Downtown Cumberland is kicking off August with a full weekend of activities. Friday After Five is outside of Mezzo’s on South Centre Street with Slick Rick and The Blaze. Opening Act Black Guy Fawkes starts at 6pm, The Embassy Theatre presents Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog Friday and Saturday at 8pm and Sunday at 2:30. And Virginia-based musician Maddie Mae will be at the new Gallery Stage on North Centre Street Friday evening from 8 till 10 pm.
Frostburg State University is facing major challenges to its budget through the next several years, citing decreased enrollment, state funding cuts, and unfunded mandates. The college’s structural deficit for the coming years stands at $7.7 million dollars. A multi-year plan has been put in place by FSU leadership that will involve faculty cuts, reductions to athletic budgets and scholarship allocations, and operational cuts. The University System of Maryland has pledged expertise and resources to assist FSU. Enrollment has dropped 36% since 2010.
An Allegany County resident is among 25 stakeholders appointed by Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown to the Maryland Commission on Hate Crime Response and Prevention. Brown appointed local resident Carmen Jackson who retired from Frostburg State University and is active on the Allegany/Garrett Citizen Review Board and other area volunteer organizations. The commission was established during the 2024 General Assembly to develop strategies addressing hate crimes and hate bias activity.
Today, U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Chairman of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government (FSGG), released the following statement regarding the inclusion of $375 million in funding for the new FBI Headquarters within the Committee’s FSGG Fiscal Year 2025 funding legislation, passed today by the full Senate Appropriations Committee: “To meet their mission, the men and women of the FBI need a new, consolidated headquarters – and now, after years of pushing towards this goal, that headquarters will be built in Greenbelt, Maryland. Despite Republican theatrics in the House, I was proud to secure this funding…
Wednesday, July 31, 2024 Cheyenne Mariah Nair, 26 of Frostburg, was served a District Court Arrest Warrant for Violation of Protective Order. Nair was released on a $5,000 Unsecured Personal Bond. Edger David Johnson, 47 of Cumberland, was served a Circuit Court Bench Warrant for Failure to Appear for a Violation of Probation hearing. Johnson entered an Alford Plea and was sentenced in 2022 to a 3-year jail tern with all but 80-days suspended and 3-years supervised probation for the charge of Assault-2nd Degree. Johnson was released on a $2,500 Unsecured Personal Bond at his bail review.
U.S. Senators Ben Cardin and Chris Van Hollen and U.S. Congressmen Dutch Ruppersberger, Kweisi Mfume, Jamie Raskin, David Trone and Glenn Ivey (all D-Md.) today joined the Biden-Harris Administration in announcing $24,030,695 in federal funding to expand apprenticeship programs across growing industries in Maryland. This federal investment in workforce development aims to create more equitable access to good jobs for underrepresented communities and was awarded to six Maryland projects. The awards were made available through the U.S. Department of Labor’s Apprenticeship Building America grant programs as part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s Investing in America agenda, which includes funding from the Inflation…
Frostburg State University is facing major challenges to its budget this fiscal year and over the next several years, mostly because of decreased enrollment, state funding cuts and unfunded mandates. FSU’s structural budget deficit for the current and future fiscal years stands at $7.7 million. As a result, senior administration at the University has had the unpleasant task of making some very difficult and complex decisions to resolve this deficit to ensure Frostburg’s financial stability and viability. “Many smaller, regional, comprehensive, public higher education institutions struggle with enrollment, and FSU is, unfortunately, no exception,” said Dr. Ronald Nowaczyk, FSU…
Martin’s Markets in Cumberland and LaVale are pulling more Boar’s Head meat products from shelves due to the potential presence of Listeria. Items in the recall have been expanded since the initial outbreak was announced mid-July. If a customer has purchased an impacted Boar’s Head product, they are encouraged to discard the product and can visit MARTIN’S stores for a full refund. Rhiannon Ally from ABC News has more information on the recall…
Rest areas along the Pennsylvania Turnpike are being targeted for cleanup, specifically tobacco-related litter. The “Keep America Beautiful” program is granting $20,000 to help implement a cigarette litter prevention program at 17 service areas and interchange buildings along the turnpike system. A physical scan, or count, of discarded cigarette butts will occur at the start and end of the program to monitor success rate. Educational messaging will also be installed relating the consequences of tobacco-related litter.
Underwater grass abundance–a key indicator of water quality and habitat–remained steady in 2023 in Maryland’s portion of Chesapeake Bay, reaching almost 38,000 acres, according to data released this week by the Chesapeake Bay Program and Maryland’s Department of Natural Resources. Overall, 83,000 acres of underwater grasses, also called submerged aquatic vegetation, were noted throughout the Chesapeake Bay and its tidal tributaries in 2023, a 7% increase over 2022.
