Roasted chicken with mashed potatoes, broccoli and roasted peppers. Vietnamese pho. These are two of many top-notch lunches prepared by participants in Windermere Secondary School’s Culinary Arts program. Under the inspired guidance of culinary instructor Shirley Wong, the program has taken shape over the past five years with over 130 students currently enrolled from Grades 10 through 12. Daily menus incorporate fresh herbs and produce from an organic garden that’s tended by over 70 students in Windermere’s Leadership program.
Wong and a fellow instructor spearheaded the creation of a school herb garden to address the “disconnect with the kids between where food comes from and what’s put on the table,” Wong says. Grant funding coupled with the students’ unbridled enthusiasm helped the garden burgeon into 13 raised plant beds, 10 fruit trees, a 350-square-foot greenhouse holding an aquaponics system and a mechanized industrial Earth Tub compost—an object lesson for the entire school in sustainable gardening practices. Fava beans, potatoes, kale and a variety of sprouts and lettuces are only a smattering of the garden’s bounty, all of which is incorporated into Windermere cafeteria’s cooked-from-scratch meals.
“Many of our Culinary Arts students won’t pursue post-secondary education. Those who do must often work their way through school to help cover tuition fees,” says Wong. “Our program focuses on giving students practical kitchen-prep skills that they can either take home for personal use or apply immediately in the restaurant industry.” The aspiring young cooks also develop customer service skills through cafeteria staffing shifts and through catering requests for as few as five to as many as 900 guests. Many culinary alumni have returned to mentor current participants.
Wong explains, “Many students enter the program lacking confidence in their abilities. We broaden their perspective by facilitating opportunities to get out into the community, to get outside feedback that they’re truly good at something they love doing. It really does a lot to raise their self-esteem.” Whether or not they’re aware, the food that Windermere’s culinary students create nourishes the body while it nurtures the soul.
