Through hands-on experience, Culinary, Automotive students build strong foundation
Culinary and Automotive courses were offered all three weeks of summer camp
From focaccia bread to spring rolls to an American breakfast, Culinary students at this year’s Career Exploration Summer Camp had multiple opportunities to make a variety of cuisines while learning new skills in the kitchen. The same can be said for the sharp learning curve afforded to campers enrolled in the Automotive program, which, like Culinary, was offered in all three sessions of the camp, which concluded on July 24.
Having 12 days of instruction allowed students the freedom to learn some big-picture lessons.
“It’s fun, but you will make some mistakes,” said Halle Archer, a 10th-grade student at White Plains High School who attended Culinary camp. “I learned that it might not always be perfect, but the food can still taste good in the end.”
Automotive students learned their own version of those lessons, plus a variety of important skills that can benefit them whether they want to pursue further training as an automotive technician or simply want to work on their cars or those of their family members. The students have been taught how to give an oil change, fix tires, replace brakes and more.
During his time in the Culinary program, Noah Donnelly, who is an eighth grader at Westlake Middle School, enrolled in both Culinary and Baking courses. He finished the last week learning how to make spring rolls, shrimp fried rice and more. He learned knife skills and safety techniques. But he also formed friendships he hopes to grow in the coming weeks.
“For my first time coming to this camp, it was very exciting,” Donnelly said. “I’ve made new friends and met a lot of kids from other schools.”
As a returning camper, Julia Riela, an Edgemont High School student, valued two opportunities: to focus on skill-building while meeting new people who share similar interests.
“I’ve been making new friends, and we’re hanging out and getting to learn new things at the same time,” Riela said. “I also did this camp last year. We’re cooking some of the same recipes, but I’ve also gotten better and been able to practice new skills as well.”
