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Schools

Leaders of Tomorrow

EDDINGTON – Thirty-one third- and fourth-grade pupils and team teachers Donna Oliver and Margaret Pietrak at Eddington School have been recognized for their participation last spring in U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Ann Veneman’s education initiative.

Mark Rey, undersecretary for natural resources and environment, came to the school to deliver a framed Leaders of Tomorrow Award.

Veneman’s initiative is designed to encourage youngsters to think about agriculture in words and pictures, according to the USDA Web site.

Each youngster received a certificate and a handshake from Rey. They were:

Josh Boucher, Wyatt Butler, Kristofer Coleman, Adam Cossette, Christopher Cushing, Raven Garland, Kelsey Johns, Gwendolyn Kotyk, Brandon Pelkey, Daniel Powell, Mark Proulx, Joey Treadwell, Lacey Treadwell, Kristen Weed and Lauren Williamson.

Jacob Chapman, Shelby Colburn, Kylie Danforth, Laine Ferrill, Caleb Grover, Mitchell Hodgins, Benjamin Holmes, Blake Lufkin, Caitlin Murchie, Taylor Sands, Alyssa Smith, Dylan Smith, Jordan Soucy, Ashley Webb and Kevin Whitmore.

The pupils’ reports and posters won a nationwide competition.

The Eddington School was alerted in the spring that it had been chosen to participate in the USDA program because of the school’s focus on agriculture in its curriculum, according to Toni Morton, chairman of the Maine Agriculture in the Classroom Association,

MAITCA is an independent association that promotes the understanding of agriculture and natural resources among pupils, teachers and the public.

Morton recommended the Eddington school’s third and fourth grades.

Essay contest

The Bangor Elks Lodge 244 has announced its Americanism essay contest for 2004-2005. The theme is “What Old Glory Means to Me.”

The contest is open to students enrolled in the fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth grades in Bangor, Hampden, Holden, Hermon, Orrington, Carmel, Winterport, Corinth and Bucksport schools.

The contest has two divisions, one for fifth- and sixth-graders and one for seventh- and eighth-graders. Cash prices will be awarded in each division – $75 for first place, $50 for second place and $25 for third place. Deadline for entries is Nov. 5. Submit entries to Joan B. Glans, Bangor Elks Lodge 244, 108 Lynn Road, Bangor 04401. To obtain more information, call 942-3616.

Junior War College

Two local students attended the Junior War College, one of the 2004 Congressional Student Leadership Conferences sponsored by LeadAmerica this summer. They are:

. William Hinkley of Charleston, a student at Bangor Christian School.

. Thomas Hopkins of Orrington, a student at John Bapst Memorial High School.

The Junior War College, held at Virgina Military Institute, is a one-of-a-kind program for high school students interested in military strategy. Students studied wars, from the American Revolution through today’s war on terror, explained program director Col. Floyd Duncan, Roberts Professor of Free Enterprise Economics at VMI.

Duncan said that the program presented a balanced look at war, focusing on both the successes and failures of the country. In addition to lectures by invited speakers, students participated in field trips to the D-Day Memorial in Bedford, Va.; to Washington; and to the New Market Battlefield, where VMI cadets turned the tide of a Civil War battle, marking the only time in history that a military school’s corps of cadets was committed to battle as a unit.

The colonel said that the students also discussed the human side of combat after viewing classic war films, and honed leadership skills by negotiating the VMI obstacle course, a leadership challenge course, and a series of leadership exercises.

Additional information on LeadAmerica conferences can be found by checking www.leadamerica.org or by calling (866) 394-5323. Information on VMI can be found at www.vmi.edu.

Pesticide policy

Parents should be keeping an eye out for their school’s pesticide policy and notification information, which would likely be included in start-of-year handouts, say officials with the Maine Board of Pesticides Control. Beginning last school year, Maine law began requiring all public and private K-12 schools to adopt pest management policies that minimize the risks of pesticide exposure.

The regulation requires schools to inform parents within the first two weeks of every school year of their integrated pest management policy, as well as provide them with a means to be notified before high risk pesticide applications occur.

“If parents don’t receive a notice, we encourage them to contact school officials to make sure they’re in compliance with all pesticide laws,” said Maine Board of Pesticides Control Director Robert Batteese.

“Our regulation is clear and in keeping with the nationwide concern voiced about the risks of pesticide use in schools,” added Batteese. “Requiring schools to adopt a science-based integrated pest management policy and notify parents before using high risk pesticides will reduce the potential for pesticide exposure while maintaining proper, economical, and effective pest management.”

Parents can find out more about the regulation by visiting www.thinkfirstspraylast.org/schoolipm.

The Maine School IPM Program is a partnership of the Maine Department of Agriculture, Food and Rural Resources; Maine Board of Pesticides Control; and the University of Maine Cooperative Extension. The program is dedicated to reducing risks of pests and pesticides in Maine schools.

Colleges

Methodist College

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. – Jeffrey Bouchard of Hampden was named to the dean’s list for the spring semester at Methodist College. He was one of 262 students named to the list. He is the son of Brian and Renee Bouchard.

Colleges

Eastern Maine Community College

BANGOR – The Eastern Maine Community College fall term began Aug. 30. All students services are now located at the new Campus Center, in the Katahdin Hall renovation.

The EMCC Early Childhood Education Center, the new campus child care center for students and community members, also opened Monday. Child care center hours are 7:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. The center, located in the Campus Center complex, still has openings for infants, toddlers and preschoolers.

Students interested in enrolling for the fall semester at EMCC may call 974-4680.

For information on the EMMC Early Childhood Education Center, call director Nan Simpson at 974-4828.

Northeastern University

BOSTON – Matthew Brown of Glenburn earned a bachelor’s degree from the college of arts and sciences at Northwestern University at commencement ceremonies on May 1.

Brown, who has done a variety of co-ops at Boston area law firms, is a member of the National Society of Collegiate Scholars and graduated summa cum laude. He is the son of Sonya and Fred Brown of Glenburn.