Published: May 15, 2008 09:49 am         

BOE mulls culinary program's necessity

CUMBERLAND - The Allegany County Board of Educating held off on allocating an additional $300,000 for the proposed culinary arts program at the Center for Career and Technical Education.

Finance Director Randy Bittinger told board members Tuesday that Superintendent Bill AuMiller's advisory staff recommended funding seven projects with nearly $2.1 million in available monies. The money is available after the board realized higher-than-expected returns on its investment funds, more than $1.1 million in utility savings and nearly half a million dollars in health care savings.

Bittinger said the savings were the effort of a number of different department heads and staff and "we also got lucky" that the federal government didn't cut interest rates until recently.

Six other projects were approved, including providing $500,000 each to the stadium renovation and construction accounts for Greenway Avenue Stadium and Mountain Ridge High School. The board also gave the green light to purchase new public address systems - those inside schools, not on athletic fields - for $300,000, funding its $210,500 share of a switch upgrade for the Allconet system, and $119,500 for school bus radios and cameras.

Board member Jeff Metz expressed concerns about the possible lack of student interest in culinary arts. He didn't want the program, at a start-up cost of about $700,000 and hiring a new teacher, to fail as the fashion careers track did.

"Is it a worthwhile program for that amount of money?" Metz asked his colleagues.

AuMiller said the $700,000 figure was a final number; that future years would be routine expenses related to any program. He also advocated the program as a starting point for career-seeking students in the culinary arts field.

"There are plenty of jobs in Allegany County in the culinary arts field," AuMiller said.

"I respectfully disagree, Bill," Metz said. "There are few places that will be hiring out of the (proposed) program. Are we willing to pay for (the students) to become chefs at Roy Rogers? It's a lotta dough. Is it the best use of $300,000?"

Jane Dawson, board vice president, said the program is intended to lead students into degree-seeking programs at Allegany College of Maryland and other higher-level education institutions.

She said it's worth noting that "students are becoming more specific in what they want." She attended recent career fairs at schools and the two-day Focus on the Future program at the Allegany County Fairgrounds. There, she said students didn't want to be a physician, but a cardiologist.

Board member Tom Striplin said he'd like to learn more before voting whether to approve any funding over the $181,000 allocated in the current budget. He recommended touring the school and reviewing the building plans to "kind of get a feel" for the planned program "and see what impact this might have."

The remaining $220,000 would come from Aging School Program money distributed by the state board of education.

Dawson disagreed with waiting any longer before voting.

"I'm frustrated," she said. "I really think we should have had these questions settled."

AuMiller said Tuesday's delay wouldn't necessarily put a crimp in plans to have the culinary arts program up and running for the 2009-10 school year. Renovations at the center could still be completed, as planned, during the upcoming school year.

Contact Kevin Spradlin at kspradlin@times-news.com.