HARRISBURG, Pa., April 27 /PRNewswire/ -- Nearly 150 students from across the state put their Web page and graphics design, digital movie-making and desktop publishing skills to the test today in the Pennsylvania Department of Education's Second Annual Middle School Computer Fair.

"These students possess the kind of technology skills and talents that all students must master before graduating and entering the global economy," said Secretary of Education Dr. Gerald L. Zahorchak. "It's our responsibility to prepare students for their future and Governor Rendell has wisely invested in education to ensure we're providing the best teaching and training to all students, because there is a direct connection between education and Pennsylvania's economic competitiveness.

"Governor Rendell's vision has sparked the transformation of education from pre-kindergarten through higher education and I'm proud to see those investments bearing fruit in the impressive student projects displayed here today. These middle schools are making the most of technology to help students learn.

Participants in today's computer fair included sixth, seventh and eighth graders who qualified for the state competition after battling at local school district and regional computer competitions. More than 700 students participated in the competition at some level before the best projects were chosen for today's final competition.

Judges included PDE staff and representatives of participating Intermediate Units. Student exhibits - which were judged in six categories: Web page design, graphic design, digital movies, desktop publishing, fair logo and multimedia production - were displayed at the Department of Education building in Harrisburg this morning, followed by an afternoon awards ceremony at the State Museum. Winners received trophies and gift certificates.

Governor Rendell's proposed 2006-07 education budget includes an additional $517 million to provide schools with the necessary resources to prepare students to compete on a global scale. The budget includes $20 million for the first year of a 3-year, $200 million Classrooms For the Future initiative, which would transform teaching and learning by equipping every high school classroom in the core subjects - English, math, science and social studies - with laptops and other multimedia technology.

The Governor's proposed 2006-07 budget will help reach up to 100 high schools in the program's initial year, with an additional $6 million to train teachers to fully harness the technology. Over the past three years, the Governor has invested more than $1.2 billion in education.

For more information about the Department of Education, visit http://www.pde.state.pa.us/.

CONTACT: Christopher Green 717-783-9802

Editors Note: A list of the winning students and projects by student name, school district and county follows:

Computer Fair Winning Projects by County Student Names School County Project Placed Category District Title Maura Pasko Leechburg Armstrong Ghost of 2nd Web Page Area SD Pennsylvania Design Brianna Sieck Muhlenberg Berks Promoting 1st Graphic SD A Cause Design Daniel St. Benedict Cambria Jeff Philibin 1st Web Page Philibin School - Mortgage Group Design Johnstown Collin Miller Downington Chester Fishing 1st Digital Area SD Without Bait Movie Priyanka Nadar Harrisburg Cumberland The Daily 1st Desktop Academy Prophet Publishing Eddie Sundra Rose Tree Delaware Computer 1st Fair Logo Jonathan Media SD Fair 2007 Friestedt Ron Miller Frazer SD Fayette Interactive 1st Multimedia Lance Lyons Solar System Lyndsie Holy Rosary Lackawanna Storybook 3rd Graphic Johndrow School Time Design Marlena Snyder Northern Lehigh Kentucky 2nd Multimedia Lehigh SD Fried Cruelty Tiffany Miranda Hazelton Luzerne Bilingual 3rd Web Page Jessica Hoffman Area SD Tour Design Tessa Schoch Caitlin Evans Montours- Lycoming Adopt Me: 3rd Digital Alyssa Reeder ville Area Helping the Movie SD ASPCA Kevin Tulloch East Monroe A School 2nd Digital Zach LeBar Stroudsburg Full of Movie Will Vichinsky Area SD Character Jill Monica East Monroe JTL Web Page 2nd Graphic Stroudsburg Logo Design Area SD Tony Banik Danville Montour 2007 State 2nd Fair Logo Area SD Computer Fair Kenneth Russ Northampton Northampton Welcome to 3rd Desktop Kyle Huber Area SD Wolf Elementary Publishing Matthew Yanek Mahalia Holman Philadelphia Philadelphia W.S. Pierce 2nd Desktop Shawn Best City SD Collection Publishing Maria Hammonds of Literacy for Young Children Rebecca Northern Potter Maple Syrup 3rd Multimedia Warriner Potter SD Catherine Bokan John Columbia California Washington Computer 3rd Fair Logo Mary Sears Area SD Fair Logo Michael Doman

CONTACT: Christopher Green, Pennsylvania Department of Education,
+1-717-783-9802

Web site: http://www.pde.state.pa.us/