Week in Review: Headwear Policies, Anti-Gay Fliers Challenged

With editors stationed across Montgomery County, Patch brings you news from many corners of the community. Catch up on headlines you may have missed this week, including news of a new headwear policy at Northwood High School, anti-gay fliers at Wootton and Einstein high schools and gas station thefts in Takoma Park.

Northwood High School, whose administration required a letter of verification from a rabbi when a student wore a kippah to school at the end of January, has changed its religious headwear policy so that a parent's word is sufficient. 

Multiple students expressed concern to MCPS Superintendent Joshua Starr regarding a flier explaining that being gay is a choice. The flier was distributed at Wootton and Einstein high schools last week. 

Even with targeted patrol, thefts from autos  are very hard to stop, according to Takoma Park Crime Analyst Andrew Gucciardo.

Despite continually using marked and unmarked units during specific times when the suspects are known to hit, , more than any other individual spot in Takoma Park.

And, since the crime is a misdemeanor theft, not a robbery, police are not allowed to chase suspects over the Maryland-Washington, DC, line, which is where most of them escape, Gucciardo said. 

County residents this week got their chance to weigh in on County Executive Isiah Leggett's $4.2-billion capital spending program, which moves the county's public safety facilities out of Rockville and funds several road and development projects that will impact traffic around the city. Read more on Rockville Patch.

The latest in our biweekly River Watch column: Roger Hamilton's popular column takes a look at the environmental issues surrounding the Potomac River. This week, he seeks wisdom and wry humor from the “apostle of the black bass,” circa 1881. 

The historic Bethesda Theatre, a Wisconsin Avenue landmark that went dark following a 2010 foreclosure, has been sold and a blues and jazz supper club is now planned for the space. The Bethesda community has pushed to see the theater reincarnated as an arts and entertainment venue.Read more on Bethesda Patch.

Soccer, lacrosse, field hockey, swimming: Over the past two years, Watkins Mill has been surging in nearly every sport as students and school leaders redefine the culture at the oft-maligned high school. To keep that momentum going, Watkins Mill has created an innovative summer sports camp for 5th- through 8th-graders meant to establish a pipeline that will keep the cluster's most promising youngsters wearing Orange and Blue. 

Montgomery County residents and officials are advocating the return of a full school resource officer program in Montgomery County schools to help with preventative public safety. 

You don’t have to be a paying patron of  or  to enjoy the very best that Chevy Chase has to offer. Just walk onto the plaza of The Shops at Wisconsin Place, and you’ll be in the middle of an award-winning, internationally recognized design—and it’s all yours to enjoy. 

As the Kensington Sector Plan gets closer to approval, a Montgomery County Council committee has recommended allowing one developer to exceed the plan's maximum building height in exchange for public amenities, an idea that has been controversial among officials and residents.