General

Morrisville State College's Renewable Energy Training Center (RETC) is hosting two basic energy sessions. Energy Conservation and Supply Options for Homes will be held April 12 from 6-10 p.m. at Mohawk Valley Community College in Utica.

A ceremony naming the Morrisville State College indoor western riding arena after dedicated instructor, Lewis “Spike” Holmes, will be held April 3 at 1 p.m. at the Equine Complex on the corner of Swamp and Fearon roads. The arena will be named the Lewis “Spike” Holmes Western Riding Arena during the event which is open to the public. Holmes retired last year after teaching nearly 20 years at Morrisville State College in the equine science and management, western (stock seat) program.

Learn about producing cheese, adding value to milk and how to market value-added products during a statewide cheese business seminar, Reinventing the Wheel: Cheese is the New “Whey,” at Morrisville State College on Friday, April 30. The event, which is open to the public, will be held from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. in Hamilton Hall. The seminar will offer industry leaders an opportunity to ask questions about forming a cheese-making business. Presentation topics and times are:

Morrisville State College is hosting a statewide equine business seminar on Saturday, April 24. The event, which is open to the public, will be held from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Spader Greenhouse Complex on the Morrisville State College campus. Keynote speaker, Lisa Derby Oden, of Blue Ribbon Consulting in New Hampshire, will give a presentation on “Thinking Outside of the Barn: Marketing Your Equine Business.” Oden is a nationally recognized speaker on topics including equine business development and marketing.

Morrisville State College's Teacher Education Transfer Program will host a presentation by Debra Calvino, 2010 New York State Teacher of the Year, on April 2, as part of its Professor Mary T. Brown Lecture Series. The event, which is free and open to the public, will take place from 6:30 to 8 p.m. in Room 105 in Crawford Hall. Calvino, a high school math teacher at Valley Central High School in Montgomery, New York, will give a presentation, “Never Give Up! On Math, on Teaching, on Learning.”

The squishy pastel candy confections associated with Easter, Peter Cottontail and spring are making their way into more than children's baskets and festive grocery store displays, and proving they aren't just for eating anymore. On the Norwich campus of Morrisville State College, the sparkly marshmallow treats are the subject of a creative competition in which participants are tasked to make a diorama (three-dimensional scene) using the famed “Peeps.” The contest is open to the public.

Morrisville State College automotive faculty and students recently rolled up their sleeves and pitched in to help a team of Cornell University students ready its wheels for upcoming competition. The students, an engineering project group called the Cornell 100+ MPG (miles per gallon) Team http://www.cornellaxp.com/, are nearing completion of a hybrid car they built from scratch to compete in the Progressive Insurance Automotive X-Prize Competition. The competition entails designing, building and racing super-efficient vehicles that will achieve 100 miles per gallon.

Morrisville State College student, Jennifer Shultz, 19, of Dillsburg, Pa., was recently awarded a scholarship from the Pennsylvania Farm Show Scholarship Foundation. The $3,500 scholarship is given to students based on their participation at the Pennsylvania Farm Show, academic achievement, financial need, and participation in 4-H or Future Farmers of America (FFA), and community service. Shultz, a second year animal science-dairy major, is a 10-year veteran of the York County 4-H program.

Morrisville State College is featuring an art exhibit, Agricultural Acts, in the Donald G. Butcher Library gallery through April 2. The display, which focuses on food and farming, includes a number of artists from the local area featuring work from a variety of genres. A reception for the artists will be held in the gallery on March 4 from 5-6:30 p.m.

Morrisville State College's Renewable Energy Training Center (RETC) is hosting two sessions of a four-part series of wind technician workshops to prepare workers for site assessment, installation, and maintenance of small wind turbines at the residential and farm scale. Small Wind Energy Technician Training (SWETT) —I. Safety Training, will be held March 31 from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Small Wind Energy Technician Training— II. Wind Site Assessment and Systems will be held April 1-2, from 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m.