, at 6001 42nd Avenue, to look inside a truly modern school building and see the programs that this building will accommodate.

“Our theme for this year is ‘There’s No Place Like Home,’” said HMS Principal Chanita Stamper. “We’ve been gone for three years in various locations. I’m most excited to reconnect with our community in this permanent space.”

With the return to a central campus in Hyattsville, fewer students will need to be bused, reducing tardiness related to

late buses and a shortage of bus drivers. Teachers also welcome having a permanent home fitted with up-to-date equipment and smart classrooms.

“I actually have technology now!” said Brenda Harsanje, head of the math department.

“In our old building, the most modern tool I had was a chalkboard. Now I have a smartboard and the other technological resources needed to properly teach today.”

Harsanje explained that poor equipment and technology,

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along with understaffing, have contributed significantly to gaps in the knowledge base of county school students — especially in math. She said that the new facility provides more of what students need to effectively master the curriculum.

The building’s design facilitates staff collaboration and incorporates upgraded technology. Classrooms have collapsible walls to allow for cooperation between classes and to help facilitate teacher coverage when the school is understaffed. Each floor has seating collaboration areas for when students go out into the hall for group work. These collaboration areas are open and bright, with modern couches and chairs, as well as tables with power outlets.

Hyattsville Middle continues to host one of the county’s creative and performing arts, or CPA, magnet programs. The new school heavily emphasizes the arts — with a television studio, a drama classroom and separate suites for orchestra and band.

“You walk into the [CPA] space, and you see the dance studio, you see the black box

theater. It’s just surreal. We now have the resources to let our kids be creative and find passion in the arts,” said Precious Carter, the performing arts coordinator at the school.

While the new building was under construction, HMS students were split among as many as three campuses: Sixth graders attended Thomas Stone Elementary School in Mount Rainier, while seventh and eighth graders were split between Robert Goddard Montessori School, in Seabrook, and — for the first year of construction — a temporary site in Bowie. Construction of the building was managed through a new process called alternative construction financing, a form of public-private partnership that was designed to accelerate the building of new schools. The new school building will eventually serve more than just middle school students. HMS will soon open a wellness center that will provide some health care services to the community.

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The new Hyattsville Middle School opened its doors in time for the 202324 school year. COURTESY OF ALYSSA LEE

Matt Leviss is an intern with the Hyattsville Life & Times

Free Parking available near event site and shuttle service available from UMD Campus, City Hall, & CP-UMD Metro Garage. Bike Racks available.

RE-WILDING ROUTE 1

Down yonder in the pawpaw patch

By Rick Borchelt

Welcome to “ha’siminikiisfwa,” or pawpaw month in the Shawnee tongue — the month we know as September. Along the region’s woodland rivers and streams, and in our sheltered coves and valleys, pawpaw trees are dropping fat, fragrant fruit during this brief autumn window. The pawpaw’s a strange tree with strange tropical fruit, and we’re lucky to have them here.

Strange, because no other tree in the mid-Atlantic has the pawpaw’s combination of huge leaves — a foot-and-a-half or more long and half as wide — on a small, 20-foot-tall trunk that bears large, fleshy fruit: indeed, the largest of any native fruit north of Mexico. The pawpaw is the only temperate-climate representative of Annonaceae, a large family of tropical trees. Their fruit are commonly called custard-apples for their sweet, yellow flesh.

Pawpaws are known to science as Asimina triloba, the genus name Asimina being an adaptation of several similar Native American names for pawpaw, through the colonial French to the standard scientific Latin. The common name pawpaw is likely a corruption of papaya; European colonists may have been misled or confused by the two species’ similar fruits. Pawpaws have an abundance of other regional common names, too — wild banana, prairie banana, Hoosier banana, Ozark banana and banango among them.

Despite its tropical origins, pawpaw currently grows wild in 26 eastern and midwestern states. One reason for the pawpaw’s widespread distribution here, outside the tropics, may be that the species was deliberately cultivated and traded by Indigenous peoples well north of Maryland, up into the New York area, long before European settlers arrived on the continent.

The pawpaw’s ecological backstory predates European exploration by hundreds of thousands of years. Its large fruit and huge black seeds suggest it evolved with the giant megafauna of the Pleistocene epoch — ground sloths, tapirs and giant, armadillo-like glyptodonts among them. These large animals would have been able to eat the 6-inch fruit whole and swallow

the large seeds, which the roaming animals would later deposit in their dung, perhaps miles from where they ate their meal. These large mammals were wiped out in North America about 12,000 years ago; since then, pawpaws have been spread naturally by less-efficient herbivores like black bears and raccoons — and by Indigenous peoples deliberately cultivating them.

Left to their own devices, though, pawpaws don’t rely exclusively on spreading seeds to expand their territory. These trees often mass in large orchards along streams and riverbanks as a parent tree sends up new shoots from its spreading roots. These large pawpaw patches are actually a single tree, with all the clones still connected by a root system to the parent pawpaw.

You can also collect seeds from ripe fruit and grow pawpaws yourself. I now have a sizable orchard of a half-dozen trees in my backyard from a single seed I planted a decade ago.

If the pawpaw’s slightly smelly, maroon flowers are successfully pollinated in spring, the tree will grow fruit over the summer that looks like a fat, green oblong banana. Unlike most fruit, pawpaws

stay green until they’re ripe, which allows the fruit to contribute energy to the tree through photosynthesis as it ripens. The skin develops dark brown or black blotches that signal it’s ripe and ready to eat. Fully ripe fruit falls to the ground, which is where most of its Pleistocene diners would have eaten it.

That the Shawnee and many other tribes had their own words to honor the pawpaw hints at its long history with Indigenous peoples of the Americas. Pawpaw seeds and fibers have been found at Native American sites dating back millennia. The first post-colonization reference to pawpaws is attributed to Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto, who in 1541 described Mississippian Indian cultures growing and eating the fruit.

Modern pawpaws also have their share of devotees. While most pawpaw aficionados prefer to eat the fruit fresh, some split them and use the fragrant flesh for baking bread, or in puddings and custards. The taste of the fruit varies considerably among different populations of pawpaws; people describe the taste as being similar to mangos, bananas or papayas.

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Mammals aren’t the only fans of pawpaws, though; the leaves are the sole food source for the caterpillars of one of Maryland’s iconic butterflies, the zebra swallowtail (Eurytides marcellus). If you see a zebra swallowtail on the wing, you can bet you’re in the presence of a significant pawpaw patch! Over the next few weeks, you can find your own pawpaws in nearby woodlands along Northeast Branch, Paint Branch and Indian Creek; at Lake Artemesia; along the Anacostia; and along the Patuxent River in places like the Patuxent Wildlife Research Refuge, near Laurel, and Gover-

nor Bridge Natural Area, in Bowie. Pick from the fruits that have already fallen but are not yet decaying; these will be ripe, while the green fruit still on the tree is almost always too astringent to eat. But you’ll have to beat the foxes and their friends to the feast, and you can’t wait too long — pawpaw season is short!

Have questions for Rick about the world of nature in and around the city, or suggestions for future Re-wilding Route 1 columns? Drop him a note at rborchelt@gmail.com.

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Pawpaws hanging from a pawpaw branch along Northeast Creek in College Park RICK BORCHELT

Mosquito-borne illnesses on seasonal rise

By Sophie Gorman Oriani

After a temporary lull caused by summer dryness, mosquito populations in Maryland are on the rise, sparking renewed concern about mosquito-borne illnesses. The first mosquito-borne illness many people think of in this area is West Nile virus, which was detected in mosquitoes in the county this summer, but there are other illnesses of concern as well.

The Maryland Department of Agriculture (MDA) conducts mosquito surveys and traps mosquitos to monitor mosqui-

to-borne illnesses. The mosquito surveillance traps collect adult female mosquitoes, which are then analyzed at a lab to determine the species and numbers. Based on the results of the trapping, the MDA may conduct extra spraying in a particular area. (Routine spraying is also a standard part of mosquito control efforts in the county; while residents may opt out of the routine sprays, they may not opt out of the extra sprayings.)

In the month of August, the MDA conducted 10 extra sprayings in areas of Prince George's County, as opposed to seven

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extra sprayings in 2022 and six in 2021. Affected areas include Laurel, Riverdale Park, Greenbelt and unincorporated Hyattsville. Daniel Schamberger, a mosquito control administrator with the MDA, told the Life & Times that although mosquitoborne illnesses have been getting more attention recently, it’s pretty typical to see a small rise in mosquito numbers in the late summer and early fall, as increased rain provides the insects with more pooled water in which to breed.

West Nile virus is generally a mild illness, with a high percentage of infected people having no symptoms at all. Most who do show symptoms report a fever, body aches or a headache; only very rarely is the disease severe enough to require medical attention. The Maryland Department of Health has not reported any diagnosed cases of West Nile virus in the county this year, despite the fact that some mosquitoes caught in traps tested positive for the virus.

However, and more concerningly, in mid-August, a Maryland resident living in the National Capital Region, which includes Prince George’s County, tested positive for a locally acquired malaria infection. According to the Maryland Department of Health, the

state sees about 200 cases of travel-related malaria per year, which occur when someone travels abroad, is infected with malaria in a different country, and then brings it back home. However, this is the first malaria case in Maryland that has been identified as not travelrelated in over 40 years. Two other states, Florida and Texas, have also seen locally acquired malaria this year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Malaria symp toms include high fever, chills, body aches, diarrhea and vomiting. Malaria can be very serious if not treated promptly.

A third mosquitoborne illness, the Zika virus, which can be spread by the Aedes mosquito or by unprotected sex with an infected person, remains without any known locally transmitted cases in Maryland, according to the Department of Health.

The Zika virus can be very dangerous for pregnant women, as it can cause serious birth defects in the developing child; however, it is generally a mild disease that doesn’t require hos-

pitalization. Symptoms include fever, rash, joint pain and conjunctivitis (red and itchy eyes).

Schamberger said that, despite the positive malaria test, there is no reason for county residents to worry unduly. “In general, people should just be concerned overall about mosquito-borne disease,” he said.

Schamberger recommended taking preventative measures against mosquitos, such as wearing long clothing or using mosquito repellents, as well as avoiding going outside when mosquitoes are most active (right at dark and in the early morning).

Most importantly, Schamberger stressed the need for county residents to monitor their yards for containers of standing water and dump them out or clean them regularly to prevent mosquito larva from developing inside. “You can really help eliminate mosquito problems,” he said.

For more information on mosquito spraying or to report high mosquito numbers, visit mda.maryland.gov/ plants-pests/pages/mosquito_ control.aspx.

THE CITY OF HYATTSVILLE

The Hyattsville Reporter

Issue 426| September 2023

A LETTER FROM DPW LEADERSHIP

Lesley Riddle, DPW Director

Greetings, Hyattsville. It’s an exciting season for the Department of Public Works! The DPW leadership team is here to update you on some current public works initiatives.

City park updates are a big focus for our team going into 2024. You may have recently seen the installation of “The Throne” solar-powered restrooms in several parks, adding much needed bathroom access. We are also working in collaboration with the Low Impact Development Center to finalize the new design for King Park on Gallatin Street, and with the City’s Community and Economic Development Team and the Neighborhood Design Center to revamp “The Spot” at 4505 Hamilton Street. Visit HelloHyattsville.com for more information on both projects and stay tuned for the opportunity to contribute to the Master Planning process for Driskell Park later this fall!

Hal Metzler, DPW Deputy Director

Hello Hyattsville. My name is Hal Metzler, and I’m the City’s Deputy Director of Public Works. I’m overseeing the City’s two current building projects – the Police and Public Safety Building at 3505 Hamilton Street and the new Teen Center at 5812 40th Avenue.

The Police and Public Safety Building is a renovation and expansion of a former regional bank building to serve as the Police Headquarters. This project is 30 percent complete, with an estimated completion of summer 2024. The renovation of a former retail space into the City’s new Teen Center is 20 percent complete, and we expect the project to be completed and welcoming local students in early 2024. You can learn more about both these projects and others, like traffic calming and roadway improvements, at hyattsville.org/capitalprojects.

Priyanka Joshi, DPW Environmental Ops. Deputy Director

Hi Hyattsville, my name is Priyanka Joshi and I joined the City this summer as the new Environmental Operations Deputy Director. In this role I will be overseeing key environmental initiatives to help create a more sustainable Hyattsville. One of my first projects was the roll-out of the Citywide curbside composting program! City households serviced by our DPW waste collection received a 35-gallon compost toter that can be filled with yard waste, food scraps, and other compostable materials and placed curbside for pick-up on Monday mornings. Find a comprehensive guide to composting at hyattsville.org/ compost.

This fall we encourage you to participate in our invasive vine removal trainings to learn how to protect the trees on your property from damage. We’re also supporting the County’s Green Expo on October 21 and bringing back the vine eating goats to Driskell Park at the end of October! You can find a comprehensive set of environmental resources at hyattsville.org/environment.

UNA LETRA DEL LIDERAZGO DE DPW

Lesley Riddle, Directora de Obras Publicas

Saludos, Hyattsville. ¡Es una temporada emocionante para el Departamento de Obras Públicas! El equipo de liderazgo de DPW está aquí para informarle sobre algunas iniciativas de obras públicas.

Las actualizaciones de los parques de la Ciudad son un gran foco para nuestro equipo entrando 2024. Es posible que haya visto recientemente la instalación de baños con energía solar “The Throne” en varios parques, agregando un acceso a baños muy necesario. También estamos trabajando en colaboración con el Low Impact Development Center para finalizar el nuevo diseño de King Park en Gallatin Street, y con el Equipo de Desarrollo Económico y Comunitario de la Ciudad y el Neighborhood Design Center para renovar “The Spot” en 4505 Hamilton Street. Visite HelloHyattsville. com para obtener más información sobre ambos proyectos y permanezca atento a la oportunidad de contribuir al proceso de planificación maestra para Driskell Park a finales de este otoño.

Hal Metzler, Subdirector de Obras Publicas Hola Hyattsville. Mi nombre es Hal Metzler y soy el subdirector de Obras Públicas de la Ciudad. Estoy supervisando los dos proyectos de construcción actuales de la Ciudad - el Edificio de Policía y Seguridad Pública en 3505 Hamilton Street y el nuevo Centro para Jóvenes en 5812 40th Avenue.

El Edificio de Policía y Seguridad Pública es una renovación y ampliación de un antiguo edificio del banco regional para servir como Cuartel General de la Policía. Este proyecto está completado el 30 por ciento, con una finalización estimada para el verano de 2024. La renovación de un antiguo espacio comercial en el nuevo Centro para Jóvenes de la ciudad está completa el 20 por ciento, y esperamos que el proyecto esté terminado y dé la bienvenida a los estudiantes locales a principios de 2024. Puede obtener más información sobre estos proyectos y otros como calmar el tráfico y mejorar las carreteras en hyattsville.org/capitalprojects.

Priyanka Joshi, Subdirectora de Operaciones Ambientales

Hola Hyattsville, mi nombre es Priyanka Joshi y me uní a la Ciudad este verano como nueva Subdirectora de Operaciones Ambientales. En este puesto, supervisaré iniciativas ambientales clave para ayudar a crear un Hyattsville más sostenible. ¡Uno de mis primeros proyectos fue la implementación del programa de compostaje en toda la ciudad! Los hogares de la Ciudad atendidos por nuestro servicio de recolección de desechos recibieron un contenedor de 35 galones que puede llenarse con desechos de jardín, restos de comida y otros materiales compostables y colocarse en la acera para ser recogido los lunes por la mañana. Encuentre una guía completa sobre el compostaje en hyattsville.org/compost.

Este otoño lo alentamos a participar en nuestras capacitaciones sobre eliminación de vides invasivas para aprender cómo proteger los árboles de su propiedad contra daños. ¡También apoyaremos la Exposición Verde del Condado el 21 de octubre y traeremos de regreso las cabras comevides al Parque Driskell a fines de octubre! Puede encontrar un conjunto completo de recursos ambientales en hyattsville.org/environment.

ANNOUNCEMENTS | ANUNCIOS

HELP US REINVENT “THE SPOT”

The City is working to convert the public land at 4505 Hamilton Street into the perfect “Spot” for community gatherings and events. Visit hellohyattsville.com by September 23 to review the draft design concept and complete a brief survey to share your feedback!

THRIVE GRANTS ARE NOW OPEN!

Do you have a wellness project or community engagement initiative for Hyattsville? Apply for the City’s Thrive Grant! Made possible through the Health, Wellness, and Recreation Advisory Committee, local individuals, organizations, and businesses can apply for a grant of up to $800 to support health, wellness, and recreational activities for our community. The application deadline is October 13. Learn more and apply at hyattsville.org/grants.

VISIT THE THRONES!

The City recently partnered with Throne Restrooms to install environmentally-friendly, ADA accessible public restrooms at Driskell Park, Heurich Park, “The Spot,” and 38th Avenue Park. Follow signage on the restroom to access it by scanning a QR code or texting a keyword. Community members without phones can access the bathrooms by using a key card, available for pick-up at the City Building. Details at hyattsville.org/parks.

BE RECDESK READY

Avoid registration hiccups for our fall youth programs by ensuring your family’s Recdesk account is updated! Visit hyattsville.org/youthprograms for a guide to help you create or update your family’s Recdesk account. Please note that it takes 24 hours for accounts and profiles to be updated, so we encourage updating Recdesk accounts at least one day before registering for a program.

TEEN CENTER PROGRAMMING

Teen Center Programs are back at Driskell Park starting October 2! Drop-in hours for the Teen Center are from 3 – 5 p.m. Monday – Thursday with special programming from 5 – 6 p.m. Sign up for a free membership for the school year by visiting hyattsville.org/teen-center.

TUTORING & MENTORING SERVICES

The City offers tutoring and mentoring services through Northstar Tutoring for local students in grades K – 12 on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, from 6:30 – 8 p.m., at the Driskell Park Recreation Center. Students are matched with a volunteer tutormentor to help them with their learning needs. Services are set to resume on October 2. Learn more at hyattsville.org/tutoring.

ELDERLY PROPERTY TAX CREDIT PROGRAM

Prince George’s County’s new Elderly Tax Credit Program provides adults 65+ up to a 20% credit of County property taxes, inclusive of Homeowners & Homestead Tax Credits, for up to 5 years. Apply by October 1 at princegeorgescountymd.gov/419/Residential. Paper applications are available Monday – Friday, 9 a.m. – 1 p.m. at the County’s Office of Finance, 1301 McCormick Drive, Ste 1100, Largo, MD.

AYÚDENOS A DISEÑAR “THE SPOT”

La Ciudad está trabajando para convertir el terreno público en 4505 Hamilton Street en el lugar perfecto para reuniones y eventos comunitarios. Visite hellohyattsville.com antes del 23 de septiembre para revisar el concepto de diseño y completar una breve encuesta para compartir sus comentarios.

¡YA ESTÁN ABIERTAS LAS SUBVENCIONES THRIVE!

¿Tienes un proyecto de bienestar o una iniciativa de participación comunitaria para Hyattsville? Solicite la subvención Thrive de la Ciudad. Gracias al Comité Asesor de Salud, Bienestar y Recreación, personas, organizaciones y negocios locales pueden solicitar una subvención de hasta $800 para apoyar actividades de salud, bienestar y recreación para nuestra comunidad. El plazo de solicitud finaliza el 13 de octubre. Más información en hyattsville.org/grants.

¡VISITA LOS TRONOS!

La Ciudad se ha asociado recientemente con Throne Restrooms para instalar baños públicos respetuosos con el medio ambiente y accesibles para la comunidad con una discapacidad en Driskell Park, Heurich Park, “The Spot” y 38th Avenue Park. Siga la señalización de los baños para acceder a ellos escaneando un código QR o enviando un mensaje de texto con una palabra clave. Las personas que no dispongan de teléfono pueden acceder a los baños utilizando una tarjeta llave, disponible para su recogida en el Edificio Municipal de Hyattsville. Más información en hyattsville.org/parks.

ACTUALIZE SU CUENTA RECDESK

Evite contratiempos en la inscripción para nuestros programas juveniles de otoño asegurándose de que la cuenta Recdesk de su familia esté actualizada. Visite hyattsville.org/ youthprograms para obtener una guía que le ayudará a crear o actualizar la cuenta Recdesk de su familia. Tenga en cuenta que las cuentas y los perfiles tardan 24 horas en actualizarse, por lo que le recomendamos que actualice las cuentas de Recdesk al menos un día antes de inscribirse en un programa.

PROGRAMAS PARA JÓVENES

¡Los programas del Centro de Jóvenes regresan al Parque Driskell a partir del 2 de octubre! El horario del Centro es de 3 - 5 p.m. de lunes a jueves con programación especial de 5 - 6 p.m. Inscríbete en una membresía gratuita para el año escolar visitando hyattsville.org/teen-center.

SERVICIOS DE TUTORÍA Y MENTORÍA

La Ciudad ofrece servicios de tutoría y mentoría a través de Northstar Tutoring para los estudiantes locales en los grados K - 12 los martes, miércoles y jueves, de 6:30 - 8 p.m., en el Centro Recreativo del Parque Driskell. Los estudiantes son emparejados con un tutor-mentor voluntario para ayudarles con sus necesidades de aprendizaje. Los servicios se reanudarán el 2 de octubre. Más info en hyattsville.org/ tutoring.

PROGRAMA DE CRÉDITO DE IMPUESTOS

El nuevo Programa de Crédito Fiscal para Personas Mayores del Condado de Prince George’s ofrece a los adultos mayores de 65 años un crédito de hasta el 20% de los impuestos sobre la propiedad del condado, incluidos los créditos fiscales para propietarios de viviendas y hogares, durante un máximo de 5 años. Solicite antes del 1 de octubre en princegeorgescountymd.gov/419/Residential. Las solicitudes en papel están disponibles de lunes a viernes, de 9 a.m. a 1 p.m. en la Oficina de Finanzas del Condado, 1301 McCormick Drive, Ste 1100, Largo, MD.

CALENDAR | CALENDARIO

FREE ZUMBA CLASSES

Wednesdays from 4 - 5 PM at the Hyattsville City Building! Learn more at hyattsville.org/wellness.

SUMMER JAM

Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month at our last Summer Jam of the year on September 15 from 5:30 –8:30 PM at Hyatt Park. Details at hyattsville.org/summerjam.

HEALTH FAIR

Join us at the 13th annual Multicultural Health and Wellness Fair hosted by First United Methodist Church and partners on September 16, 10 AM - 2 PM, at 6201 Belcrest Road. hyattsville.org/calendar.

E-RECYCLING & PAINT COLLECTION DAY

An E-Recycling & Paint Collection Day will take place September 16, 10 AM - 1 PM, at 4633 Arundel Place. Find guidelines at hyattsville.org/ recycle.

INVASIVE REMOVALS

Help remove invasive plants from Driskell Park between 10 AM - 2 PM on September 16! Email environment@ hyattsville.org for more info.

FALLS PREVENTION WORKSHOP

The City is offering a falls prevention workshop for older adults and caregivers on September 18 from 11 AM - 12:30 PM at the City Building. Contact (301) 9855000 or seniors@hyattsville. org to register.

PRODUCE DISTRIBUTION

The City is hosting a produce distribution on September 19 at First United Methodist Church, starting at noon. The bagged produce is first-come, first-served.

CERT MEETING

The next Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) organization meeting is September 20, 6 - 8 PM, at the Hyattsville City Building. Anyone is welcome. Register at hyattsville.org/cert.

SENIORS ON THE GO!

Hyattsville’s Seniors on the Go are heading to the NASA Goddard Visitor Center and Rocket Garden on September 21 between 10 AM - 2 PM. Space is limited. Reserve a seat by calling (301) 985-5000 by 2 PM the day before the trip.

NARCAN TRAININGS

Free NARCAN community trainings at the City Building on September 21 at 6 PM and September 22 at 10 AM. Register at hyattsville.org/ calendar.

ARTS & ALES FESTIVAL

The Downtown Hyattsville Arts & Ales Festival is on September 23 from noon - 6 PM in the City’s Gateway Arts District! Visit hyattsvilleartsfestival.com to learn more.

MINI-CAMP DAY

Register your student (grades K-5) for day camps on September 25 and October 9! Sessions take place from 9 AM - 3 PM at Driskell Park. Learn more at hyattsville.org/camps.

AGE-FRIENDLY ECOSYSTEM SUMMIT

Join the City and local partners virtually at this year’s Age-Friendly Ecosystem Summit hosted by George Washington University.. Sessions are from 1 - 3 PM on September 26 & 27 and October 3 & 4. Learn more at nursing.gwu.edu.

CREATIVE MINDS IS BACK!

COMMUNITY PAINT DAY!

Help us complete the asphalt art project on September 30, 1 - 3 PM, at Church Place! Space is limied. Visit hyattsville.org/ calendar to register.

HY-SWAP

The Hyattsville community HY-Swap is on October 1 from 11 AM - Noon and 1 - 2:30 PM at Hyattsville Elementary! Donations are being accepted on September 30 from 10 AM - 2 PM at the school. Volunteer, donate, and register to shop at hy-swap. com.

REMOVIMIENTO DE PLANTAS INVASORAS

¡Ayuda a eliminar plantas invasoras de Driskell Park entre las 10 AM y las 2 PM el 16 de septiembre! Envíe un email a environment@ hyattsville.org para más.

TALLER DE CAIDAS

La Ciudad está ofreciendo un taller de prevención de caídas para la tercera edad y cuidadores el 18 de septiembre de 11 AM - 12:30 PM en el Edificio Municipal. . Contacte al (301) 985-5000 o seniors@hyattsville.org para registrarse.

COMIDA GRATIS

FESTIVAL DE ARTE

¡El Festival de las Artes & Cerveza de Hyattsville tendrá lugar el 23 de septiembre, desde el mediodía – 6 p.m., en el Distrito de las Artes de la Ciudad. Aprenda más en hyattsvilleartsfestival.com.

MINICAMPAMENTOS

¡Inscriba a su estudiante (grados K-5) para campamentos diurnos el 25 de septiembre y el 9 de octubre! Las sesiones son de 9 AM a 3 PM en Driskell Park. hyattsville.org/camps.

CUMBRE PARA LA TERCERA EDAD

CLASES DE ZUMBA

Cada miércoles de 4 - 5 PM en el Edificio Municipal de Hyattsville. Detalles en hyattsville.org/wellness.

FIESTA SUMMER JAM

Celebra el Mes de la Herencia Hispana en nuestro último Summer Jam del año el 15 de septiembre de 5:30 a 8:30 PM en Hyatt Park. hyattsville.org/summerjam.

FERIA DE SALUD

Únase a nosotros en la 13ª Feria Anual de Salud y Bienestar Multicultural organizada por la Primera Iglesia Metodista Unida y sus socios el 16 de septiembre, de 10 AM a 2 PM, en 6201 Belcrest Road. hyattsville.org/calendar.

DÍA DE RECICLAJE

Un Día de Reciclaje de electrónicos y pintura enlatada se llevará a cabo el 16 de septiembre, de 10 AM a 1 PM, en 4633 Arundel Place. Encuentre pautas en hyattsville.org/recycle.

The City’s Creative Minds program is returning this fall in English and Spanish! Our parent-toddler program introduces little ones to movement, art, literacy, free play, and much more! Programs will take place at the Driskell Park Recreation Center in English on Tuesdays from 10 – 11:30 a.m., from October 10 - November 28, and in Spanish on Thursdays from 10 – 11:30 a.m., from November 2 – 30. Learn more and register at hyattsville. org/creativeminds.

La Ciudad organizará una distribución de productos agricolas el 19 de septiembre al mediodía en la Primera Iglesia Metodista Unida. La comida se distribuye por orden de llegada.

EQUIPO CERT

La próxima reunión de organización del Equipo de Respuesta a Emergencias Comunitarias es el 20 de septiembre, 6 - 8 PM, en el Edificio Municipal. Todos son bienvenidos. Regístrese en hyattsville.org/cert.

VIAJES PARA LA TERCERA EDAD

Las personas de la tercera edad Hyattsville se dirigen al Centro de Visitantes Goddard de la NASA y al Rocket Garden el 21 de septiembre entre las 10 AM y las 2 PM. El espacio es limitado. Reserve un asiento llamando al (301) 985-5000 a las 2 PM un día antes.

ENTRENAMIENTOS

NARCAN

Entrenamientos gratis de NARCAN en el Edificio Municipal el 21 de septiembre a las 6 PM y el 22 de septiembre a las 10 AM. Regístrese en hyattsville.org/calendar.

Únase a la Ciudad y a los socios locales virtualmente en la Cumbre de Ecosistemas Amistosos para las Personas de la Tercera Edad de este año organizada por la Universidad George Washington. Las sesiones son de 1 a 3 PM el 26 y 27 de septiembre y 3 y 4 de octubre. Detalles en nursing.gwu.edu.

¡DÍA COMUNITARIO DE PINTAR!

¡Ayúdenos a completar el proyecto de arte de asfalto el 30 de septiembre, de 1 a 3 PM, en Church Place! El espacio está limitado. Visite hyattsville.org/calendar para registrarse.

INTERCAMBIO COMUNITARIO

El intercambio comunitario de Hyattsville es el 1 de octubre de 11 AM - mediodía y 1 - 2:30 PM en Hyattsville Elementary! Las donaciones se aceptarán el 30 de septiembre de 10 AM - 2 PM en la escuela. Ofrézcase como voluntario, done y regístrese para comprar en hy-swap.com.

¡MENTES CREATIVAS ESTA DE REGRESO!

¡El programa de Mentes Creativas de la Ciudad regresa este otoño en inglés y español. Nuestro programa para padres e hijos introduce a los pequeños en el movimiento, el arte, la alfabetización, el juego libre y ¡mucho más! Los programas tendrán lugar en el Centro Recreativo del Parque Driskell en inglés los martes de 10 - 11:30 a.m., del 10 de octubre al 28 de noviembre, y en español los jueves de 10 - 11:30 a.m., del 2 al 30 de noviembre. Más información e inscripciones en hyattsville.org/creativeminds.

HIGHLIGHTS | LO DESTACADO

The City of Hyattsville hosted a back-to-school jam at Heurich Park this past month to supply families in need with free school supplies, diapers, produce, and other giveaways. Thank you to our partners and community for donating and helping make the event possible.

La Ciudad de Hyattsville organizó un evento de regreso a la escuela en Heurich Park el mes pasado para suministrar a las familias necesitadas útiles escolares, pañales, productos y otros regalos gratuitos. Gracias a nuestros socios y a la comunidad por donar y ayudar a hacer posible el evento.

the classroom. In a recent press release, PGCPS announced a three-year partnership with the AI Education Project (aiEDU), which “aims to ensure that all teachers, students, staff, and school leaders are equipped to thrive in the age of artificial intelligence.”

Language surrounding the partnership maintains the vague bureaucratic positivity of an administration looking to follow the latest technological trends without knowing why. Here’s new PGCPS Superintendent Millard House II: “Over my career, I’ve seen how technological advances have transformed our society. Artificial intelligence, especially language models and the tools they power, appears to be another gamechanging technology, and we want to ensure our students and educators are on the front foot.”

At the core of the statement, beneath the administrative gloss of speaking toward the future while things fall apart in the present, is a fear of missing out and a justification of — “Everyone else is doing it; we’re behind in the actual education part of education, which is messy and complicated, so why not stay ahead of the technological curve by incorporating the latest gadget?”

But this leads to another important, yet perhaps less worn, question: Why is everyone else doing it? Where is the push for incorporating AI into classrooms coming from?

On its surface, the organization behind this new county AI initiative, aiEDU, is harmless, even benevolent — a nonprofit — that organ of abstract good which bestows its generosity upon society. Yet all nonprofits must receive

their money from somewhere, and one merely needs to look at who funds the organization in order to see the unstated purpose behind its goals.

A quick glance at aiEDU’s website reveals top funders that include Google, Microsoft and OpenAI — all companies behind leading AI technologies like Chat GPT and Bard, all private entities looking to profit (in a roundabout way) from installing those technologies in classrooms. Another funder is the military contractor Booz Allen Hamilton, which was recently embroiled in a billing scandal with the U.S. government.

Initially, it would appear as if these companies don’t stand to gain much from schools. The county aiEDU partnership is funded by a $1 million grant from the Pull Up Fund, after all, and far more lucrative contracts can be found outside of public school systems. But what companies like Microsoft or Google do stand to gain from normalizing their technology in the classroom is a generation of young minds that will grow dependent upon that technology and seamlessly herald it into a society no longer able to consider a world without it. They’ll also acquire data — lots of lucrative data.

A seminal 2016 report from the corporate education monolith Pearson titled “Intelligence Unleashed: An argument for AI in Education” envisions a world of competing AI learning programs resembling “the marketplace that has developed for smartphone apps: hundreds and then thousands of individual AIEd components, developed in collaboration with educators, conformed to uniform international data standards, and shared with researchers and developers worldwide.”

The data, the report continues, would come from a classroom of “novel user interfaces, such as natural language processing, speech and gesture recognition, eye tracking, and other physiological sensors, which could be used to augment both AIEd and non-AIEd software.”

This data — provided at no cost by unwitting students — will be funneled back to the owners of the software for speculation and profit.

The role of the teacher is reimagined as something like that of a service technician who monitors a screen of real-time student data, constantly on the lookout for errant blinks, gratuitous yawns, wandering mouse clicks, alerted to every student’s missed question or waning attention span in a classroom of 30 — or, when covering two classes engaged in “collaborative learning” — 60 students.

AI, like every other new technological advancement, is lauded for bringing efficiency to the classroom. But education isn’t about efficiency. It’s about making mistakes. Going slow. Having time to reflect. In the same way that 80% of positive health outcomes are determined by patient-doctor relationships and the meeting of basic needs rather than by medicine or radiography, positive education outcomes depend on students and teachers having the time to work slowly on a concept together in small groups, establishing meaningful bonds.

If you want to improve education outcomes, I would argue there’s a simpler blueprint: Pay teachers more. Radically higher wages, even. Average teaching salaries in Maryland are relatively high compared to the rest of the country, but new teachers earn around $49,000 a year — $1,000 below the state minimum living wage of $50,000, according

to the National Education Association. Let’s pay new teachers more, too. This will help fill in some of those vacancies and reduce classroom sizes.

Increase teacher planning time, as well. The 45 minutes a day that the Prince George’s County Educators’ Association recently negotiated for isn’t nearly enough, and the highest paid teachers in the world won’t stick around if class sizes

are unmanageable and every free weeknight or weekend is donated to school work.

If you want to improve education outcomes, prioritize teachers, not technology.

NEWS BRIEFS

VISIT STREETCARSUBURBS.NEWS FOR MORE

STUDIO

HAMILTON SPLASH PARK STAFF RECEIVE AWARDS FOR SAVING CHILD’S LIFE

On Aug. 30, five Hamilton Splash Park staff received lifesaving awards from the county fire chief for the actions they took to save a 7-year-old from drowning.

As reported by ABC 7News, Jalen DaSilva, Jordan Eberhardt and Caleb Guzman-Munguia were working at the splash park, adjacent to Driskell Park, when the incident occurred on June 25. After a child was pulled — unconscious and not breathing — from the pool, DaSilva, Eberhardt and Guzman-Munguia, along with splash park employees Dylan Chavez and Errol Bedward, initiated lifesaving actions, according to county fire and EMS spokesperson Alan Doubleday.

At the August news conference, Doubleday said that the group assisted with CPR and used an AED, or automated external defibrillator, machine. Within a few minutes, the child began breathing again.

“When I touched him, his skin was cold,” Guzman-Munguia said during the news conference, noting how he’d pulled the child out of the pool and started

rescue breathing.

Guzman-Munguia discussed processing the event with team members later that day. “I’m really grateful for the team that was there because I know we did our jobs,” he said.

"The actions of each of you working together as a team saved this child’s life," Doubleday told the group.

Emergency response crews reportedly arrived soon after and transported the child to a local hospital in stable condition, according to the county fire department’s Facebook page.

Prince George's Fire Chief Tiffany Green issued the awards.

RANSOMWARE CYBERATTACK HITS PGCPS; FALLOUT CONTINUES AS SCHOOL GETS UNDERWAY

Prince George’s County Public School (PGCPS) was hit by a cyberattack on Aug. 14 that compromised user accounts. Rhysida ransomware group claimed responsibility for the attack and appeared to be auctioning off stolen data from the breach, including passports, driver’s licenses and other confidential information, according to an Aug. 28 Cybernews report.

Jalen DaSilva, Jordan Eberhardt and Caleb Guzman-Munguia received awards for saving a drowning child at Hamilton Splash Park. COURTESY OF THE MARYLAND-NATIONAL CAPITAL PARK AND PLANNING COMMISSION DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION

Griffin Limerick is the managing editor of the Hyattsville Life & Times.

MISS FLORIBUNDA

Moaning about mowing

Dear Miss Floribunda,

When I was a child, I saw my grandfather collapse from heat prostration one summer afternoon when he was mowing his lawn. This, and the fact that summers are getting hotter and I am getting older, is the reason I was very, very interested in your interview with the author of Groundcover Revolution, Kathy Jentz. Not only would I like to take her advice to stop mulching, I like her idea of replacing a turfgrass lawn with plants that don’t require mowing, as well. This means there are a lot of questions I’d like to ask her. You invited her to come to Hyattsville to give a talk. What’s the status of that?

If she’s not coming anytime soon, I have two other questions for you. What easy-care ground covers can really be walked on without tripping me? As I get older, that’s a real concern. Also, are there legalities that might trip me up? Much as I want to be lawnless, I don’t want to be lawless.

Still Lawn-abiding

Dear Still Lawn-abiding, Your questions are easy to answer. Question 1: Yes, Kathy Jentz is engaged to speak at My Dead Aunt’s Books on Saturday, Sept. 16, at 10 a.m. My Dead Aunt’s Books is located in the SoHy Arts Building, 5132 Balti-

more Avenue. If you need a landmark, it’s across the street from Franklins Restaurant, Brewery and General Store. There is no charge other than a voluntary donation, but you might wish to call to make a reservation: 270.472.9325. And, if you wish, you can stay after the Q&A for a meeting of the Hyattsville Horticultural Society, as well. New members are always welcome, regardless of level of experience.

Question 2: Yes, there are many ground covers that will not trip you, such as most sedges, mosses and serpentine herbs, as well as wild violets, and creeping Jenny or Lizzie. These are listed in Ms. Jentz's book, along with ground covers that can survive foot traffic, and those that are adapted best for different sites and situations.

Question 3: No, it is not against the law to have a lawnless garden in Hyattsville. In 2021, the Maryland General Assembly passed House Bill 322, which effectively asserted the right of homeowners to engage in “lowimpact landscaping,” such as rain gardens and pollinator gardens.

We must thank an intrepid couple who took the matter to court after they were ordered by their homeowners association to rip up their beautiful garden of pollinator-friendly native plants and ground covers and replace it with a generic lawn. They argued that homeowners have a right to make ecologically responsible decisions, and they won.

Perhaps one day, it will be manicured lawns — with their exorbitant use of water and their reliance on chemical fertiliz-

ers and weed killers — that are against the law. Generation Z, which is highly conscious that its own survival is linked to the survival of this planet, might well accomplish this.

Ms. Jentz is aware of the resistance some neighbors and community code enforcement have to anything other than outdated notions of lawns and gardening. These attitudes are derived from the intensive advertising and political lobbying that characterized the age of “Better living through chemicals.”

Fortunately, since the publication of Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring, in 1962, there has been increased recognition of the dangers not just of such toxic insecticides like DDT but of many other dangerous chemicals and agricultural practices, as well. The Hyattsville City Code (ecode360.com/36857779) gives “favorable consideration” to alternative gardens, especially those harboring pollinators. Just click on Chapter 65: Health and Sanitation, Article VI: Brush, Grass and Weeds, § 65-25, D and E for details.

Now, Ms. Jentz does give practical information about how to avoid criticism with tips on how to make your garden look neat and attractive. She advises gardeners to keep edges clipped, and to have a patio or small grassy area as a focal point. For specifics, I urge you to come to My Dead Aunt’s Books on Sept. 16 to hear her speak. You can also buy her book there to keep as a handy reference for the future.

Miss Floribunda writes about gardening for the Life & Times. You may email her at floribundav@gmail. com.

Perhaps one day, due to their exorbitant use of water and their reliance on chemical fertilizers and weed killers, manicured lawns will be against the law. PEXELS

*Average annual household savings based on 2016 national survey of new policyholders who reported savings by switching to State Farm.

COMMUNITY CALENDAR

Our list of events sponsored by local nonprofits, arts organizations and performance venues, occurring between Sept. 12 and Oct. 10; all information is current as of Sept. 8. For events and meetings organized by the City of Hyattsville, see the Hyattsville Reporter in the newspaper’s centerfold. Please send notices of events that will take place between Oct. 11 and Nov. 6 to managingeditor@ hyattsvillelife.com by Oct. 5.

RECURRING

Busboys and Poets hosts an open mic for poets every Thursday. $5. 8 to 10 p.m. 5331 Baltimore Ave. 301.779.2787. Busboysandpoets.com

Weekly acoustic blues jams, in the Piedmont blues tradition. Proof of vaccination required. Listeners welcome! Free. Saturdays 1 to 5 p.m. Archie Edwards Blues Foundation, 4502 Hamilton St. Acousticblues.com

Sharpen your drawing skills in a relaxed, informal setting at Hyattsville figure drawing group's drop-in drawing sessions at Pyramid Atlantic Art Center. Bring your own art supplies; drawing boards and chairs provided. $20/session or $75/5-session punch card or $15/session for Pyramid Atlantic members. Tuesdays, 6 to 9 p.m. 4218 Gallatin St. hyattsvillefiguredrawing@ gmail.com

ONGOING

“Out of the Vineyard” by playwright Psalmayene 24 is part of the Freedom Stories Initiative. Based on the book A Question of Freedom: The Families who Challenged Slavery from the Nation’s Founding to Civil War by William G. Thomas III, “Out of the Vineyard” weaves together monologues that excavate a buried chapter in American history. Through Sept. 24. $40. For showtimes and tickets, visit Joesmovement.org. Joe’s Movement Emporium, 3309 Bunker Hill Rd., Mt. Rainier. 301.699.1819

SEPTEMBER 16

Kathy Jentz will speak to the Hyattsville Horticultural Society about her most recent book, Groundcover Revolution Jentz is editor of Washington

Gardener magazine and host of the GardenDC podcast. Free. 10 a.m. My Dead Aunt’s Books, 5132 Baltimore Ave. hyattsvillehorticulture.org

SEPTEMBER 18

The 2023-24 Independent Film Series is getting underway. The September film — “A Place to Breathe” (2020, 86 min.) — intertwines the personal journeys of refugees and highlights the creative strategies by which immigrant communities in the U.S. survive and thrive. A community conversation will follow the screening. Free. 7 to 9 p.m. Hyattsville Public Library, 6530 Adelphi Rd. 240.455.5451

SEPTEMBER 24

Inspired by Georgia O’Keefe, participants in A Bumble Bee’s View Art Workshop will explore the magnification of flowers in a garden, transitioning from realistic to abstract mixed media. Silk flowers are used to inspire an extreme closeup of petals, stems and leaves to create color-intense abstract art. Materials provided. Free. 2:30 to 4 p.m. Prince George’s Plaza Community Center, 6600 Adelphi Rd. Register through pgparksdirect.com.

SEPTEMBER 26

Busboys and Poets Books presents a conversation between Rinaldo Murray and Chekheim Wymes. Wymes is the author of My 48 Summers: (The Retelling of Us), a book of realizations, affirmations, and poems that reflect Wymes’ life, love, loss, longing and liberation. Free. 6 p.m. Busboys and Poets, 5331 Baltimore Ave. 301.779.2787.

Busboysandpoets.com

SEPTEMBER 29

Come hear singer-songwriter and guitarist Erin Harpe with bass player Jim Countryman, her husband. Living Blues writes of Erin Harpe, “Country blues at its very best. One of the finest fingerpicking guitarists and singers in the land.” Free. 8 to 10 p.m. Archie Edwards Blues Foundation, 4502 Hamilton St. acousticblues.com

OCTOBER 1

Ad Hoc Aerial presents “FINALLY!” — an aerial extravaganza, bringing together artists from across

the DMV and featuring performances on silks, lyra, rope, trapeze, straps and more. Witness an exciting variety of aerial and circus ideas take flight — at long last. $25 adults and $15 children/seniors. 4 to 5:15 p.m. Joe’s Movement Emporium, 3309 Bunker Hill Rd., Mt. Rainier. 301.699.1819. Joesmovement.org

OCTOBER 7

Celebrate mushrooms at the Hyattsville Public Library.

“Mushroom Marvels: Craft and Conversation” will include a discussion on mushrooms' impact in our society, a scavenger hunt and shroomified craft stations for all ages. Free. 1 to 3 p.m. 6530 Adelphi Rd. 240.455.5451

BRIEFS FROM PAGE 7

The school system said that about 4,500 out of 180,000 user accounts were impacted district-wide — and that most were staff accounts.

In response, the district initiated a password reset for all users and is offering free credit monitoring and identity protection services through Experian. Members of the school community were also urged to check their financial statements and accounts — and to visit the PGCPS website for steps to protect their identity.

“While we have engaged cybersecurity and forensics specialists to conduct a full investigation of the incident, we understand the cyber attack may result in unauthorized disclosure of personal information of PGCPS users,” Superintendent Millard House II said in a Sept. 1 website post. “Our Division of Information Technology will follow up with impacted

users as the investigation continues.”

House became the new head of the state’s second-largest school system this July, following the retirement of Monica Goldson.

According to the Cybernews article, data from the compromised user accounts were put up for auction on Rhysida’s leak site — for 15 Bitcoin, or approximately $390,000 at that time.

Schools are increasingly targeted for ransomware attacks, according to an Aug. 17 Education Week article, which cites a recent survey by cybersecurity firm Sophos. In the survey, 80% of primary and secondary schools and 79% of higher education institutions reported being the victim of ransomware attacks that either steal data or hold data hostage through encryption. This was a higher rate of attacks than any other industry surveyed and nearly double the rate in 2021.

A-1 YARD SERVICES

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ington, Ind., and moved with her family to Hyattsville when she was 4 years old. Kuhns encouraged CHELOVE and her siblings to explore creative activities from a young age. Visual arts like painting, textile, sculpting and carving are traditions in Indonesian culture.

“She [Kuhns] was strict but definitely wanted us to kind of experience life and to see for ourselves, what was resonating and what wasn’t,” CHELOVE said. “One of her favorite mottos — and in fact, it’s on her gravestone — is ‘If you don’t try, you’ll never know.’”

CHELOVE attended both Hyattsville Elementary and Northwestern High School before these schools had creative arts programs. She received attention for her drawing ability while at Hyattsville Elementary and often drew animals, cars and her favorite foods. CHELOVE learned to draw by copying car-

toon characters like the Pink Panther and Garfield.

While she was at Northwestern, one of CHELOVE’s art teachers, Mr. Moore, entered her work into a contest and always pushed her to become better.

“Sometimes we'll have those triggers from youth where a teacher has a criticism, and it just sticks with you for the rest of your life,” CHELOVE said. “And that the opposite can be true, too. If a teacher is very encouraging, [you] just kind of never forget it.”

CHELOVE said that she became fascinated with graffiti art during her freshman year at Northwestern. She found an anti-drug pamphlet illustrated by Zephyr, a famous New York City graffiti artist. In awe of his work, CHELOVE started airbrushing, creating designs by spraying on the back of students’ jean jackets.

“I had never seen graffiti letters (this was before the internet),” CHELOVE said. “And I was just like, ‘What is that?’ and

that completely captivated me. I would then try to repeat and learn those letters.”

CHELOVE graduated from Northwestern in 1990 and took a year off before enrolling at the District’s Corcoran School of Art (now George Washington University’s Corcoran School of the Arts and Design). She said she dropped out after her first year to be a professional illustrator, painter and muralist.

Since then, CHELOVE has created about 50 murals across the DMV — with many of them highlighting powerful Black women, Indigenous cultures, fashion and the challenges impacting society. She has also created murals in Miami and New York City.

Some of the topics that she has addressed include include Indigenous people's rights, sexual discrimination and human rights.

In her 2020 mural “DC Stands United Against Hate,” CHELOVE highlights several African Americans who died at the hands of injustice.

CHELOVE’s seven-story mural

“Guardians of the Four Directions,” which she describes as her most impactful work, adorns the Hotel Zena in Thomas Circle and depicts two female warriors holding spears. People protesting the murder of George Floyd in summer 2020 marched past it.

“I had received comments that seeing those women of color holding spears is really regal and noble, and it gave them strength,” CHELOVE said. “It’s such a wonderful stage for an artist to create a work.”

Director Washington said that CHELOVE, along with the other three artists selected to paint murals at Sonia Sotomayor, Kenmoor, Drew-Freeman and Walker Mill middle schools, was selected based on her ability to capture the essence of the community.

When creating a mural, CHELOVE said she first focuses on the site of the mural, including its history and the surrounding area. She then conducts research and establishes the narrative of the mural.

In creating the mural’s visuals, CHELOVE takes into account the mural’s dimensions and the viewer’s perspective: Will viewers be standing close to the mural? If the mural is located outside, how big should the text be so that people traveling in vehicles can see it?

“There’s a lot that goes into what I am painting,” CHELOVE said. “Because when I leave, it’s really for the people that are there. I get to go on and do other things. I don’t have to see this every day. So I want this to have meaning right for all the people there.”

CHELOVE also said she typically creates a survey for all project stakeholders. Washington said that CHELOVE's approach to the Hyattsville Middle mural emphasized community engagement.

CHELOVE said that she and Hyattsville Middle Principal Chanita Stamper surveyed the community and staff for ideas on the message of the mural. They decided it should depict how the creative arts support academics, uniting the school’s creative and performing arts magnet program with its comprehensive curriculum.

In CHELOVE's illustration of the Hyattsville Middle mural, music notes float from dancers through a violin and transform into math problems that float over a teen girl.

“You’ve got the math of music and beats and how that can feed into algebra problems and engineering,” CHELOVE said.

In the next section, another girl studies, while symbols of creative writing, science, theater and the arts surround her. Her pen creates an open sky, symbolizing the unlimited potential of youths, according to CHELOVE. The final section of the mural shows a teen boy releasing a hawk — the mascot for Hyattsville Middle.

“It depicts several scenes which touch on the vast potential of middle schoolers, the joy and curiosity that fuels their brilliant minds, and the connection between creativity and academic excellence,” CHELOVE said.

She noted that although the mural won’t actually be completed by the Sept. 18 ribboncutting, she'll be available to answer questions and hopes to provide a printout of the mural.

In addition to creating the mural for Hyattsville Middle, CHELOVE will also design one for Colin Powell Academy, in Fort Washington. She said she expects to complete the Hyattsville Middle mural by October and to install the Colin Powell mural by early January 2024.

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for Hyattsville include the Sligo Creek Trail, the Prince George’s County Connector, and a 1.3-mile repaving project on the Northwest Branch Trail in Montgomery County. Sligo Creek and Northwest Branch connect Hyattsville to Montgomery County, and the County Connector will connect the Northwest Branch Trail from Chillum to the Metropolitan Branch Trail in the District.

Bob Patten, the trail development program manager for the M-NCPPC, said in an interview that the tentative time frame of the Northwest Branch and Sligo Creek trails is three to four years, and major trail closures are unlikely. Since the County Connector is still in the early planning phases, there is no timeline or completion date yet, according to Patten.

MAKE ROWING YOUR FALL FUN!

Trail Improvements in the vicinity of Hyattsville (trail alignments are approximate) MAP BY

T. CARTER ROSS

Hyattsville resident Melissa Schweisguth in an email to the Life & Times. Schweisguth uses the trails daily to run errands. “I always dismount on my bike and cross these roads lane by lane unless there are no cars around,” she said.

Schweisguth was involved in a 2020 petition sent to the Maryland Department of Transportation State Highway Administration (SHA), suggesting possible improvements to the crossings. The petition was unsuccessful at that time — but with the RAISE grant, the county was able to secure a partnership with the SHA and incorporate safety

measures. According to Patten, the project is still in the planning phase, so the specific safety features are not clear; however, he alluded to improved traffic lights and better marked pedestrian crosswalks.

Patten said that the RAISE grant was critical in securing an SHA partnership. Because so many groups want to work with the SHA, the administration is very particular about the projects it takes on. “The RAISE grant funding made us a higher priority to the SHA and put us on the top of their list,” he explained.

The County Connector — another important project for

Hyattsville — will connect the Northwest Branch Trail to the Metropolitan Branch Trail in the District. While the planned trail is relatively short, at 0.8 miles, the connection will provide county bicyclists with another route into D.C. that avoids main roads.

Riverdale Park resident Dan Behrend, who bikes to work in the District, is particularly excited about the County Connector. “They have been talking about the PG Connector for years — since before I moved here [in 2013],” Behrend told the Life & Times. “I’m glad this grant allows them to finally get the project off the ground.”

Sligo Creek Trail is one of the oldest trails in the region and will see the most renovations, with 6.7 miles of the total 10.2mile trail to be repaved.

Four road intersections will receive improved pedestrian crossings — the two most notable ones being the East-West Highway/ Route 410 and the Riggs Road/ Route 212 intersections. For years, residents have expressed particular interest in the renovations at these intersections due to the need for more safety features.

“The Sligo crossings at 410/ East-West and 212/Riggs are terribly unsafe and scary,” said

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New Northwestern principal has a long history with public schools

By Sophie Gorman Oriani

Northwestern High School has a new principal, NKenge Barker, who emphasizes cultural awareness and the education of the whole person as a few of her major priorities.

Barker, who holds degrees from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University and from Morgan State University, has a long history with public schools. She started her career in North Carolina, at age 22, teaching Spanish, before she moved to Maryland in 2002. She then taught for Baltimore City and Baltimore County before coming to Prince George’s County Public Schools (PGCPS) as an assistant principal at High Point High School.

In 2019, Barker also participated in a Fulbright-Hays Group Projects Abroad program in Colombia. There, she participated in a five-week intensive program called “Colom-

bia in the Twenty-First Century: History, Culture, Peace-building and Reconciliation/Implication for Teaching Spanish, Colombia and Latin America Across Disciplines,” which allowed participants to gain greater cultural awareness and conduct research to help them as educators.

On July 20, Barker hosted a meet and greet for the community.

The event was attended by over 100 people; students and staff of Northwestern needed to pull out more chairs to accommodate the larger-thananticipated crowd. Along with parents, teachers, students and staff, Maryland State Delegate Deni Taveras (District 47B), county school board member Pamela Boozer-Strother (District 3), Mount Rainier Mayor Celina Benitez, former state senator and Northwestern soccer coach Victor Ramirez (District 47), and former county

school board member Amber Waller were all in attendance.

“My mission is to serve you, to make meaningful connections, and address the needs of the whole person,” Barker said, adding that she intended to focus on the culture and the climate of Northwestern. Culture, she noted, is what we do, while climate is how we feel. She said she was going to implement progressive discipline strategies, as well as enforce student

ID requirements, the uniform policy — and the correct use of the school athletic fields. Mention of the fields, which have been the location of many discipline incidents, drew a chuckle from the audience.

Barker noted that her focus on school climate and culture could be grouped under the umbrellas of a safe and orderly environment, quality educational programming, socialemotional learning and community engagement.

Nicole Isley-McClure, the instructional director for Area 3, who oversees Northwestern, was also present and stressed the importance of parental involvement. Isley-McClure invited parents to volunteer in support of school safety efforts and called upon them to hold their children accountable.

Barker said her goals included hosting more activities such as dances to bolster school spirit, improving multilingual com-

munication with parents, and providing foreign- or secondlanguage classes to all students.

“I believe every student should be bilingual,” Barker said.

Barker also noted the development of school-based mental health teams and said Northwestern has eight professional counselors on staff.

A newer project, according to Isley-McClure, is a weapons detection system, which every high school and some middle schools will have installed by the end of the year — an announcement that drew loud applause. She noted that the systems were piloted in summer schools and that Northwestern was at the top of the list, although she didn’t have a specific timeline to share.

“This is a new day,” BoozerStrother said, to another round of applause from the audience. “This is not going to be a fight any more; it’s going to be a collaboration.”

NKenge Barker is the new principal of Northwestern HIgh School.

COURTESY OF PRINCE GEORGE’S COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS