United Way campaign update

Your pledge could help take us over the top. Our United Way campaign has now raised $1,742,101--95 percent of the combined goal of $1,832,500 for all Hopkins entities.

Hopkins offices donate to keep holiday food program running

Responding to a United Way First Call for Help plea, three Johns Hopkins offices have pledged $2,500 to preserve a holiday program of the Maryland Food Bank. The 10-year-old program, Bags of Plenty, supplies 250 families in Baltimore City with a full Thanksgiving meal, including a coupon for a free Purdue turkey and a bag full of holiday meal staples.

The needed funds came from the universityıs Office of City and Community Relations, JHMıs Office of Corporate and Community Services and the universityıs Office of Staff, Faculty and Retiree Programs.

William McLennan, director of operations for the Maryland Food Bank, said it is only through the generosity of the Hopkins offices that these 250 families will be able to enjoy Thanksgiving dinner this year.

The First Call for Help, which helps coordinate Bags of Plenty, is a 24-hour, statewide information and referral service of the United Way of Central Maryland. The Maryland Food Bank is a resource for nonprofit organizations that care for the needy. The agency distributes salvaged or unsalable products that might otherwise be thrown away. These products are supplemented by public food drives, a purchased food program and a surplus produce program.

Through Dec. 15, APL and Homewood will be collecting nonperishable foods for the Maryland Food Bank. At APL, contact Jeanine Falise at 443-778-6278. Homewood donations can be brought to 119 Garland.

Psychiatry Department video on teen depression wins award

Day for Night: Recognizing Teenage Depressio, a look into depression as told through teenage testimonies, has won a FREDDIE Award for outstanding coping film. The 28-minute video is a result of a collaboration between the Depression and Related Affective Disorders Association and the Department of Psychiatry at the School of Medicine.

The award was presented Nov. 11 at the 26th annual International Health and Medical Media Awards, held in New York City.

The video, intended for use in schools, offers an in-depth look at the signs, symptoms and treatment of teenage depression. It includes interviews with teens who experienced clinical depression and/or bipolar disorders. An Aspen, Colo., mother who lost her son, a sufferer of manic depression, financed the making of the film.

The FREDDIE awards are sponsored by Time Inc. Health, the heath information subsidiary of Time Inc. and Time Warner.

The Depression and Related Affective Disorders Association is a Baltimore-based nonprofit uniting the efforts of people with affective disorders, their family members, mental health professionals and others.

The video, which costs $60, is available by calling 410-955-4647 or going online at: www.med.jhu.edu/drada

MBA team takes fourth place in national competition

A team from the School of Professional Studies in Business and Education advanced to the finals of the annual National Black MBA Association International Case Competition. Hopkins finished fourth out of 36 teams, topping such schools as Georgetown, Yale, MIT, Columbia and the University of Michigan. The top three finalists were Purdue, Penn State and Duke.

This year, the Hopkins MBA students dealt with the impact on the automobile industry of the use of technology, particularly telematics, the means by which drivers can use in-car Internet access to ensure their vehicleıs security, get directions and obtain roadside assistance and other services.

Team members were Sabree Akinyele, Catarina Dehoyos-Gilbert, Candace Steele and LaShonda Stewart-Tavares.

Hopkins has reached the finals five of the past seven years, last year taking top honors.