Schools

Nanuet Students Cook Comfort Food From Around the World

Students from Rockland BOCES' culinary arts program held their graduation culinary banquet held in West Nyack last week.

A whole roasted pig, spicy black bean empanadas, chocolate fudge truffles and fondant cake—is your mouth watering yet? It was for the more than 100 family and staff members who attended Rockland BOCES’ annual finale of its culinary arts program at the Jesse Kaplan School in West Nyack last week.  

The theme for this year’s culinary banquet, which is cooked and served by students graduating from the program, was themed “Comfort Food from Around the World.” The two-year course, that prepares students for a career in the culinary arts, combines classroom instruction in professional facilities and food industry experience.   

When discussing the rigor of the program, Kendell Brenner, the Culinary Arts instructor at Rockland BOCES described the students as “if not the best class” he taught in his nine years at BOCES and thanked the program’s alumni who volunteered to serve as mentors to the class and helped prepare for the banquet.  

Ten students were recognized at the banquet for earning American Culinary Federation certification for successfully completing a written test and preparing complex recipes in a limited amount of time. These students include: 

  • Rachel L. Bundick (Nanuet)
  • Justin N. Strichartz (Clarkstown) 
  • Amanda M. Sullivan (Pearl River)
  • Avery Reiff (Clarkstown)
  • Julia Carroll (Nanuet) 
  • Anne C. Saint Juste (East Ramapo) 
  • Susan M. Armas (East Ramapo) 
  • Erika DelRosario (Nyack) 
  • Ackeem Atkinson (East Ramapo)  
  • Kaleigh Hawley (Nyack)

The gradating students were also presented with more than $200,000 in scholarships and awards for being accepted into prestigious colleges like, Johnson & Wales and the Culinary Institute of America. 

Other awards given out at the banquet include a professional knife kit presented to adult student Mike Rambin by Emily Dominquez of Union Restaurant in Haverstraw Rachel Bundick, Justin Strichartz and Nicole Barboni received awards from the Rockland County School Boards Association, Susan Armas and Avery Reiff received awards from the Kaplan PTA and Catherine Sheridan and Brianna Bruciga received Instructors Awards.


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