Hedgesville High School's Mark Hunter and Musselman High's Joshua Drake

Hedgesville High School's Mark Hunter and Musselman High's Joshua Drake

Berkeley County Schools

September 29, 2025

Written by Ainsley Hall and published in The Journal on September 29, 2025, link to article HERE.

MARTINSBURG — The West Virginia Department of Education recognized Hedgesville High School and Musselman High School for having the best Career Technical Education (CTE) programs in the state. To receive this honor, both schools had the highest accountability scores across all indicators. This included test results in the National Occupational Competency Testing Institute (NOCTI) test which challenges students’ knowledge in CTE fields.

Three of Hedgesville High School’s most notable programs include agriculture, baking and maintenance. Cayden Blair, Candence Wade, Trent Dunham, Noah Shade and Mark Hunter are all a part of the agriculture program. They agreed that one of the best parts about the program is its hands-on activities that teach them real skills they can use in the future. From learning how to harvest potatoes to taking care of real animals, they get to experience a lot of different things that farmers do every day.

Ella Marshall and Gabriella Bell are both seniors in the baking program after participating all four years of high school. When they heard that Hedgesville High School’s CTE program was recognized, they were excited for their teacher Beverly McDonald. They’ve seen how hard McDonald and the other CTE teachers work to make the program successful. Both Marshall and Bell said that’s its McDonald’s passion that makes the baking program so fun.

“She’s an amazing person,” Marshall said. “She pushes you to be the best person you can be, both in and out of the classroom.”

Brayden Hess entered the maintenance program after his woodshop teacher retired and encouraged him to give it a try. Hess helps fix classrooms throughout the school, even painting the athletic teacher’s office. One of his favorite things about the program is hearing feedback from other teachers as they talk about the good work the students are doing.

As for Musselman High School, one of its most popular CTE programs is its cooking and baking program which recently opened The Bucey Cafe. Students don’t just get to learn how to make delicious food, but also how to run their own cafe and share their special treats with others. Joshua Drake is a senior at Musselman High School and makes sandwiches at the school’s cafe. He first joined the program because he saw it as an opportunity to try new food and learn some good life skills. Now he cooks for his friends and family and hopes to open his own restaurant someday. Drake believes that since the CTE program was recognized by the state, the program will continue to grow and help students like him.

“When I was a freshman, I didn’t know how to do a lot of stuff in the kitchen,” Drake said. “Now I know how to run the entire cafe. One big thing students struggle with when they are just starting out is time management. Once you’re in the starter program, you learn to cook for yourself and as you go further you learn how to cook for others.”

Principals Angie Milliman and Alicia Riggleman are both excited to see their schools recognized. They hope the CTE programs will continue to grow and give students more opportunities in the future.