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Bangor JROTC Drill Team

BANGOR – The Bangor High School Junior ROTC Drill Team competed recently at the Old Town High School JROTC Drill Competition.

Schools from New England were on hand – Hermon High School, Old Town High School, Bangor High School and White Mountain Regional High School from Whitefield, N.H.

There was a good turnout for the competition, and members of participating JROTCs are hoping to draw more fans from around the communities to see what the JROTC programs have to offer.

There are six events in the competition.

In the inspection event, Bangor finished in second place and extends congratulations to Hermon for winning first place.

The Color Guard for Bangor finished in first place, commanded by Cadet Staff Sgt. Lucas Desjardins.

Squad Drill, with and without arms, was commanded by Cadet Maj. Alex Waltz. The Bangor cadets did a wonderful job, winning first place in each event.

Platoon Drill, with and without arms, commanded by Cadet Lt. Col. Jordan Loeven, presented a routine of precise movements both with and without weapons, and took first place in each event.

Bangor cadets won both phases of the final Individual Drill. The “with arms” drill was won by Loeven, and the “without arms” competition by Waltz, both members of Bangor JROTC. Overall, it was a good drill competition that served as a stepping stone.

Another drill competition was scheduled for Oct. 11 at Hermon High School, with seven schools expected to participate.

Bangor Junior ROTC then will travel to New Hampshire and Vermont before coming back to Maine Maritime Academy for the Northern New England Championship on Nov. 15 in Castine.

United Technologies Center

BANGOR – Everyday students from several partner schools – Bangor High School, Brewer High School, Central High School, Hampden Academy, Hermon High School, Old Town High School, Orono High School, Calvary Christian School, Bangor Christian Schools and John Bapst Memorial High School – attend United Technologies Center to learn skills for a career and to earn college credits.

Many students at UTC began the school year by working on 10- and 30-hour Occupational Safety and Health Administration cards and the required safety training for each program. Topics covered included personal protection equipment, ladder safety, confined space, egress-fire safety and hazardous materials. At any given time an observer may see at UTC:

. Culinary arts students preparing entrees and desserts for the Culinary Delights Restaurant each Thursday.

. Health occupation students practicing nursing skills in preparation for a certified nurse’s aide clinic at Maine Veterans Home.

. Students in the outdoor power and recreation program learning about chain saws and other power tools produced by STIHL at a three-day training workshop.

. Students in building construction, electrical and plumbing and heating programs, with assistance from Forever Green Laminates, planning and building a house for a low-income family.

. Heavy equipment operation students preparing a project for Holden Conservation.

. CPR instructions to CNA and public safety students given by guest CPR trainer Don Wade.

. Sgt. Debbie Mitchell of the University of Maine Public Safety giving self-defense lessons and law enforcement training to public safety students.

The ABC 7-FOX 22 news backdrop and interview area built by UTC building construction students was installed in September.

Summer Reading Challenge

BANGOR – Students, families and faculty of Penobscot Christian School enjoyed a party on Sept. 27 at the Bangor Public Library as a result of winning the library’s Summer Reading Challenge contest.

The party was hosted by library staff and included ice cream sundaes, face painting, line dancing with the Marsh Island Band, juggler Zach Field, violin music by the students of Megan Grassi, karaoke, crafts, a pizza-eating contest and more.

Ninety-three percent of the students at the school participated in the Summer Reading Challenge.

Challenger Learning Center

BANGOR – Challenger Learning Center of Maine announced the continuation of its home-school science workshop for the school year. All programs run 9-11 a.m.:

. Astronaut Life, Nov. 4. Learn how astronauts use robotics. Make a robotic arm and use the center’s glove box.

. Circuitry, Dec. 2. Design a game using simple circuits.

. Magnetism, Jan. 6. Find out how magnets work and how they affect the Earth.

. Special event for Home-schoolers, 9-11 a.m. Tuesday, Feb. 3. Be a mission controller and an astronaut taking part in a new mission simulation. The class is for children in grades four and up, or those in grade three accompanied by an adult.

The cost is $15 a participant. Programs are appropriate for grades three to eight. Children in kindergarten through grade two may participate if accompanied by an adult.

Preregistration is encouraged by calling 990-2900, ext.3, or visit www.clcofme.org.

Colleges

New UM admissions site

ORONO – Laila Sholtz-Ames of Exeter, a journalism and anthropology major at the University of Maine, is featured on UMaine’s new Admissions Web site at www.go.umaine.edu.

“I’ve really had a chance to academically shine and learn a lot of things, and then socially, I’ve had the chance to meet a lot of new people,” Sholtz-Ames said. “I’ve really expanded my horizons coming to UMaine.”

The University of Maine is the University of Maine System’s flagship campus. Located in the city of Orono, UMaine was founded in 1865 and stands as Maine’s only land- and sea-grant institution. Some 12,000 undergraduate and graduate students from around the world attend UMaine.

Ambassador to ‘green’ conference

ORONO – When Meghan McPhee of Boothbay talks about her work in the landscape design field, it’s obvious that she loves what she’s studying. The energetic University of Maine senior is president of UMaine’s Horticulture Club, president of the campus chapter of PLANET, the Professional Landcare Network, and member of Alpha Zeta honors fraternity for Natural Sciences, Forestry and Agriculture.

Now, she’s adding to her resume as one of eight student ambassadors to this year’s Green Industry Conference Oct. 22-25 in Louisville, Ky.

The conference is geared mostly to industry professionals, but 27-year-old McPhee said the chance to be a student ambassador had the potential to provide opportunities she never dreamed possible.

“It’s going to open up so many doors for employment opportunities that I wouldn’t normally get,” she said. “This is like a worldwide, international opportunity for an amazing job.” She describes her chosen field of landscape design as interior design for the outside: “You’re extending the inside living space outside.”

The Green Industry Conference is hosted by PLANET, an international association of 4,000 lawn care professionals, landscape management contractors, designers and builders, and interior plant-scapers.

The student arm of the organization, PLANET Campus, offers students the latest industry and career information. Any school with an accredited two-year or four-year program in the horticulture field may form a student chapter.

At the conference, McPhee and other student ambassadors will help organize and run the event and participate in a discussion with industry leaders.

Columbia University

BANGOR – Heather Yang Hwalek, a student at Columbia University in New York, has been named one of 20 recipients of the Thomas R. Pickering Undergraduate Foreign Affairs Fellowship for 2008.

The program provides funding to participants as they are prepared academically and professionally to enter the United States Department of State Foreign Service. The fellowship includes tuition, room, board and mandatory fees during the junior and senior of college and during the first year of graduate study.

The program includes a junior year summer institute and two summer internships, one abroad and one domestic within the U.S. Department of State. Each successful candidate is then obligated to a minimum of 41/2 years of service in an appointment as a foreign service officer.

Hwalek, a 2005 graduate of Bangor High School, is majoring in anthropology at Columbia University in New York.