Churches expand with

new campuses in first

of two-part series

Baby boy buried in

17th-century lead
coffin identified

HEATING OIL * PROPANE

Why Pay MORE?
TODAYS PRICES

HEATING OIL
$

Community, Page B5

Inside, Page A3

Wednesday, October 26, 2016

Vol. 118, No. 86
2 sections

Inside

Emotional week
for Raiders ends
with historic win
Sports, Page B1

School board
candidates
answer questions

Follow
us on
Twitter

@DonnieEntNews
@JesseEntNews
@DandanEntNews
@JacquiEntNews
@JasonEntNews
@JohnEntNews
@PWSoMdSports

Like us on
Facebook at
bit.ly/EnterpriseFacebook

Scan code for

Enterprise Mobile

St. Marys County, Maryland

75

Second such incident to occur

in Southern Maryland this month
By ANDREW CEPHAS
acephas@somdnews.com

A St. Marys County

man died Saturday in St.
Leonard after a tree he
was cutting fell on top of
him and trapped him underneath.
Units from the Calvert
County Sheriffs Office
responded to St. Leonard
Shores for a report of an
industrial accident. A mail
courier called authorities
for assistance after finding Ernesto Cendana,
63, trapped underneath a
tree that was blocking the
roadway, a press release
from the sheriffs office
states.
Cendana was report-

edly attempting to cut a

tree down Saturday when
it fell on top of him. The
homeowner and mail courier tried to remove the
tree and conduct CPR,
but Cendana succumbed
to his injuries, the release
details. Along with sheriffs office personnel, the
Raymond Wood Funeral
Home also responded to
the scene.
A 48-year-old man from
Callaway working as part
of a crew died on Oct. 7
when a tree he was helping cut down fell on him
in a backyard in Lexington Parks Town Creek
neighborhood.
Twitter: @CalRecANDREW

Woman is
hospitalized
after attack
Husband pleaded to earlier assault
jwharton@somdnews.com

Jackson C. Sage, 61,

was ordered this month
to pay $1,300 in restitution for Carlene Elizabeth
Gross for the 2015 offense, and was sentenced
to serve 12 weekends in
jail, beginning after work

A judge has ordered

that a Lexington Park
man, who earlier resolved
a charge of assaulting his
wife last year, be held
in jail without bond on
charging papers alleging
he severely beat her last See ASSAULT
Page A9
week at his apartment.

STAFF PHOTO BY JACQUI ATKIELSKI

St. Marys Ryken High School students can sit or stand in Gloria Dempseys world language class as
they participate in an online quiz before they start their flex day, where they can create YouTube
videos and finish Spanish language assignments.

A little elbow room

St. Marys Rykens flexible layout offers 21st-century
update to schools traditional seating arrangements
By JACQUI ATKIELSKI
jatkielski@somdnews.com

With this smaller classroom, I wanted

something that would be more flexible
than having a hodgepodge of donated
desks and tables. So I started sketching
and looking for inspiration and asking
students what they wanted to see in a
classroom.
DeLucco said since switching to the
1:1 electronic tablet program five years
ago, teachers are much more comfortable with using technology in their
classrooms.
Dempsey is a wonderful example of
someone who is beginning to grow beyond what a textbook would limit her
to, he said. Having textbooks, quizzes
and homework assignments on the iPads allow students to be more interactive with their assignments.
Dempsey said she estimated the entire project to cost her about $500.
When I gave [Principal Rick Wood]
the project estimate, he asked if that
would be for one desk, she said. I figured if this worked, the school would
know where to put their money. Weve
been using iPads for five years, so why
dont our classrooms reflect that 21st
century classroom setting.
Dempsey said it took a week to build
the furniture with the help of her family.
My husband, older brother and I
spent a week in July building these in

People look to Pinterest for crafts to

do themselves, but one teacher is using
the website and other inspiration to create flexible seating for her students to
learn and grow as they learn Spanish.
St. Marys Ryken High School students taking classes with world language teacher Gloria Dempsey can sit
on floor cushions, stand at taller tables
or sit at desks topped with whiteboards
while they immerse themselves in
Spanish. Dempsey said she was inspired to create her own flexible classroom seating after seeing exhibits at
the International Technology Educators Conference in Colorado last year.
Some of those arrangements came
with a price tag of $12,000 per classroom, she said. So this was the kind
of investment that we needed to know
was going to work before we could invest.
After surveying her students several
times last year, she began collecting potential ideas online and from the dean of
academic technology, Jason DeLucco.
To ask the school to spend that
much money on an unknown was going to be tricky, so we started getting
the idea to see what other options are
out there, she said. We looked at websites like Pinterest and saw some different things, like crowd sourcing and ask- See FLEX
ing the community to donate furniture. Page A10

Social Security benefits to go up just 0.3%

Index
Classified
Community
Editorial/Letters
Obituaries
Police briefs
Sports

CALL

Man dies
in tree
accident

By JOHN WHARTON

Local News Now

PROPANE

AeroEnergy.com/WhyPayMore 1-855-779-6906

www.somdnews.com

Inside, Pages A6, A7

Connect

1.899/gal

B13
B5
A8
A7
A5
B1

THE ENTERPRISE
Stay in touch with us

Meanwhile, seniors
say they face higher
medical care costs
By DANDAN ZOU
dzou@somdnews.com

Nearly 35,000 Southern Marylanders and nearly 60 million

Americans across the country
have to settle for another year of
historically low Social Security

benefits increase in 2017.

The Social Security Administration announced last week
that the cost-of-living adjustment
next year is 0.3 percent. For an
average Southern Marylander
who receives $1,266 of Social Security benefits monthly, that 0.3
percent adds up to a raise of less
than $4 a month.
Im sure its a disappointment, said Debbie Barker, se-

News and advertising

301-862-2111
Subscriber services
866-894-9338
Classified advertising
1-800-220-1230
Legals
1-877-659-2190
Obituaries
1-877-242-1110

nior information and assistance

manager of St. Marys County
Department of Aging and Human Services.
But there wasnt an increase
last year either, she said. So
the news may not come as a surprise.
This is the third year in a row
that Social Security benefits adjustment remained below 0.3
percent. The adjustment first

reached its historical low of zero

percent in 2009 after the financial
crash. The rate stayed at zero
in 2010 and picked up between
2011 and 2014, with a high of 3.6
percent in 2011.
By law, the annual COLA is tied
to the increase of the Consumer
Price Index as determined by
See SOCIAL
Page A9

St. Marys voters

can cast early ballots
Hollywood poll open from Oct. 27 to Nov. 3
By JASON BABCOCK
jbabcock@somdnews.com

Copyright 2016
APG Media of Chesapeake LLC

Harmony for hospice

STAFF PHOTO BY JOHN WHARTON

Larry Stephenson, left, Kenny Ingram and Kevin Richardson lean in for a chorus
during their bands performance at Saturdays Bluegrass for Hospice fundraising
event held at Flat Iron Farm in Great Mills.

St. Marys County Board of Education. Voters will also decide

if they want to change the local
form of government from county commissioner to code home
rule. If voters decide to make that
change, it would become effective in December, but would not
change the county commissioner
membership. Its five members

Early voting in St. Marys County and Maryland starts tomorrow,

Thursday, Oct. 27, and continues
for eight days until Thursday,
Nov. 3, ahead of the general election on Nov. 8.
In addition to voting for the next
president of the United States,
a new U.S. senator and the 5th
District congressional seat, there See EARLY
are two contested races for the Page A10

Page A10 The Enterprise Wednesday, October 26, 2016

FLEX
From
Page A1

my garage, she said. Before

the school year started, Rick
took a look at the classroom
and said that this was going to
work out, and told me to submit
the receipts. The project ended
up costing $538 and it was the
biggest reaffirmation that this is
where this school wants to go.
The use of technology in the
classroom makes Dempseys
class his favorite, student Alex
Kim said. This class is amazing
because of the social interaction. Its really fun, he said.
Students claimed the standard
desks were too small, Dempsey
said.
We measured everything
from the walls to the desks to
the students heights to get an
idea of the ideal size of the seating options, she said. Their
old desks were 17 by 15 inches.
Students typically didnt have
enough space to use their iPads and other materials comfortably. With the new seating,
everyone has 20 by 24 inches of
space to themselves. The tables
and desks are on sliders for easier movement.
Dempsey said her students
wanted the ability to move
around the room as they needed to.
We included the white board
on the top of the desks because
students said they wanted to be
able to feel they could create
a rough draft anywhere, she
said. When theyre writing
their sentences, they can write
it on the desk before putting in
on the iPad. I would be able to
go around with a different color
marker and help them. It kinda

EARLY
From
Page A1

were elected in 2014 to a

four-year term.
Code home rule would
give more authority over
legislation pertaining to
St. Marys County rath-

STAFF PHOTO BY JACQUI ATKIELSKI

Alex Kim, 15, shows Gloria Dempsey a portion of his work on his iPad during her Spanish class. Students are able to stand,
sit and wander around the classroom as they help each other with assignments and projects.

looks like SportsCenter Sunday

Night Football with the circling
and arrows.
With the flexible seating,
Dempsey said students can
move anything anywhere and
just feel free to learn how they
need to.
They have that flexibility and
freedom to play while they are
taking a quiz because nobodys
brain works the same, she
said. Nobodys body works
the same when it comes to doing certain tasks, so some students stand while participating
in classroom-wide app activities
like Kahoot sit when theyre

er than having to go to
the Maryland General
Assembly to enact local
laws.
Early voting in St.
Marys County will be
held at the bingo hall at
the Hollywood Volunteer
Fire Department, which
is a separate building at

working on a quiz and things

like that.
Dempsey said the flexible
seating has changed the way
she teaches her students.
It feels like an elementary
school classroom, she said.
Students dont have that fear
to be creative or to be wrong
because weve given them the
space to be wrong. Were not
confined to our seats in this
classroom.
Just because students can
get comfortable while in her
class while doing assignments
doesnt mean they fall asleep in
class, Dempsey said.

the carnival grounds.

Early voting hours are
from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. each
day from Oct. 27 to Nov.
3. Maryland is offering
same-day
registration
during early voting. A
registrant has to bring
a document that proves
ones residence such as

NOW LIVE!

The SoMdNews App brings you the latest local,

sports and community news and information
from the Southern MD Newspapers, 24/7.
The free app is updated from our full website,
somdnews.com, in real time, delivering you
the latest headlines. Download the app at
somdnews.com/newsapp
or Scan the QRC code.

Were active in this learning

environment together and sharing the mentality, she said. I
feel passionate about what I am
doing and if the kids see me acting with energy, they respond.
Nobody can sleep in here, even
with the cushions.
Sometimes the students
will sit under the taller tables
and create a personal cave,
Dempsey said.
I thought they would sit on
the floor with the cushions, or
stand at the tables or sit in the
seats, but they went crazy with
it, she said. The first time
someone sat under the table

a MVA-issued license or
other government document with a name and
address on it.
In the last presidential
election in 2012, early voting turnout in St. Marys
County was 7,096 voters
11 percent but early voting centers across
Maryland were closed for
two days because of Hurricane Sandy, said Wendy
Adkins, director of the St.
Marys County Board of
Elections.
The total voter turnout
in 2012 was 75 percent
in St. Marys County, she
said.
In the 2008 presidential
election, turnout reached
77 percent.
Based on the calls to
the board of elections and
requests for absentee ballots, Adkins said she is expecting total voter turnout
this year to be around 75
percent again. I expect at
least the same, maybe a
little more, she said.
She reminded voters to
participate in the process.
Every vote counts, she
said. You cant complain
if you dont vote.
Maryland is back to
a paper ballot system,
which are filled out by voters and then fed into and
read by scanners. There
will be two scanners at the
early voting center in Hol-

I asked if they were ok and offered them a cushion to sit in.

They said that it was nice to
be able to sit under the table.
Students also have the option
to sit on the lower table with
a cushion. So it has a locker
room bench feel and theyll sit
stretched out.
Dempsey said she hosts flex
days, depending on the intensity of assigned tasks, such as
creating a YouTube video or
taking a quiz online.
Giving them options of things
to do ... on those days takes
away the formality of the typical
classroom setting, she said. I
try to get them moving as much
as possible in this classroom.
Wood asked why she needed
so many options for seating,
Dempsey said.
Because everyone has a
different place they like to be,
depending on what the subject, what kind of attention
they need, and what they need
to touch and experience, she
said. Ive been teaching for 12
years with kids of all different
types of learning differences,
because students cant perform
as well when they arent comfortable. It normalizes everyone
and students who need support
services can blend in with the
rest of the class.
Dempsey said this project was
rewarding on more than a personal level.
If youre willing to put in the
time and the effort, youre going
to get the rewards, she said.
Not just from your students and
peers, but from administration
that recognizes that what youre
doing is valuable for the students
and thats what were all about,
whats best for the students.

lywood and two accessibility machines which can

fill out a ballot for people.
On Election Day on
Nov. 8, St. Marys County has 36 precincts and
those locations have not
changed since the primary election, Adkins said.
The largest three precincts at Mechanicsville Elementary School,
Hollywood Elementary
School and Lexington
Park Elementary School
will have two scanners
each on Election Day.
Republican presidential
candidate Donald Trump
has repeatedly suggested
that the U.S. election system is rigged.
It just makes no sense,
Adkins said, to suggest local boards of elections are
part of a large conspiracy.
There are so many security checkpoints to go
through in Marylands
election system, she said.
St. Marys County elections equipment is stored
under lock and key at a
warehouse in Lexington
Park and only board of
elections staff is allowed
near the devices. Its on
lockdown, Adkins said.
As of last month, there
were 70,384 total active
voters in St. Marys County. Republicans made
up 42 percent of voters
(29,482) to 37 percent

Twitter: @JacquiEntNews

(25,953) of Democrats,
while 20 percent (13,907)
belonged to no party.
Last week, St. Marys
County Commissioner
Tom Jarboe (R) had advice for voters heading
into the presidential election to be civil with one
another.
Jarboe noted the hostile environment that this
election in particular has
brought out, and its just
embarrassing. I think
were really teaching
people the wrong thing.
You can be as passionate
as you want for one candidate or the another, or
for one party or the other,
but you have to respect
the people that you live
and work with every day.
The election season
comes and goes, but you
have to live with the people around you. You have
to get along. If someone
disagrees with you politically, you shouldnt hate
them because of that, he
said.
Jarboe said he sees the
battles of presidential
candidate signs along
Route 235 with signs going up and down each day.
Stop being petty, stop
stealing peoples signs,
stop flipping people the
bird and act civil, Jarboe
said.
Twitter: @JasonEntNews

FINAL ROUND OF VOTING ENDS FRIDAY, 11:59 pm

Prizes include:
Grand Prize $500
Second Place Prize $250, Third Place Prize $100
Winners are determined by public vote and will be announced on November 4.
All entries will be featured in our 2016 Cutest Baby Album on November 4.
Voting is paid, 50 cents per vote. Proceeds from voting benefit the Newspapers in
Education program in our local schools. For official rules and voting, please
visit somdnews.com/contests. You may also call us at 1-800-220-1230 if you
have questions about the contest, or if you would prefer to vote by phone.