welcome to news4 this week. >> i'm veronica johnson and we're going to show you some of the more interesting local stories making news this week. among them, college students encouraged to hack. the unique partnership aimed at protecting us from cybersecurity threats. and it's a new law that could cost new drivers thousands. the concerns brought up this week about strict license requirements in the district. and how one guy made a five guys his personal kitchen. but first there has been growing focus on growing focus in crime at the metro stations in the past week. there have been two murders recently at the m

people calling for more police officers at all metro stations. but it turns out transit police have to go through more hurdles than most just so they can start doing their job. transportation reporter adam tusk explains. >> reporter: metro transit police officers have to know the laws and procedures in d.c., maryland and virginia for that reason alone, it simply takes longer for them to hit the street. and as far as the number of transit police officers, metro concedes it can't be everywhere all at once. >> to have an ufser at every single 91 stations, at the entrance and exits would be a phenomenon mall task. >> reporter: now they've agreed to extra patrols here. and even as we were filming, sirens on as a call for anincident here that turned out to be nothing. all of this made for a tense feeling here. >> watch your back. watch who you talk to, watch who you been around. >> reporter: candace

to catch a train on the same platform where a teenager was shot and killed. does she think metro has enough police here? >> now they do. >> reporter: for other riders, like carey wads, and unsure feeling waiting for a ride. >> i don't think it's safe enough. >> reporter: why not? >> too much stuff going on. >> reporter: for now this particular metro station under a watchful eye. news4. well it was a big week in annapolis, a productive legislative session came to the end at the maryland state house. confetti rained down to mark the end of the session. governor larry hogan siechbed more than 100 bills into law. noah's law was named for fallen officer noah leo da. requires drunk drivers to install a device up to six months. though contentious at times, the house speaker

the most productive sessions that he could recall. a plan to add tough new requirement to the district is getting a second look. the changes are supposed to happen may 1st. we found out district leaders are increasingly worried about the cost for the d.c. residents. >> reporter: many people pay for driving lessons but they can be costly. and now the d.c. dmv, as of may 1st is going to require that every first time driver take 30 hours of classroom instruction and eight hours behind the wheel before being eligible to take the test. this chairman is raising the red flag on the costly new requirements. >> of course we want people to be trained to drive properly. but what with will it mean for people of modest means. some of these courses can cost $1,000 or more. >> she told us there hasn't been

considering trying to hold up the change that would affect thousands of new teen drivers, immigrants and others new to driver. >> we're saying to people without means that they can't get a driver's license. we have to figure something else. >> reporter: dmv officials declined to appear on camera but told shay in a letter that the new requirement have been advertised for months. they're trying to ensure safe driving particularly among teens. driver's ed was once handled by d.c. schools but it stopped doing it in 2009. as of now there are no formal education requirements to take the city test. in this district, tom sherwood, news4. well montgomery students had six snow days this winter and now they have to pay the price. school officials may be forced to extend the academic year by two days to make up for lost time. four snow days were built into the calendar this year. the county asked the state toway the other two

happen. school officials told news4 they're exploring their options and they hope to ensure this quickly so that families know when the last day of school will be. the word on the street in alexandria, transportation crews can now target the worst roads in the area with the new high-tech survey van. you may have noticed this van on the city streets and neighborhoods. it's using video cameras, laser sensors and gps devices to find roads with pot hol and other problems. >> it makes us prioritize the streets basically on conditions. so we can actual i address streets that are in the worst condition and plan for those ahead in the schedule. >> the van saves a whole lot of time and man-hours trying to make access to those roads manually. so the van gets out th

report back. the district is making progress patching up the roads the old-fashioned way. it's been just a few weeks since the pothole pa loo zoo kicked off and you should notice the ride getting a little smoother. they filled more than 5,000 potholes and the effort will continue until all of the potholes are patched up and you get the nice smooth ride. >> from the roads to the rails, the agency posted this video of a 1,000 series railcar being taken off the tracks and loaded on to a flatbed. the transit agency will eventually get rid of all of the 1,000 series cars sh have been in service since the system opened in the 1970s. they're being replaced with the 7,000 series which is already, of course were debuted on the red and green lines. the old cars being used for scrap metal. well if you don't know about them, well it could cost you big time. the change made to a

in the district and how you can avoid paying a large fine. and a search for the d.c. burglar what this guy did in a five guys that has police

well if you've drib by howard university you may have hissed them. but now driving in bus only lanes could cost you a couple hundred bucks. d dot is now enforcing its bus only lanes between florida avenue and berry place northwest. the lanes are meant to help transit, tour, chart enand school buses get through the area. if you're caught driving in those lanes, you could face a $200 fine. well this is a new one. d.c. police are looking for a real-life hamburglar. investigators say this guy followed a delivery man into a five guys in columbia heht

delivery guy left and cooked himself a burger. the man left with the burger and a bottle of water. one of the largest educational events of its kind in right here in d.c. and going on this weekend. the fourth annual usa science and engineering festival is at the washington convention center. there are demonstrations, workshops all structured to get your kids excited about science, technology, engineering and math. you can find a link to te vent on our nbc washington happen just search s.t.e.m. festival. nb nbc h is the official sponsor and many of us will be there all weekend long. saturday, sunday, come see us. it's a story that you're seeing only on news4, allegations of fraud in one of the country's top universities. why some students who took

didn't get what they paid for. learning to hack, we'll show you the new program aimed at keeping all of us safe from

well now to a story you'll only see right here on news4. allegations of fraud involving an online program at one of the nation's top universities right here in our area. consumer reporter susan hogan has details of a lawsuit just filed against george washington university. >> reporter: george washington university prides itself as one of the nation's first major universities to launch online programs. but the lawsuit against the school claims students didn't get what they paid for. george washington university is a private university with a renowned reputation. and like many colleges, offers online programs. >> i didn't have the time or financial means to take off of work to

school full time. >> reporter: that's why bryce bradford, a consultant enrolled in gw's online master's program in security and safety leadership. >> i was interested in learning more about national security, homeland defense, cybersecurity. >> reporter: but when bradford and other students who included high ranking police and military officers with started taking the online program -- >> first impression for all of was was like where is the instructor. >> reporter: now they're part of a lawsuit accusing the university of fraudulent misrepresentation. >> they didn't get what they were promised. >> reporter: the attorney representing the student said that gw advertised its online program would be taught by professors who sponsored in online education, including video presentations and the learning experience

equivalent of what students would receive in the classroom. >> that's not what happened here. >> reporter: court documents show the online program was taught using power point slides taken from inclass courses. >> i'm reading through notes of a power point that clearly needs an accompanying lecture. >> reporter: but when bradford and the other students have questions and reached out to the professors -- >> a lot of times they just wouldn't respond. >> there was no real course. this was not a real program. it was a fabrication and the only justification for doing this would be money. >> reporter: the cost, each student paid more than $28,000. they did earn a master's degree but bradford says what they didn't get was an education. >> a lot of us already have multiple college degrees. i had multiple going into this. i wasn't look for another diploma on the law. i wanted to learn what they advertised. >> reporter: did you? >> no, absolutely not. >> reporter: news4 asked george washington about the

it said federal privacy laws prevent the university from responding to allegations other than in court. and overall the program has been successful for many of its students. many have gone on to successful careers in the military, law enforcement and other government agencies. >> reporter: did you get your money's worth? >> not at all, no. >> reporter: bradford says he and other students complained to the university multiple times and sent a letter to the university president. gw says since the program started in 2009 more than 300 students have gone on to graduate. susan hogan, news4. well it's ahead of schedule and under budget. the project to fix the dome of the u.s. capitol is nearing an end. house speaker paul ryan gave nbc news an exclusive look at the renovations which are the first in more than 50 years. the cast iron dome was constructed just after the civil war. it's been beaten down by weather and age. the restoration project began

since then crews have worked to restore the iron, replace the decorative ornaments and even repair the windows. they're now in the final stages of painting. that outside scaffolding will come down in july. and the scaffolding on the inside of the rotunda is expected to come down in august. when you hear hacker you usually don't think it's a good thing. this past week 350 college students were challenged to hack through fire walls. it was all part of a coordinated effort between local companies and northern virginia community college. news4's david culver explains. >> reporter: armed with their laptops and determination, these college students share a common fascination. cybersecurity. >> you're going to have job security. this is a good field. it's growing. and i think people are recognizing that. >> reporter: a part of their cybersecurity studies, learning how to hack. it may sound criminal but -- >> we'

everyone hoi do you not get hacked and how do you not end up on the news. >> reporter: case in point last week news4 told you about the hack at med star health. they're just the ratest. it happens all too often to government agents and private companies. >> this building is the regional workforce center for the northern virginia area. >> reporter: the demand for cybersecurity impacting higher education. dr. paula ford is the assistant dean of information technology. she showed us northern virginia community college's newly opened facility dedicated to the topic. >> we don't teach them how to hack into businesses for negative reasons. we teach them so they know how to counter act. >> reporter: the students signed in ready for a long weekend testing their skills. >> obviously with lots of caffeine and sugar. >> reporter: there are more than prizes at stake. >> it's like a job fair, coding program event all in one.

cybersecurity. >> you can protect people. i think that's remarkable. it's kind of like being a superhero. >> and they're excited. well they do a lot more than make money. bees, they're dying at a alarming rate. we'll show you a local project

every time you sit down to eat, here is something you probably don't realize. bees played some role in producing about a third of the food that you'll put in your mouth. they're an important part of the food chain. but as you've probably heard, they're also dying at record rates. news4 photo journalist beth brown went to george mason university where the students are engaged in a project to help the honey bee. >> reporter: when i started the project i did not like bees.

the campus. you see the big bum bees. >> call the honey bee is on decline. >> she's beautiful. >> everyone likes a clean cage. >> she's right here, she's longer, bigger than the rest. >> we have nine hives. >> throughout the semester we record each field day of what we see, how the colony is doing, if we see a queen and everything we do kind of gives us an indication on how well the colony is doing throughout the year. >> so we know that the coley actually is in good shape. >> a world without bees would mean the end

lot of the fruits and the nuts that we appreciate. >> all of the peaches, all of the apples. >> a lot of our bees die mostly just from not being able to keep themselves warm in the winter. but we do have a lot of problems with things that most beekeepers do see. >> remember that? >> yeah. >> they don't sting. >> oh. >> that's why i can hold him like this. >> we're looking to expand this initiative. we're looking to deepen our research. >> we're connected to them. >> yeah, they hep help us live so we should help them live as well. >> that's all for news4 this week. i'm veronica johnson. thanks for joining us. until next time, be safe, be kind, be happy. bye-bye. ♪

nbc sports, home of the 2016 rio olympics. the nhl, pre premier league, the sprint cup playoffs and sunday night football. only on nbc. >> welco to philadelphia! it's game 6, flyers and capitals. michal neuvirth coming off shutout in game 5 leads the flyers on the ice. here come the washington capitals who lead the series three games to two. kenny albert, joe micheletti. down to joe with the