A reminder about an upcoming trip from Westchester Community College:

The Native Plant Center at Westchester Community College is offering a spring botanical tour of the Washington. D.C. area from May 3-6, 2010. The center’s director, Darrin Duling, a professional landscape designer and botanist, will lead the tour.

The trip will include stops at The United States National Arboretum, the National Museum of the American Indian, United States Botanic Garden, the Hillwood Estate, Dumbarton Oaks, and the Mount Cuba Center, home to one of the country’s finest woodland gardens. In addition, attendees have the option of attending a dinner theater performance of “The Little Shop of Horrors” at the historic Ford’s Theater. (Those opting out of the dinner theater event may trim $100 from the price of their trip).

The non-profit Native Plant Center, a project of the Westchester Community College Foundation, was established in 1998 as the first national affiliate of the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center in Austin, Texas, a national organization devoted to America’s native plants. The local center has grown to a 400-member organization that educates the public with conferences, lectures and demonstration gardens.

Its efforts have led to significant changes in Westchester’s public landscaping. The center works with Westchester County on plant lists and consults on native plantings on golf courses. It has also worked with the New York State Department of Transportation to create wildflower meadows along the roadsides.

The deadline for booking the trip is December 7, 2009. Tour costs are $1,450 for center members, double occupancy; $1,500 non-members, double occupancy. Single room supplements are $350.

For information: www.nativeplantcenter.org or 914-606-7715.

Assemblywoman Amy Paulin will discuss her role in the Legislature next week at Westchester Community College.

The Thursday presentation—Inside Albany: The Job of an Assemblywoman—is sponsored by the President’s Ad Hoc Committee on Women’s Educational Opportunity.

The event will be at 11 a.m. in the Classroom Building, Room 200. It is free and open to the public.

The Democrat from Scarsdale supported legislation to increase aid to public schools and to inspect summer camps, and bills to help domestic violence victims. She has also helped to ban smoking in college dormitories, and backed allowing licensed pharmacists to administer flu shots.

She is the former Director of My Sisters’ Place, a non-profit agency which assists victims of domestic violence. She helped to found the Westchester Domestic Violence Council and obtained funding for day care and neighborhood health centers.

More information: 914-606-6700 or www.sunywcc.edu.

Three alumni of Croton-Harmon High School were recently inducted into the school’s Hall of Distinguished Graduates.

Inducted during the October 26 ceremony were: Rachel Whetten, class of 1987; Peggy Tuxen Akers, class of 1965; and Richard Albert, class of 1945.

The Hall of Distinguished Graduates recognizes graduates who have made significant contributions to their professions or in public service, or have achieved excellence in other ways.

The three inductees spent the day at their old high school, addressing the students, visiting with students and faculty, touring the school, and being honored at an afternoon ceremony and reception.

The new inductees:
Rachel Whetten graduated in 1987 and lives in Chapel Hill, N.C., where she is the international sector director of the Health Inequalities Program at Duke University. Whetten earned her master’s degree in public health with a concentration in international and reproductive health from the University of North Carolina. She has since been involved with numerous research studies both in the U.S. and abroad in the areas of women’s health and HIV/AIDS. During the past decade, Ms. Whetten has secured significant funding for institute international research on health inequalities.

Peggy Tuxen Akers graduated in 1965 and lives in Portland, Maine, where she works as a nurse practitioner at Healthcare for the Homeless and serves on the faculty at the University of Maine College of Nursing. Akers served in the Army Nurse Corps during the Vietnam War from 1968 to 1971, earning a Bronze Star in 1970 for her valor. She spent another year working in a Cambodian refugee camp, and founded the Veterans Speakers Alliance in San Francisco and the Veterans for Peace, for which she serves as vice president and board member of the Maine chapter. Ms. Akers is also an avid runner, having participated in 12 marathons.

Richard Albert graduated in 1945 and resides in Croton. After serving in World War II in Japan, he earned a bachelor’s degree in finance and business from the University of Colorado. After graduation, he returned to Croton and began a real estate career that has thrived for more than 55 years. He has also been involved in civic organizations. He was instrumental in the creation and funding of Croton’s Meals on Wheels program and has served as president of the Croton Rotary Club, Chamber of Commerce, Croton Community Nursery School, the Peekskill-Cortlandt Realty Board, and the  Westchester County Board of Realtors. He also served on the New York State Realty Board and founded the Richard Albert Scholarship Fund, which has awarded more than $150,000 to graduates over the past two decades.

CUTLINE: From left, Peggy Tuxen Akers, class of 1965; Richard Albert, class of 1945; and Rachel Whetten, class of 1987, were recently inducted into the Croton-Harmon High School Hall of Distinguished Graduates.

Live in the Greenburgh school district and have a question about your local schools? You can take your inquiry right to the top at an upcoming “Meet The Principals” community meeting.

On Nov. 10 at 6:30 p.m., the Parent Teacher Association is inviting residents Highview School, 200 North Central Ave., to meet and talk with the principals of all the schools in the district.

The principals, who will participate in a roundtable discussion, are Dawn Male, Early Childhood Program; Patricia Simone, Lee F. Jackson School; Gary Mastrangelo, Highview School; Marguerite Clarkson, Richard J. Bailey School; Michael Chambless, Woodlands Middle School; and Ronald Ross, Woodlands High School.

Dinner will be served, child care is offered and a Spanish translator will be available. If you go, come back and let us know your thoughts.

Two Ossining High School Seniors – Laura Hellmich and Dara Illowsky – teamed up to investigate the migratory habits of the American eel and were named semifinalists in the 2009-10 Siemens Competition in Science, Math and Technology for their study.

Their research was done in collaboration with the New York Department of Environmental Conservation.

Ossining High School was one of only four Westchester schools to have students recognized by the national high school senior competition.

Known as the nation’s leading original research competition in math, science and technology, the Siemens Competition is administered annually by the College Board, awarding college scholarships ranging from $1,000 to $100,000 in individual and team categories.

A record number of 1,348 projects were received this year, an increase of 12 percent over 2008. The number of students submitting projects increased by 14 percent while more students than ever, 2,151, registered to enter.

This year, 318 students were named semifinalists with 96 students being honored as regional finalists.

More than 200 students from Blue Mountain Middle School in Cortlandt Manor visited the World Trade Center site last month to present the planned memorial with $1,000 they had raised.

It will go to sponsor a paver on the Memorial Plaza.

The students prepared for their trip to the site by studying the Sept. 11 attacks and the redevelopment plans.

To find out how your school can get involved: the National September 11 Memorial and Museum.

My colleague Randi Weiner spotted this study: People who cheated in high school were more likely to inflate an insurance claim, lie to a boss, cheat on taxes and be dishonest with a spouse.

More here in Education Week.

Jessica DuLong is proof that there is no such thing as a “man’s job.”

As one of only a few female fireboat engineers, she’s used to coming up against stereotypes.

“I still hear that some jobs are for girls and some are for boys. I’m here to tell you – that’s not true,” she told an audience of  fifth- and sixth-grade girls at Putnam/Northern Westchester BOCES recently.

DuLong was the keynote speaker at the 15th annual Women Helping Girls with Choices conference held on October 23. She is also a newly published author.

“A million little things led me here – it wasn’t what I envisioned,” DuLong said. “You have to remember that there are thousands of opportunities waiting for you around each corner. You never know where life is going to take you. So you have to open your eyes and realize opportunities come in unexpected places.”

The Women Helping Girls with Choices Conference is designed to provide leadership training for girls. The conference includes a keynote address by an influential female, small-group activities designed to foster self-esteem, and informal question-and-answer sessions with female role models. The conference’s goals include fostering “I Can” attitudes in girls, discussing expanded career options for women and enhancing participants’ self-esteem by connecting them with women of achievement.

This year’s conference was attended by 108 girls from 11 school districts.

Training in the needs of autistic children, required of special education administrators assigned after Sept. 1, will be offered by the Hudson River Teacher Center on the Yorktown campus of the Putnam/Northern Westchester BOCES.

The coursework is recommended for special education teachers and special education administrators, support staff, paraprofessionals, teacher assistants/aides, and speech/language pathologists.

It is scheduled the following dates: Jan. 26, Feb. 25, April 22 and May 19. Classes will be held from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m. in the front conference room of Putnam/Northern Westchester BOCES’ School Services Building. The cost is $75 per person per session.

The training will be presented by Rockland BOCES’ Barbara Kestenbaum, project director of Special Education Training and Resource Center. Upon completion, participants will receive the state Education Department Certification of Completion in Training in the Needs of Students with Autism.

To register online, go to My Learning Plan at www.pnwboces.org/catalog. Under Programs, click on the Hudson River Teacher Center (District Billing and Checks) and choose the appropriate event from the View Now menu.

More information: Joan Passaretti at (914) 248-2345 or jpassaretti@pnwboces.org.

If swimming with dolphins and snorkeling in the coral reefs sound appealing, the Putnam/Northern Westchester BOCES has the trip for you.

A spring break getaway to Key Largo will mix learning with fun for high school students as they study marine biology and learn about the marine ecosystem.

There will be two boat trips to the coral reefs to snorkel or scuba dive, a back-country boat trip to snorkel in the mangroves, a dive to an undersea hotel and lab for the divers, a trip into the Everglades, two swims with the dolphins, and an overnight camping trip to a mangrove island.

Students will be involved in a fish identification class and a transect study in the seagrass beds. In addition, they will participate in the following classes: Introduction to Tropical Ecology, A Study of the Mangroves and Seagrass Beds, Introduction to Coral Reef Ecology, Fish ID, Introduction to Sea Turtles, and several classes about dolphins.

Program instructors include marine biologists from NOAA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Marine Resources Foundation, and Dolphins Plus; instructors from Sea Dwellers Diving Services; and trip chaperones.

Accompanying the students will be Arlington High School science teacher Maribel Pregnall, BOCES Risk & Safety Coordinator Mike Sellet, and Trip Coordinator Dorna Schroeter, who is coordinator of the Putnam/Northern Westchester BOCES Center for Environmental Education and an advanced scuba diver. Schroeter has been running trips to Key Largo since 1989. Other chaperones will be added as needed.

The trip is scheduled for March 26 to April 2; participants will stay at the Sunset Cove Resort. The cost is approximately $1,650 and includes room and board, program components, and ground transportation in Florida. Airfare is separate. The final cost will depend on the total number of participants.

For more information or to register: www.pnwboces.org/environmental. Click on Education Trips and go to Key Largo High School Trip (Spring).

A special meeting of the Board of Putnam/Northern Westchester Board of Cooperative Educational Services will be held on Wednesday at 4:00 p.m. in the Special Education conference room.

Address: 200 BOCES Drive, Yorktown Heights.

The public is invited.

Several local students won $3,000 scholarships from the  Louis G. Nappi Construction Labor-Management Scholarship Program. Here is information provided by the program:

After more than a year of planning and development, the scholarship committee of a construction management and labor coalition announced this month that it has made its inaugural award to six students who will each receive $3,000 scholarships for undergraduate studies in the sciences, including math and engineering.

The Louis G. Nappi Construction Labor-Management Scholarship Program, named in honor of the Chairman Emeritus of the Construction Industry Council of Westchester & Hudson Valley, Inc., presented the college scholarships at a recent awards luncheon in Elmsford, NY.

Candidates for scholarship must be residents of the seven-county region of the lower Hudson Valley of Westchester, Putnam, Dutchess, Columbia, Ulster, Orange and Rockland counties, and be related to employees of companies that are members of the trade or association. Students can also be eligible for grants if they are relatives of members of CIC-affiliated local unions: Laborers International Union of N. A., Local No. 60; International Union of Operating Engineers, Local 137; International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Local No. 456. Read more of this entry »

Could you be the next Roger Federer? Or Serena Williams?

Or do you at least play well enough to gain a spot on the college tennis team.

The United States Tennis Association’s Eastern Section will host annual College Showcase Day on Nov. 8 to give students in the area a chance to learn about the wide range of opportunities in college tennis.

More than 50 college tennis coaches are expected to attend.

Every year hundreds of nationally ranked high school tennis players are recruited to play for the top college teams, receiving generous scholarships and the potential of becoming professional tennis players. But for the thousands of other high school tennis players, there are many chances to play in college that go unnoticed.

“There are hundreds of colleges out there that are looking for tennis players to join their teams,” said DA Abrams, executive director of the United States Tennis Association Eastern Section. “And while some schools cannot offer athletic scholarships, they often provide financial aid for these students, who enhance campus life and represent their schools at matches across the country.”

The showcase will be held at USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Queens and include a Round Robin tournament for high school seniors.

Last year, coaches from more than 50 colleges participated in the Showcase, from Division I universities like Seton Hall, to Division III colleges like Vassar. More than 120 high school juniors and seniors attended.

Coaches and high school students can register at http://eastern.usta.com.

More information: Julie Bliss, director of player development/junior competition at 914-697-2229 or bliss@eastern.usta.com.

For teen-agers who don’t have the hundreds of dollars it can cost to celebrate a prom in style, Operation PROM is back.

The organizers collect donations and new or gently worn prom dresses to distribute to students throughout Westchester County. Boys will be able to arrange for free tuxedo rentals.

The non-profit organization was founded by former Yonkers students Noel D’Allacco five years ago to make sure money never got in the way of this rite of passage. This year, Operation PROM  has paired up with Westchester County’s Department of Social Services.

It helps hundreds of teens who live in shelters, group homes or very low-income households and last year, it collected 500 dresses. It also has expanded to provide regular donations of food, clothing and school supplies to homeless students and leadership scholarships to high school seniors.

To request a free prom dress or tuxedo, students must be passing all of their classes, be recommended by their guidance counselor and meet financial need requirements.

To donate, here’s a list of drop-off locations:

Palazollo Plaza
800 Central Park Ave., Scarsdale
Suite 201 – Monday to Friday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

The College of Westchester
325 Central Park Ave., White Plains
Saturdays only – 9 a.m. to noon

Life Cleaners
300 Nepperhan Ave., Yonkers
Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday – 7:15 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Wednesday 7:15 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Saturday – 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Life Cleaners
34 Cedar St., Dobbs Ferry
Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday – 6 a.m. to 5:45 p.m. and Saturday. – 7 a.m. – 4:45 p.m.

For more information: www.helpprom.org.

Or contact Linda Sala at Department of Social Services at (914) 995-5027.

PHOTO: Noel D’Allacco, founder of Operation Prom, displays one of the donated dresses in a May 12 photograph. ( Matthew Brown / The Journal News )

If you haven’t been following the flap over Lauren Myracle’s new book “Luv Ya Bunches,” here’s a quick rundown.

A week ago, School Library Journal posted an article about Scholastic’s attempt to censor the popular author.

Don’t expect to see “Luv Ya Bunches” at Scholastic book fairs this year, Rocco Staino wrote. The book was being censored for including words such as “geez” and “crap” and a gay couple—the same-sex parents of one of Myracle’s main characters, Milla.

Scholastic had sent a letter to Myracle’s editor asking that the words be omitted and that the couple become heterosexual.

Myracle’s response? She would take out the objectionable words but balked at changing the two moms.

“A child having same-sex parents is not offensive, in my mind, and shouldn’t be ‘cleaned up,’” she told School Library Journal.

After the article appeared, she got a flood of supportive emails—from parents and librarians to indignant tweens and teens, Myracle wrote on her blog.

“thanks, lovies,” she titled it.

And now an update: Scholatstic, continuing to insist this was not censorship, backed down. It announced on Tuesday that it would carry “Luv Ya Bunches” in its spring fairs after all.

Thanks to Rebecca Liebson of White Plains for alerting me to the flap in the first place.