August 2003

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NEW THIS MONTH:
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- SAVE THE DATE!: October 21 is GBC's 2004 Business Outlook
- CALL FOR NOMINATIONS: 2003 Mayor's Business Recognition Award Nominations Due October 17
GBC NEWS:
1. GBC, Presidents' Roundtable Release Study of City Schools' Fiscal Management
2. GBC Website, State House Update Newsletter Win National Apex Awards
3. Hippodrome is 80 Percent Complete, On Track for February Opening
4. GBC, Sondheim Host Mayor from Taiwan
5. Grasmick Urges Business Support for Education Initiatives
6. Health Care Proposal Aims to Insure All Marylanders
7. Saar Tells GBC of Statewide Public Safety Strategies
8. Harbor Pass Lets Tourists Explore Baltimore with Ease
9. August "Issues & Answers" Segments Focus on Legislative Issues
10. GBC Golf Classic Draws Record Participation
11. Hiring "SMARTT" Means Hiring the Right Person for Your Organization

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MEMBER NEWS
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- WBAL Radio to join CBS Radio Network
- Five GBC members make U.S. News & World Report list of Top Hospitals
- BCCC hosts communication skills workshop on September 12
- UMB to assist in planning for terrorist attacks; UM School of Nursing appoints Board of Visitors chair
- P.W. Feats hires three for design and technology team
- Constellation Energy Classic offers volunteer, sponsorship opportunities
- CollegeBound Foundation to honor scholars on August 7
- Villa Julie adds three to Board of Trustees
- Ballard Spahr receives Pro Bono Service Award; recognized as Leading Firm for 2003-2004
- Eight GBC members selected among BBJ's "Who's Who in Law"
- Heery selected to oversee FDIC construction project
- Whiteford, Taylor & Preston attorneys elected Fellows of Maryland Bar Foundation
- KCI launches subsidiary KCI Construction Services, LLC

For details on these member news headlines and more, click here.

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UPCOMING GBC EVENT NOTES
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(See the GBC Calendar at www.gbc.org for more upcoming events.)

1. SAVE THE DATE! 
Tuesday, October 21, 2003
GBC Business Outlook 2004
7:30 a.m.: Registration
8:15 a.m. - 10 a.m.: Program
Wyndham Baltimore Inner Harbor Hotel, 101 W. Fayette Street, Baltimore
Sponsored by: Ballard Spahr Andrews & Ingersoll, LLP (Premier Sponsor); Abrams, Foster, Nole & Williams, PA; College Savings Plans of Maryland; EMR, Network 2000, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Villa Julie College; Whiteford, Taylor & Preston LLP; Comcast, Johns Hopkins Medicine, Miles & Stockbridge, and Piper Rudnick.
Contact: Pat Kirkner, 410-727-2820, x11
Sponsorship opportunities are available! Contact Jay Stewart, 410-727-2820, x35.


2. MAYOR'S BUSINESS RECOGNITION AWARD NOMINATIONS DUE OCTOBER 17
The nomination deadline for the 2003 Mayor's Business Recognition Awards is October 17, 2003. The awards, co-sponsored by the Mayor's Office and the Baltimore Development Corporation, are given to deserving companies for specific projects and activities that have significantly benefited the Baltimore community.

Please include support materials with your nomination form, including a description of the project, the number of people who benefited from the project, the number of people who participated in or volunteered for the project, and the overall impact or effect of the project. For more information, contact Pat Kirkner, GBC Director of Business Services, at 410-727-2820, x11. Click here for a nomination form.

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GBC CALENDAR OF EVENTS
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(See the GBC Calendar at www.gbc.org for more upcoming events.)

Tuesday, September 2
Education Committee, 8:00 a.m. - 9:30 a.m. GBC Board Room. Contact Liz Pettengill, 410-727-2820, x41.
Meeting open to all GBC members.

Thursday, September 4
Hospitality/Tourism Industry Group, 8:00 a.m. - 9:30 a.m. GBC Board Room. Contact Alice Smith, 410-727-2820, x19. Meeting open to all GBC members.

Monday, September 8
Health Care Committee, 8:00 a.m. - 9:30 a.m. GBC Board Room. Contact Devon Dodson, 410-727-2820, x40. Meeting open to all GBC members.

Wednesday, September 10
GBC Breakfast Briefing Seminar, 7:30 - 8:15 a.m. - Registration; 8:15 - 9:15 a.m. - Program.
Topic: "Changing Strategic Direction," Guest Speaker: University of Baltimore President Robert Bogomolny. GBC Board Room. Contact Alice Smith, 410-727-2820, x19.

Wednesday, September 10
GBC Business Education Advisory Committee, 9:15 a.m. - 10:15 a.m. GBC Board Room.
Contact Alice Smith, 410-727-2820, x19. Meeting open to all GBC members.

Wednesday, September 17
GBC Technology Policy Group, 8:00 a.m. - 9:30 a.m. GBC Board Room. Contact Devon Dodson, 410-727-2820, x40. Meeting open to all GBC members.

Thursday, September 18
Built Environment Committee, 8:00 a.m. - 9:30 a.m. GBC Board Room. Contact Devon Dodson, 410-727-2820, x40. Meeting open to all GBC members.

Thursday, September 18
Public Safety Committee, Noon - 1:30 p.m. GBC Board Room. Contact Devon Dodson, 410-727-2820, x40.
Meeting open to all GBC members.

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GBC NEWS
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1. GBC RELEASES STUDY ON CITY SCHOOLS' FISCAL MANAGEMENT
The Greater Baltimore Committee and the Presidents' Roundtable presented their study of the Baltimore City Public School System's (BCPSS) fiscal management practices and budget process to Baltimore Mayor Martin O'Malley on July 15. The study, prepared at the request of Mayor O'Malley and Baltimore City Public School System Board of Commissioners Chair Patricia L. Welch, cites the need to strengthen accountability as a key factor in keeping deficits in line.

Click here for more on this story.
Click here to view the report.


2. GBC WEBSITE, STATE HOUSE UPDATE NEWSLETTER WIN NATIONAL APEX AWARDS
The Greater Baltimore Committee is the winner of two Apex Awards for Publication Excellence. The GBC website, www.gbc.org, was among 26 websites nationally to receive excellence awards in the category of One to Two Person-Produced Web & Intranet Sites. The GBC State House Update newsletter was among 17 in the U.S. cited for excellence in the E-mail Newsletters category.

Click here for more on the awards.


3. HIPPODROME IS 80 PERCENT COMPLETE, ON TRACK FOR FEBRUARY OPENING
The renovation of the historic Hippodrome Theater on Baltimore's Eutaw Street is 80 percent complete and on schedule for its planned February, 2004 opening of the Broadway hit "The Producers," according to Mark Sissman, president and CEO of the Hippodrome Foundation. Sissman guided GBC President Donald C. Fry and GBC staff on a tour of the theater on July 22.

Click here for more about the Hippodrome renovation project.


4. GBC, SONDHEIM HOST MAYOR FROM TAIWAN
The mayor of Kaohsiung City, the largest port city in Taiwan, visited the Greater Baltimore Committee recently to learn about the history of Baltimore's Inner Harbor and about the city's future waterfront development plans.

Click here for more about the mayor's visit to GBC.


5. GRASMICK URGES BUSINESS SUPPORT FOR EDUCATION INITIATIVES
State Superintendent of Schools Nancy Grasmick asked the business community for its support on several education initiatives during a recent meeting of the GBC Education Committee. Her main concern, she says, is funding for the Thornton Commission, designed to raise annual state education funding by $1.1 billion by the year 2007.

Click here for more on Grasmick's comments.


6. HEALTH CARE PROPOSAL AIMS TO INSURE ALL MARYLANDERS
Two prominent advocates for universal health care outlined a new proposal to provide comprehensive health care coverage to all Marylanders at the July 7 meeting of the GBC Health Care Committee. Vincent DeMarco, executive director of the Maryland Citizens' Health Initiative, and Baltimore City Health Commissioner Peter Beilensen are working to build support for their plan, which would insure an estimated 600,000 uninsured Marylanders.

Click here for details about the proposal.


7. SAAR TELLS GBC OF STATEWIDE PUBLIC SAFETY STRATEGIES
Public health issues have become a major focus of the state's Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services, according to the department's secretary Mary Ann Saar. She told members of the GBC Public Safety Committee on July 17 about a recent study showing that inmates of the Division of Correction and detainees of Baltimore City intake facilities have high rates of HIV, Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C infections. Providing treatment before the inmates' release into the population is extremely important, she says, and her department is currently working to find out what it can do to prevent this growing public health hazard.

Click here for more on the state's public safety strategies.


8. HARBOR PASS LETS TOURISTS EXPLORE BALTIMORE WITH EASE
A new program launched on June 12 gives tourists discounted admission and coupons to many Baltimore attractions through the purchase of a three-day pass, Baltimore Area Convention and Visitors Association (BACVA) officials reported to the GBC's Hospitality/Tourism Industry Group on June 25.

Click here for more about the Harbor Pass.


9. AUGUST "ISSUES & ANSWERS" SEGMENTS FOCUS ON LEGISLATIVE ISSUES
August segments of "Issues & Answers," the public affairs show produced by Comcast in partnership with the GBC, focus on legislative issues. William G. Somerville, ethics counsel for the Maryland Department of Legislative Services, will discuss ethics and conflicts of interest among legislators. State Ethics Commission Executive Director Suzanne Fox will review laws surrounding the filing of financial disclosure statements and conflict of interest issues among state employees, and James Browning, executive director of Common Cause will discuss campaign finance reform. In addition, CPHA Executive Director Michael Sarbanes will talk about his organization's positions on community issues, and Bill Pencek, director of the Baltimore City Heritage Area, will discuss how heritage tax credits are important to development of heritage and cultural tourism.

Click here for "Issues & Answers" times, channels and schedule of guests.


10. GBC GOLF CLASSIC DRAWS RECORD PARTICIPATION
The Greater Baltimore Committee's 2003 Golf Classic drew more than 140 golfers to Greystone Golf Course on July 9. The sold-out event featured contests, raffles, and an awards luncheon. The winning foursome at this year's event was a team from Comcast.

Click here for a photo gallery of the event.


11. HIRING "SMARTT" MEANS HIRING THE RIGHT PERSON FOR YOUR ORGANIZATION
Have you ever hired someone because you've had a "good feeling" about him or her? Be careful in letting emotions overrun logic in hiring decisions, advises Vicki Hess, principal of Catalyst Consulting, LLC. When "hiring from the heart," an interviewer focuses more on the friendliness of a job candidate than on how well that person would fit into the position or organization at hand.

Click here for more tips on how to hire the right person.