The high school’s culinary program recently received a $5,000 grant from the state treasurer’s office as part of the Choose My School Supply Drive.
The high school was chosen randomly from a pool of 2,300 nominees.
Culinary instructor Jack Low said the money will be used to expand their outdoor kitchen area. They plan to buy outdoor refrigerators, a griddle and expand the roof of the outdoor kitchen by 15 feet to cover the entire area.
Low said the outdoor kitchen is important for students because it gives them a change of scenery.
“Kids are inside of the classroom all day, so being outside is a great change for them,” Low said. “It’s something different for them, and I think it helps them learn better.”
State Treasurer Lynn Rogers said the Choose My School Supply Drive is a way to market Learning Quest 529 accounts, which is a tax benefit program aimed at helping students and their families save for college.
Rogers said visiting the schools and seeing the impact this program makes is rewarding.
“It’s always exciting to visit the schools,” Rogers said. “You get to see how it’s going to improve the classroom experience not just for that year but for future years as well.”
Senior Josh Boucher said the skills he learned in class helped him become a better chef at J. Wilson’s in Lawrence, where he works.
He said he looks forward to being able to cook and grill outside to expand his culinary knowledge.
“It’ll be so nice to actually be able to store stuff outside and cook out there,” he said. “The new equipment will give us the actual, smoky flavor that barbecue is meant to have.”
Reach reporter Jenna Barackman at [email protected]
