Sewickley, PA - Printing Industries of America's Ben Franklin Honor Society is proud to announce the 2009 Frederick D. Kagy Education Award of Excellence recipient: the Graphic Imaging Technology (GIT) program at Cuyahoga Valley Career Center in Brecksville, Ohio. The award will be presented to Bill Delgado, program instructor at Cuyahoga Valley Career Center, at Printing Industries of America's Fall Administrative Meetings being held November 13–15 in Charleston, South Carolina.

The mission of Cuyahoga Valley Career Center's GIT program is to prepare students for a variety of employment, career, and post secondary opportunities in the imaging industries. Broadening students' view of career opportunities in the field, the program continues to diversify by including the instruction of digital capture of images, manipulation, design, and final output skills. The motto of the program is: "Visual Skills for a Visual World." Through the program, students have access to a lab, screen printing department, and prepress department, and may also take advantage of the four offset work stations, which include two Ryobi offset presses and a Heidelberg GTO two-color press, as well as seven G-5 Macintosh towers and more.

The GIT program has gained exceptional support from school administrators and the industry, with more internships and employment opportunities being offered each year. Five scholarships are offered by various industry organizations annually. Community service is a strong aspect of the GIT program in which students put their skills to work helping organizations that do not have funds for printing.

With 31 years of educational experience in the printing and graphics field, Mr. Delgado understands the challenges of staying current with technology while competing for students and the needs of the classroom. One of the most unique aspects of his class is the development of the Children's Literacy Outreach Program "Books are Alive." The focal point of the program is the book Benjamin Saves the Books, featuring special guest impersonator Benjamin Franklin.

Craig Wiget, consultant at The Ohio Department of Education says, "Bill Delgado is an innovator in the classroom and a lifelong learner in the field of graphic occupations. He is a very dedicated and outstanding instructor."
 
The Frederick D. Kagy Education Award of Excellence, established in 1992, honors the distinguished career of Frederick D. Kagy, professor emeritus at Illinois State University. As one of the most active and influential leaders in the field of graphic communications and technology education, Dr. Kagy was an inspiration to thousands of former students and professional colleagues.

As a Kagy Award recipient, the Graphic Imaging Technology program at Cuyahoga Valley Career Center can choose up to $1,000 worth of textbooks published by Printing Industries Press.

For more information on the Frederick D. Kagy Education Award of Excellence, please visit www.printing.org or contact Chrystal Senay at 800-910-4283, ext. 736.