Ten distinguished woodworking and furniture industry executives have been selected as judges for the AWFS 2011 Fresh Wood student woodworking competition.

Panelists include:

• Margaret Casey, director of programming for the World Market Center in Las Vegas and vice president of the Sustainable Furnishings Council Board of Directors
• Andy Glantz, owner of Zenith Design, a custom furniture firm in Arizona, and current president of the board of trustees of The Furniture Society
• Alan Harp, an Atlanta-based furniture designer and former instructor, Georgia Tech Advanced Wood Products Laboratory.
• Garry Knox Bennett, an internationally known furniture maker; Award of Distinction winner, The Furniture Society; and Fellow of the American Craft Council
• Greg Larson, a former computer engineer and cabinetmaker, currently director, New England School of Architectural Woodworking (NESAW)
• Merry Mabbett-Dean, owner/interior designer, Absolute Office of Oregon; and a Fellow and past president of the International Furnishings and Design Association (IFDA).
• Juan Morales, principal/VP operations of Contract Resources/Villa Hallmark, an upholstered furniture manufacturer
• Jason Phillips,VP,creative director of Phillips Collection, a home furnishing and accessories design/manufacturing company
• Marc Spagnuolo, owner and creator of TheWoodWhisperer.com an instructional woodworking video blog and trade magazine contributor
• David Wade, Master Craftsman, Maloof Woodworking

Fresh Wood judges begin their work in May, with a round of preliminary judging, then come together at the AWFS®Fair in Las Vegas, July 20-23, 2011 to select the winners.

Fresh Wood is a student woodworking competition open to full-time students in an accredited high school or post-secondary woodworking or related program and part-time students in an accredited post-secondary woodworking or related program who are transitioning into a career in woodworking or design within North America. The competition has six categories at both school levels: case goods, chairs, open, production/contract, reproduction and tables.

All competition forms and guidelines can be found on the website AWFSFair.org.