Students in Windham Regional Career Center’s (WRCC) Culinary Arts program put their knife skills to work, preparing bell peppers for a Harvest of the Month taste test at BUHS and BAMS.

During Lizi Rosenberg’s class, students sliced orange, red, and green bell peppers for the following day’s lunchtime tasting. Steve Hed, Food Service Director and Sustainability Coordinator at Putney Central School, demonstrated how to cut peppers to minimize waste and how to sharpen kitchen knives. The preparation gave students a practical way to apply their recently learned skills while contributing to meals at neighboring schools.

Peppers were September’s featured Vermont Harvest of the Month crop. The program connects seasonal foods with classroom lessons, cooking activities, and cafeteria tastings. Through its Farm to School work, Food Connects helps schools bring these experiences together, connecting what students learn about food with what they encounter at lunch.

Taste tests also give students a voice in their school meals. For this tasting, BUHS and BAMS students were invited to compare the three pepper colors and share which they preferred. Their feedback will help cafeteria staff make future menu decisions.

Food Connects’ ongoing partnership with WSESU includes Harvest of the Month taste tests and support for school nutrition programming. Activities like this create opportunities for culinary students, educators, and school nutrition staff to work toward a shared goal: helping students explore food and participate in shaping their school meals.

At WRCC, that connection started with a cutting board and a practical assignment. Students practiced preparing food efficiently, while their work helped make a seasonal tasting possible for other students in their community.