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A bill that would have provided business tax credits to businesses that support tuition scholarship programs was defeated on a 15-5 vote in the House of Delegates Ways and Means Committee March 22. The bill would have established a program called BOAST, “Building Opportunities for All Students and Teachers in Maryland,” allowing businesses to claim a 75 percent state tax credit for donations to organizations that support Maryland’s K-12 public and nonpublic school students and teachers. The program would have been capped at $25 million.

For Matt White and Kelsey Jones deciding on which college to attend is just one of the many choices they will have to face in the next four years. The youth group at St. Francis of Assisi, Fulton, is attempting to make the transition from high school to college a little smoother.

VATICAN CITY – On the fourth anniversary of the war in Iraq, three U.S. Catholic peace activists paid a discreet but significant visit to the Vatican. The officers of the Indiana-based Catholic Peace Fellowship were in Rome in mid-March to promote the issue of conscientious objection to war. They didn’t know what kind of reception they’d get from Vatican experts, but after a week of talks and meetings, they left feeling like they’d received a sympathetic hearing. “It’s been a miraculous trip,” said Joshua Casteel. “We’ve received great support and open ears here. It’s encouraging to see that we are part of a tradition that’s very sensitive to peace issues.”

VATICAN CITY – In the first two years of his pontificate, Pope Benedict XVI has focused on strengthening Christian values in a world disoriented by indifference, relativism and increasing secularism, said a top Vatican official. Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, Vatican secretary of state, made the comments in Milan, Italy, March 20 in a speech to Ethics and Finance, an Italian association of business people. The cardinal said Pope Benedict’s overall goal is to reclaim the authentic Christian identity as understood by the faithful and practiced in the world.

PHOENIX – Nearly two years after parishes in the Phoenix Diocese were asked to restore the order of the sacraments of initiation and begin confirming third-graders before they receive the Eucharist, students, families and parish leaders are still adjusting. Phoenix Bishop Thomas J. Olmsted said the restored order “has gone remarkably well,” thanks to everyone working together. He detailed the reasoning for the changes in a 2005 pastoral letter. Restoring the order means that, after being baptized, young Catholics are next confirmed and then, at the same Mass, receive first Communion.

Philip J. Forte will step down at the end of the current school year as principal of The Cardinal Gibbons School in Baltimore to take on the newly created position of director of Lasallian mission. The school has begun a search for a new principal. Brother Kevin Strong, F.S.C., president of the all-boys middle and high school, announced the change in a Feb. 22 letter to parents and alumni. The new role will focus on helping students understand the charism of the Christian Brothers, a religious teaching order founded in France by St. John Baptist de La Salle.

Although St. Rita School, Dundalk, has officially closed, a day of events is being planned to recognize eight decades of quality Catholic education. Alumni, former teachers, school parents and the community are invited to visit the school May 19, 2-5 p.m., to take part in the celebration of its rich history. Classrooms will be opened once again to display 80 years of memorabilia and photos; later that evening the items will be auctioned.