Here's to Button Gwinnett, George Washington and Friends

1. Today will be a beautiful spring day, according to the National Weather Service—sunny with a pleasant breeze and a high around 83 degrees. But the wind will pick up in the afternoon, gusting to 20 mph, as a warning of what's coming Wednesday, when another line of severe thunderstorms is expected to hit hard.

2. Congratulations to the teachers and eighth-graders at East Cobb's and middle schools, which posted the highest average scores in Cobb County on the state's Eighth Grade Writing Assessment with 240 and 236, respectively, according a news release from the Cobb County School District on Monday. The state average was 213; the county average was 219. averaged 214. Overall, 89 percent of the 7,604 Cobb eighth-graders who took the test meet or exceeded standards. A PDF file of the full news release is attached to this article so you can check out all 25 Cobb middle schools and more details.

3. Speaking of the Cobb school system, the Board of Education is holding a special called meeting at 4:30 p.m. today at the Central Office on Glover Street, with plans to go into executive session to discuss personnel matters immediately after convening. Could it be time for the board to winnow its superintendent candidates to a final three? The plan has been to announce the finalists sometime in April. Meanwhile, the school system's advisory Facilities and Technology Committee, whose recommendations have carried no weight with the school board in recent months, met Monday, featuring former East Cobb school board member John Crooks' first appearance as a committee member and the election of a new chairman and secretary. The Marietta Daily Journal has all the details.

4. Today is the first full day of the eight-day Jewish holiday of Passover, celebrating the Exodus from Egypt. Faith Matters columnist Todd Hudson talked with Rabbi Paul Kerbel about the holiday and what it means. Many Jews will be holding a festive meal called a seder tonight. If you're not among them, you might want to attend the Civic League for Regional Atlanta's forum on regional transportation plans, including the regional SPLOST coming up for a vote in 2012, at the Mansour Center on South Marietta Parkway in Marietta. Marietta Patch plans live coverage if you want to follow along at home.

5. Today is Patriots Day in Cobb County, by proclamation of the . This day commemorates the battles of Lexington and Concord, which of course launched the American Revolution. Massachusetts observed the holiday a day early Monday with two traditions: the Boston Marathon, won in a record 2:03:02 by Kenyan Geoffrey Mutai, and a midday Red Sox game. Perhaps those are the things Georgian Button Gwinnett dreamed of when he put his John Hancock on the Declaration of Independence less than 15 months later; we're sure he would have been horrified if he'd known about the county that would be named for him.