Three public schools in the north are among nine recipients this year of an Excellence in Food Protection Award from the Allegheny County Food Advisory Board.

North Hills Junior High School, Fox Chapel Area High School and North Allegheny Intermediate High School received the awards, which honor those in the food industry who exceed health code requirements and undertake exceptional efforts in food safety and sanitation.

The Allegheny County Food Advisory Board is made up of food industry representatives who work with the Allegheny County Health Department to promote food safety. This is the 18th year the awards have been given.

Other recipients are W.G. Grinders Inc., South Fayette High School, East Union Intermediate Center, Arlington Meals on Wheels, Brentwood GetGo No. 3616 and Life Pittsburgh services for elderly people.

La Roche College has recently been named one of the best colleges and universities in the northeast for the fifth year in a row, according to The Princeton Review.

The New York City-based education services company chose La Roche as one of 218 institutions it recommends in its "Best in the Northeast" section on www.princetonreview.com in the 2010 Best Colleges Region by Region section. It also profiled La Roche in "The Best Northeastern Colleges: 2010 Edition."

Robert Franek, Princeton Review's vice president of publishing, said the school was chosen for its personalized education and excellent academic programs.

"We choose the schools based on institutional data we collect from several hundred schools in each region.

For more information about La Roche College, call 1-800-838-4LRC, visit www.laroche.edu or e-mail admissions@laroche.edu.

U.S. Rep. Jason Altmire, D-McCandless, will hold a small business workshop, "Access to Capital," Friday. The program will discuss how struggling small businesses can obtain capital.

The workshop will be held from 7:30 to 10 a.m. in the Ryan Room at La Roche College, 9000 Babcock Blvd.

Entrepreneurs can learn how to get a loan in a tight credit market, obtain information about new government initiatives designed to make it easier to secure capital and get advice on how to keep businesses afloat during a credit crunch.

For more information or to make reservations, call the congressman's office at 724-378-0928 or send e-mail to Altmire.workshop@mail.house.gov.