Pequea Valley resident Alex Edwards was recently named Student of the Quarter in the Octorara Area Career and Technical Education program.

Edwards, a culinary arts student, splits time between her native school of Pequea Valley and her technical school of Octorara.

"I'll wake up, and I'll get a bus straight to Octorara," she said. "I have three periods there, two of them being the culinary program, and then the third one is a (health) class. Then I'll get a bus back around 11; come back; and go to my fifth period, lunch and then sixth and seventh period."

After Edwards missed out on an opportunity at the Lancaster County Career and Technology Center, she found out that the window was still open to do culinary classwork at nearby Octorara. She jumped at the opportunity.

"We have a mix on the academic side of things," said Mark Peticca, who directs Octorara's Career and Technical Education (CTE) program. "We have 12 wonderful programs ... Pequea Valley reached out to me years ago to see if they could partner with us and allow some of their kids to come to some of our programs."

"Last summer, (Alex) and her mother toured the school, just so she knew what to expect coming in the first day," he went on. "She's been absolutely amazing ever since the first day."

Between her classwork and after-school activities, Edwards spends most of her day in a culinary setting. After school hours and on weekends, she works at New Holland Family Restaurant, managing the salad bar or serving as a prep cook, depending on the shift.

Her initial interest in cooking started when she was growing up.

"When I was really young, I was helping my mom cook a lot," she said. "My mom is a huge role model. Then she did this woodworking job, so I thought maybe I would like woodworking ... it's something that I would definitely do if I wasn't into the culinary program, but I think I'm more into culinary than I am woodworking."

Students at Octorara's CTE culinary program learn various methods of cooking along with required certifications to work in an actual restaurant. They also take field trips to different locations and facilities to see what working in the field is like.

Edwards said that her future goal is to open a restaurant, either a diner-type establishment or a bistro. Her plan is to work at different restaurants to understand the different processes of how they work.

The collaboration between Pequea Valley and Octorara is part of a larger effort at Pequea Valley to create more options for students. The district operates a first-choice workforce development initiative to better prepare students for life after secondary education.