Silver Chips Online

The Blair fall sports awards ceremony was held from 7-8:30 p.m. last night in the auditorium to honor 336 Blazers for their achievements in the fall sports season. The ceremony gave each coach the opportunity to commemorate his or her players and speak of the team's accomplishment.

This morning, the Student Government Association (SGA) announced that senior Mady Nadje will no longer be Blair's vice president. Blair's chief of staff, junior Adam Biru, was announced as the acting vice president. The SGA distributed a notice that informed Blazers of the situation to all second period classes. Nadje said that he stepped down because of MBHS policy. "I didn't do anything illegal or break any rules, but something in the [school's] policy permits me from being vice president at this time," he said. Nadje refused to elaborate on the policy infringement. The change in the SGA is temporary, according to Nadje. "It's not permanent," he said.

English teacher Sandra Jacobs Ivey and English Department Head Vickie Adamson discovered graffiti that conveyed a racist message in the teacher parking lot Monday evening. The vandal, who has not been identified, wrote the offensive message in red paint in one of the parking spaces near the track field.

The Blair Ambassadors are organizing a toy drive from Nov. 10 - Dec. 10 to help brighten the lives of local children in need. Collection bins for toys, books and other entertainment items will be placed in the Media Center, guidance office and the two administrative offices in rooms 240 and 340 so that students can drop off their donations.

Incumbent Bruce Williams was voted Mayor of Takoma Park on Nov. 3 following Takoma Park's bi-annual City Council election, according to the Takoma Park City Council web site. Council members from four of the six wards that elect representatives to the council won unopposed, including Josh Wright, Colleen Clay, Dan Robinson and Reuben Snipper.

Montgomery County Public School (MCPS) Superintendent Jerry Weast recommended changes to neighborhood boundaries that determine student enrollment at two elementary schools in an effort to reduce overcrowding. In a statement released on Oct. 15, Weast suggested moving Sligo Creek Elementary School (SCES) students who live in Takoma Park to Piney Branch and Takoma Park Elementary Schools. This change would allow students in Takoma Park neighborhoods who currently attend SCES to attend the K-2 Takoma Park Elementary School (TPES) and the 3-5 Piney Branch Elementary School (PBES).

Silver Quill, Blair's award-winning literary magazine, is holding its first Open Mic of the 2009 - 2010 school year this Friday in the Media Center during 5A and 5B lunches. The Halloween-themed event will give Blazers a chance to perform creative material through spoken word or music.

In a Feb. 24 address to Congress, President Obama identified heath care as a pressing concern for his administration. He spoke of his commitment to insure the 30 million Americans currently without coverage and cut waste and inefficiency plaguing Medicare and Medicaid. Obama evoked a sense of urgency, declaring that "health care reform cannot wait, it must not wait and it will not wait another year," and called on health care providers, doctors and policymakers to initiate negotiations.

The course of a presidential legacy is often defined by the actions a president takes in his or her first 100 days of office. These first 100 days, often called "the honeymoon period," are an opportune time for a president to sway the country's policy because of the public and congressional approval granted to a newly elected chief of state.

Millions are expected to turn out on Tuesday, Jan. 20, to see President-elect Barack Obama be sworn in. SCO brings you a guide of what to see, where to go and when to get there.