School gets $1.5 million to renovate cooking classrooms

A Gravesend school is ready to significantly upgrade its culinary program.

P.S. 721K Roy Campanella H.S., 64 Avenue X, will get $1.5 million in City Council funding to renovate three culinary classrooms.

The District 75 school serves students with special needs in grades K-12 at several sites in the borough. The administration focuses on enhancing independence and developing self-sufficient skills for its students so they can succeed in their post-secondary educational goals.

The three culinary classrooms contain a food preparation room, a student-led coffee shop and a bakery for students and staff. Students are ex- posed to real-world experiences by operating the coffee shop and bakery, which is open for the summer.

The students have adapted to prepare and sell foods that meet the public health restrictions of COVID-19 while providing nourishing meals for students and staff such as hard-boiled eggs, iced coffee and tea, stuffed French toast, baked ziti and bacon, egg and cheese.

The upgrades will also include a mock stu- dio apartment to prepare students to live inde- pendently when they are adults.

Principal Barbara Tremblay thanked Coun- cilmember Mark Treyger, who allocated the money for the renovations.

“The funds will allow for upgrades to the rooms and equipment and allow our students access to state-of-the-art learning spaces,” Tremblay said. “The creation of the studio apartment has been a goal of our teachers to provide students on the autism spectrum the op- portunity to acquire daily living skills and have students reach their full potential.”

“Students deserve spaces and resources that reflect the quality of their curriculum,” Treyger said. “With these enhancements, stu- dents will learn and build skills adults need for life.”