Career Education Corporation Cites Achievements of Students and Faculty Members at its Schools.

HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. -- Students and faculty members at several schools and colleges owned and operated by Career Education Corporation (Nasdaq: CECO) recently have received significant honors and awards, the company said today.

"The recognition that these students and faculty members have earned results from their knowledge, skill and dedication and reflects positively on the quality of education that our institutions provide," said Dr. Patricia A. Kapper, senior vice president of education.

Harrington Interior Design Students Featured on HGTV 

Ten senior students in interior design at Harrington College of Design were featured in episodes of "Designer Finals," the popular weekly home decorating program now appearing on HGTV, the Home and Garden Television cable channel.

The student designers were selected by the program producers, who interviewed candidates from leading design schools across the country. Each student had two days and a budget of $2,000 to redesign a room for a volunteer homeowner-client. The student, in consultation with a Harrington faculty mentor, drew up their plan for the room renovation, purchased the materials, hired contractors and oversaw the remodeling process. The entire process was filmed for the TV program.

"Participating in Designer Finals was an invaluable learning experience for the students," said Patrick Comstock, president of Harrington College of Design. "Dealing with real-world circumstances deepened their understanding of the design process, and the positive national exposure will help jump-start their career following graduation."

The student designers featured on the program were: Jenelle Dillman, Danielle Doyle, Jennifer Harris, Jill Lazzari, Magda Makas, Lucius Moody, Nina Pierce, Safrina Spedoske, Patrick Thompson and Kimberly Williams.

CEC Chef Instructors Win Medals at Culinary Olympics

Four chefs from three of Career Education Corporation's Le Cordon Bleu Schools North America won medals at the 21st International Kochkunst Ausstellung (also known as the Culinary Olympics) in Erfurt, Germany. More than 1,200 chefs from 40 nations participated in team and individual culinary competitions.

The CEC winners were: Tim Bucci, chef instructor at The Cooking and Hospitality Institute of Chicago (CHIC), who won a silver medal in the Category A individual competition, which required preparation of a cold buffet platter and six plated appetizers; Edwin Scholly, chef instructor at Scottsdale Culinary Institute (SCI), who won a bronze medal in the Category A competition with assistance from SCI chef instructor Philip Sayre; and Scott Fetty, chef instructor at Pennsylvania Culinary Institute (PCI), a member of the American Culinary Federation's Regional Team USA which won the gold medal in the Category A regional competition and placed third overall.

Le Cordon Bleu Schools North America, the world's largest provider of quality culinary arts education, was created in 1999 through an alliance between CEC and the world-renowned Le Cordon Bleu culinary school. Le Cordon Bleu culinary arts programs are offered at CEC's 13 culinary arts institutions across the United States.

"We congratulate these three great chef instructors for their achievements at the Culinary Olympics, which showcased the skill, passion for the culinary arts and commitment to excellence that they bring to their students every day," said Kirk T. Bachmann, vice president of education for Le Cordon Bleu Schools North America.

Brooks College Fashion Show Wins Plaudits, Raises $14,000 for Charity

Fashion design students from Brooks College displayed their creations for nearly 1,000 fashion industry professionals and enthusiasts at the school's annual December student fashion show at the Long Beach, California Convention Center.

Student designers exhibited fashions for women, men and children, with designs including everything from sportswear to bridal gowns. The show also featured a display of children's wear modeled by 15 young patients from the Jonathan Jaques Children's Cancer Center at Miller Children's Hospital in Long Beach. The event raised $14,000 for the Center.

The designs created by the Brooks students won praise from Apparel News, a leading West Coast fashion industry publication. In its cover story on the event, the magazine described the entries as "imaginative and well-executed."

"The event showcased the outstanding creative talents of our fashion design students and raised funds for a deserving organization with which we are proud to be associated," said Brooks College President Al Nederhood.

Katharine Gibbs/NY Teacher Named CEC Educator of the Year

Lia Margolin, Ph.D. in nuclear physics, an instructor in the general education department at Katharine Gibbs School/New York, has been named the Career Education Corporation Educator of the Year for 2005.

Dr. Margolin was selected by a panel of outside reviewers who interviewed the 12 finalists for the award to determine the winner. The finalists were chosen by a separate panel of reviewers from faculty members nominated for the award by CEC schools around the world.

"The Educator of the Year award is CEC's highest recognition for outstanding achievement by a faculty member," said Dr. Carl Bridges, assistant vice president of academic affairs for CEC. "Dr. Margolin has demonstrated strong pedagogical skills, superior command of the subjects she teaches and an unwavering commitment to the success of her students in the classroom and beyond."

Dr. Margolin has been on faculty at the school for two years, teaching math and critical thinking courses. Previously, she taught math and physics for 16 years in Russia and the Georgian Republic at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. She is a recognized researcher with numerous awards and honors including the prestigious Georgian Research and Development Foundation Grant for her research on "Structure and Decays of Light Hypernuclei."

"My primary teaching strategy is to transform every student from a passive recipient of information to an active participant in the learning process," she said. "Teaching is my true calling. What greater reward can there be than to see your students learning to master the skills necessary for success in life?"

Brooks Institute of Photography Students Win Photojournalism Awards

Students at Brooks Institute of Photography won 10 awards in the College Photographer of the Year competition, a student photojournalism contest. The event is sponsored by the University of Missouri, Missouri Photo Workshop, Leica Camera, the National Press Photographers Foundation, Fujifilm Corp. and the Poynter Institute.

"Winning an award in this annual contest is widely considered to be one of the highest honors a photojournalism student can achieve," said Dr. Greg Strick, president of Brooks Institute of Photography. "In this year's contest, students in our visual journalism program won two gold medals, three bronze medals and five honorable mentions. Their accomplishments reflect positively on their talent and dedication and on the quality of our program, which was established in 2001 and already is ranked among the leading photojournalism schools nationwide."

The winning students are: Eric Thayer, gold medal, general news, bronze medal, portfolio and honorable mention, spot news; Elyse Butler, gold medal, documentary and bronze medal, pictorial; Brian Wytcherley, bronze medal, picture story and honorable mention, spot news; Aldo Martinez, two honorable mentions, documentary; and Matt Mallams, honorable mention, pictorial.

IADT/Tampa Instructors Present at International Education Conference

Two instructors at the International Academy of Design and Technology (IADT)/Tampa -- Lisa Anderson, chair of the department of graphic design and Chitra Subramaniam, instructor of graphic design -- were selected from applicants around the world to present at the third annual International Conference on Education. Held January 4-7 in Honolulu, Hawaii, the event was attended by more than 1,000 educators from over 40 countries. Presenters included faculty from leading institutions like Yale University, Georgetown University, and Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

In their presentation, the IADT faculty members discussed how innovative teaching methodologies using technology and other media not only enhance the learning experience and increase student motivation but also increase student retention and reduce administrative turnover.

"The participation of Dr. Anderson and Dr. Subramaniam in this prestigious event underscores the value of their research, which will benefit educators worldwide," said Dr. Edmund Gross, president of IADT/Tampa.

Brooks Institute of Photography Student Wins Travel Photo Contest

Julie Levy, a student at Brooks Institute of Photography, won first prize in the 12th annual travel photography contest sponsored by Hemispheres Magazine, the in-flight publication of United Airlines. Her winning photograph was taken from the top of a spiral staircase at the Vatican Museum in Rome, Italy and demonstrates the ability of a skilled photographer to recognize extraordinary visual appeal in seemingly ordinary circumstances. "I was just about to walk down the staircase when I stopped and looked down at the most picturesque thing I saw at the Vatican," Levy said.

Career Education Corporation (www.careered.com) is the world's largest on-campus provider of private, for-profit postsecondary education and has a rapidly-growing presence in online education. CEC's Colleges, Schools and Universities Group operates 81 campuses in the U.S., Canada, France, the United Kingdom and the United Arab Emirates and offers doctoral degree, master's degree, bachelor's degree, associate degree and diploma programs in the career-oriented disciplines of visual communication and design technologies, information technology, business studies, culinary arts and health education. The Online Education Group operates American InterContinental University Online and Colorado Technical University Online and offers a variety of degrees in information technology, business, visual communication and education. CEC's total student population on October 31, 2004 was approximately 97,300 students.