Company News

PRESS RELEASE

NONPROFIT TO RENOVATE FOURTH HISTORIC ROSENWALD SCHOOL IN COUNTY

(Annapolis) December 20, 2006 - Arundel Community Development Services, Inc. (ACDS), a private, nonprofit corporation established by Anne Arundel County to create and retain affordable housing opportunities within the County, is working with a newly formed nonprofit, Marley Neck School, Inc. to renovate the historic Rosenwald School in the Marley Neck area of the County. The project is expected to cost $470,180 including $270,180 from the County and $200,000 in state bond funds. Once renovations are complete, the new community center will provide after school programs and other community uses.

Rosenwald Schools were built from 1917 to 1932 with matching funds provided by the Julius Rosenwald Fund, a foundation created by and named for the Chicago entrepreneur and President of Sears, Roebuck and Company in the early 20th century. Mr. Rosenwald helped build over 5,300 schools for African Americans in the rural South, including 292 in Maryland and 23 in Anne Arundel County. Built in 1927 at a cost of $4,300, the Marley Neck School was the most expensive Rosenwald School constructed in the County, and the only school in the County where the African American community contributed more to the construction cost than the Rosenwald Fund.

In 2002, the National Trust for Historic Preservation listed Rosenwald Schools on its list of America's 11 Most Endangered Places. "This is all the more reason why the County, and ACDS, feel so strongly about preserving these buildings," said ACDS Executive Director Kathleen Koch. "We have worked with community groups to successfully preserve three schools in the County, and we are also looking at rehabilitation potential for another Rosenwald School in Galesville."

Renovations to Marley Neck include comprehensive rehabilitation and historic restoration of the entire building; handicap accessibility modifications; abatement of lead paint and asbestos; upgrade of electrical, plumbing and mechanical systems, including upgrade of electrical service to the building; the addition of a fire alarm system, and site improvements. The contract was awarded to Sterling Construction Services, Inc., a minority owned firm based in Rockville, Maryland. Sterling C. Crockett, President, is looking forward to being a part of this historic renovation as his parents attended a similar school in Virginia.

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For more information, contact Kathleen M. Koch, Executive Director, Arundel Community Development Services, Inc. at 410-222-7600 ext. 110.

A Chance for New Lessons

$470,000 renovation will turn the historic Marley Neck School into community center

By JONI GUHNE Special to The Sun

December 29, 2006

Back in 1927, Marley Neck School was built for $4,300, making it the most expensive of the county's 23 Rosenwald Schools for African-American students - even if it still didn't have running water.

Hundreds of students were educated in the modest structure on Solley Road in Glen burnie before it was abandoned in 1954 with the dawn of integrated schools.

Now, more than 60 years later, Marley Neck alumni Yvonne Henry and Rosalie Gaither and a third friend, fellow Bates High School graduate Helen Johnson, are spearheading the drive with the local nonprofit Arundel Community Development Services to give the Marley Neck School a second chance.

Next week, a $470,000 renovation will begin to reopen the school as a community center.

"We wanted to have before- and after-school care, hoping we can get some partnership from Anne Arundel Community College," Henry said. "You can have birthday parties and other functions. [It can be] a place for seniors to learn computers."

The former primary school was one of more than 5,300 nationwide that came to life in the rural South from 1917 to 1932 through matching funds from the Julius Rosenwald Fund, created by the philanthropist and early president of Sears, Roebuck and Co. Marley Neck was the only school in the county where African-Americans contributed more to the construction cost than the Rosenwald fund.

It is also one of only 10 Rosenwald schools remaining in Anne Arundel and was listed in 2002 on the National Register of Historic Places as one of America's most endangered places.

"This is all the more reason why the county and ACDS feel so strongly about preserving these buildings," said Arundel Community Development Services executive director Kathleen Koch. Her nonprofit group is also looking at rehabilitating a Rosenwald school in Galesville.

Henry and Gaither have fond memories of the school, and still laugh when they recall when they were teacher helpers and washed the drinking glasses and floor with the same bucket of water.

"We couldn't talk back to the teacher," said Henry, and the result was "the worst whipping I ever had in school."

Both women said they received an excellent education at Marley Neck.

Henry graduated from Bowie State College and taught for more than 25 years, and Gaither earned a bachelor's degree in business from the University of Maryland and a master's degree in business management from Notre Dame in Baltimore and worked in personnel at the National Security Agency.

Since 2002, Johnson, Henry and Gaither have hunted for financial resources to restore Marley Neck School. The women talked to leaders at the next-door Hall United Methodist Church, community members, legislators in Annapolis and the staff at Arundel Community Development Services.

They're still holding raffles and sponsoring bus trips to the Three Little Bakers, a dinner theater in Wilmington, Del.

"We've done all the leg work," said Johnson, who was encouraged to take on the restoration project by her late husband, Willie C. Johnson, a local activist.

She said the committee had almost given up hope, when $200,000 came in the form of a community block grant with matching funds from the county Department of Public Works.

The county also provided a startup grant of $70,000 to cover feasibility fees, and the church agreed to rent the building to the Friends of Marley Neck School for $1 a year.

Rockville-based, family-owned Sterling Construction Services expects to be completed in six months, said director of corporate operations David M. Kelsey.

"There are always a lot of challenges with preservation and restoration," said Kelsey. "We're not just restoring it to the way it was; we're trying to save as much of the original material, including studs, that won't even show."

Trying to save 80 percent of a given wall presents a challenge with demolition and site preparation, Kelsey explained.

The original footprint will remain the same, except for the addition of a wheelchair ramp.

"When we're finished, said Kelsey, "it will look just like it did when you rolled down the street in the 1930s."

Copyright © 2006, The Baltimore Sun

PRESS RELEASE

SMALL BUSINESS GAINS GROUND IN CONTRACTING MARKETPLACE

VIRGINIA January 5, 2007 - Hensel Phelps Construction Company, one of the nation's largest construction firms, has awarded its first annual Small Business Award of Excellence for 2006 to Sterling Construction Services.

For those who monitor events within the small business community, recognition of small business performance at this level has not gone unnoticed. "Hensel Phelps is one of the top construction companies in America and perhaps the most diversity inclusive that I am aware of," said Wayne Frazier, president of the Maryland-Washington Minority Contractors Association. "For Sterling to be recognized in this fashion lets the prime construction world know that Sterling Construction is a firm that can be counted on."

The award, newly established by Hensel Phelps in its commitment to community business development, recognizes Sterling Construction for its outstanding service and overall excellence in its 2006 performance as a subcontractor. William Thumm, project engineer for Hensel Phelps, said in a recent interview, "A strong subcontracting community represents a strong ability to perform on projects and (small) business development is a vital part of our futures - this award reinforces that belief." Since its launch in 1999, Sterling Construction has participated in a number of high-profile projects that have signaled to the larger contracting community its performance abilities, resulting in relationships with larger, nationally known firms. Most recently, Sterling Construction has participated in the national efforts for Hurricane Katrina, Pentagon Renovation projects and the historical renovation of the Marley Neck School in Anne Arundel County, Maryland.

As federal organizations such as the Small Business Administration reinforce their efforts to help small businesses secure more federal government contracts, companies like Hensel Phelps are contributing to the challenge of developing a diverse workforce and look to partnering with members of the small business community to support their goal.

Jenkins Odoms, president of the Maryland Chapter of the NAACP, commends the "enthusiasm and efforts Hensel Phelps has put forth in helping to establish small business" and hopes "to see greater involvement from other large companies in the future." Looking ahead to the benefits of this recognition, Mr. Frazier adds, "Sterling Construction should expect an onslaught of new business and prepare accordingly," while companies like Hensel Phelps "will be able to use their proven inclusiveness to win greater opportunities."

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