MoCo

Per Montgomery County: Montgomery County businesses conducting research in biotechnology, medicine or life sciences may be eligible to receive Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR)/Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) matching grants to assist with their research funding and commercialization activities. Applications for grants will open at 9 a.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 15.

Businesses that have received SBIR/STTR Phase 1 or Phase 2 awards recently for research taking place in Montgomery County may be eligible for additional non-dilutive funding through the program to help them with technical assistance, IP costs and other research-related activities. Businesses that never have received a SBIR/STTR award may apply for Phase 0 grants to cover the cost of SBIR/STTR application support. Montgomery County’s SBIR/STTR Matching Grant Program is the only County program of its kind in the nation.

Per Montgomery County: Eighteen organizations and individuals were recently honored with Martin Luther King (MLK) Peacemaker Awards at a ceremony sponsored by Montgomery County’s Street Outreach Network (SON), which is part of the Department of Health and Human Services’ Positive Youth Development (PYD) program. The awards organizations and individuals were honored for their peacemaking work to make Montgomery County a better place to live.

Those honored at the ceremonies on Jan. 13 were chosen by staff from the SON for their efforts to help prevent violence and bring peace to their neighborhoods. Among the honorees were community leaders, including those from business and education, as well as County Government and elected officials.

Before joining DPS, Sabbakhan was the chief building official for the City of Rockville. He has worked in several roles for the Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs (DCRA) at the government of the District of Columbia, including permitting chief, chief building official, senior advisor for building and compliance. He also served as interim director of the DCRA, where he started its paperless permitting movement with the implementation of ProjectDox and started its Green Building Program.

Earlier in his career, he worked for the City of Richmond, overseeing construction of several major economic development projects through completion and occupancy. He has a bachelor’s degree in architecture from the University of Virginia.

Per Montgomery County: The Montgomery County Council will host its annual commemoration for Black History Month, which is celebrated nationally every February, on Tuesday, Feb. 7 at 11:30 a.m. This year’s commemoration will focus on Black Resistance through faith, education, activism, political representation, and Black fraternities and sororities. The commemoration will include a proclamation presentation and video interviews highlighting Black leaders who have made strides locally and nationally through different forms of resistance.

This year’s commemoration will recognize Rev. Timothy B. Warner, pastor of Emory Grove United Methodist Church, Carolyn Taylor, former resident of the historic Emory Grove community, Montgomery County Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Monifa B. McKnight, Michelle McNeil Gill, president of the Theta Omega Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., Kenneth Clark, former president of the Iota Upsilon Lambda Chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., Willie Pearl Mackey King, civil rights activist, and Councilmembers Will Jawando and Laurie-Anne Sayles.

Per Montgomery County: The Montgomery County Council will meet on Tuesday, Jan. 31 at 9 a.m. The meeting will begin with two proclamation presentations. The first, presented by Councilmembers Sidney Katz, Will Jawando and Laurie-Anne Sayles, will recognize Rachel Carson Elementary School student Aubrey Campbell’s Make-a-Wish trip. The second, presented by Councilmember Jawando and County Executive Marc Elrich, will recognize National Mentoring Month.

More detail on each agenda item is provided below.

Per Montgomery County: Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich was joined by County Council Vice President Andrew Friedson and members of the County Council in Rockville today for the announcement that a total of $800,000 in grant funding will be provided to 91 County organizations to improve security and deter hate crimes. The funds will come through the County’s Nonprofit Security Grants program.

In May 2022, the County Council approved $800,000 to be available in the Fiscal Year 2023 budget for use by eligible local nonprofit or faith-based organizations whose facilities have experienced, or are at a high risk of experiencing, hate crimes.