Culinary Arts

I have nothing against children I wish them all the best. But as much as talented, artistic students will benefit from the Barbara Ingram arts school downtown, it's the prospects for the City of Hagerstown itself that have me more juiced at the moment. The school is made possible by two unlikely things: The donation of a historic, Potomac Street building by known downtown proponent Vincent Groh (the school will be named after his late wife) and a creative, low-interest loan put together by MEDCO, a state economic development agency, with an assist from the City of Hagerstown.

(formerly Community and Technical College of Shepherd) Spring 2006 semester President's List (4.0 grade-point average) Automotive Technology - Robert E. Nofsinger. Board of Governors - Cynthia A. Carper, Christopher R. Dye, Penny L. Lambert, Kathy S. Lane, Dennis E. Streets, Anita D. Trout. Business - Sunny Ahsan, Crystal M. Beard, Mary K. Briggs, Damian C. Caldwell, Sarah A. Custer, Rhodia Y. Kress, Susan A. Landis, Taffiea A. Marshall, Jeanna L. Peer, Sandra L. Ryan, Amber N. Streets, Valerie M. Suits, Shirl M. Wilson.

MARTINSBURG, W.Va. Measure twice, cut once. That was the rule for the 31 students who competed in the carpentry skills contest Saturday at the James Rumsey Technical Institute near Hedgesville as part of the 2006 West Virginia Skills USA Leadership and Skills Conference. Bedecked in hard hats, goggles and tool belts, the contestants were given five hours and all of the materials needed to construct a small platform with stairs and railing. The materials, which were donated by a number of area builders and building supply companies, were just enough for the contestants to complete their assignment, said Jesse Tasker, the contest's lead judge and the head of the carpentry program at Rumsey.

Students slated to compete in Skills USA state championships FREDERICK, Md. - Ninety-five students and 28 staff members from the Frederick County Career and Technology Center were scheduled to travel to Catonsville Community College, the Center for Applied Technology North and Anne Arundel Community College's Hospitality, Culinary Arts and Tourism Institute on March 24 and 25 to compete in the 33rd annual SkillsUSA Maryland State Championships....

Eric Richard Spielman, a freshman at St. Mary's College of Maryland, has accepted a Sam Walton Community Scholarship, sponsored by the Wal-Mart Foundation and awarded through Wal-Mart and Sam's Club stores nationwide. Spielman is a 2005 graduate of Williamsport High School, where he was a STARS receipient was named to Who's Who Among American High School Students, the National Honor Roll and the National Achievement Academy in history and government, won a Washington County Academic Excellence award and was a four-year member of the wrestling team.

martinsburg@herald-mail.com MARTINSBURG, W.Va. - The Community and Technical College of Shepherd will be renamed Blue Ridge Community & Technical College if the name is approved by the state Legislature. Of 10 new name possibilities, Blue Ridge received more first-choice votes than any other - garnering 101 of 342 votes, according to Sandy Sponaugle, a public relations official working for the college. The college's Board of Governors approved the name during a meeting Wednesday afternoon.

karenh@herald-mail.com WASHINGTON COUNTY - For Washington County Technical High School students studying carpentry, cosmetology and culinary arts, the idea of operating a business is on fertile ground. Steve Frame's entrepreneurship classes have nurtured that idea - in a greenhouse long left dormant. "An entrepreneurship class in the true sense is, 'Do you want to run your own business? How do you go about doing that?'" Frame said Thursday morning while working in the greenhouse where his students are starting a budding plant business.

pepperb@herald-mail.com Life changed for Dustin Holley on Thursday, May 9, 2002, as his culinary arts class gathered around a stove to learn how to prepare a chicken flamb dish. The alcohol being used ignited, and Holley and two of his classmates were burned, Holley the most seriously. Holley, 18, suffered third-degree burns to his face, chest and arms. Two of his classmates suffered burns to their hands and arms. Holley, with his burns bandaged, walked across the stage for his diploma at Washington County Technical High School's graduation ceremony last June.

charlestown@herald-mail.com HEDGESVILLE, W.Va. - James Rumsey Technical Institute students will be able to expand their educational opportunities through a new agreement the vocational school has developed with Mountain State University. Through the agreement, signed by the two schools last week, James Rumsey students will be able to pursue an associate of science degree in applied technology through Mountain State after completing their studies at James Rumsey, said Robert Lowry, vice president of extended learning at Mountain State.

Fourth in an occasional series of Q&As with local chefs. The joy of cooking By KEVIN CLAPP After spending time in the Midwest, Phil Cordell decided to return east for some home cookin'. For more than two years, Cordell has roamed the kitchen of Waynesboro (Pa.) Country Club as executive chef. The Greencastle, Pa., native has been at the club for more than seven years, having returned to the area after studying at the Indiana University of Pennsylvania Academy of Culinary Arts.