Westbrook Regional Vocational Center

We want to extend a heartfelt thank you to the incredible staff and students of WRVC for their enthusiasm, professionalism, and dedication in welcoming the 8th graders from Bonny Eagle, Gorham, and Westbrook Middle Schools. Your efforts in showcasing our outstanding programs made a lasting impression and truly highlighted the exciting opportunities WRVC has to offer. It was a joy to host these bright young visitors, and we hope this experience has sparked their interest in becoming part of our WRVC community in the future!

First-year students in the Culinary Arts program recently wrapped up their semester with a sweet and creative final project... designing, baking, and decorating custom cakes. This hands-on assignment served as both a celebration of the skills they’ve developed throughout the course and a practical demonstration of foundational culinary techniques. The unique, personalized cake creations showcased the students' creativity and talents!

A big thank you to the Army National Guard for bringing the fun to WRVC! Our Tech I students had a blast tackling the giant inflatable obstacle course, squaring off in sumo suit wrestling, and enjoying some friendly competition over corn hole. The weather was perfect, and the energy was even better. We’re grateful for this engaging opportunity that let our students connect, compete, and just have fun. Thanks again for making it a memorable day!

On Tuesday, an all-star team from both our Tech 1 and 2 Culinary Arts classes competed against PATH's students to participate in an MRE challenge. Each team got to hand-pick their MRE and create a menu incorporating each item of the chosen meals, ready to eat. Students did a great job in this friendly competition. Thank you to the Army National Guard for supporting this event and providing such wonderful judges. It was a terrific opportunity!

Our Firefighting students participated in a full day of live interior fire training in Auburn, gaining invaluable hands-on experience. A huge thank you to Lt. Brooks for dedicating his time to provide this opportunity. The students performed exceptionally well, demonstrating strong individual skills and outstanding teamwork throughout the day.

The Medical Occupations program is gaining hands-on experience with essential caregiving skills, one of which is providing bed baths with care, professionalism, and empathy. There are different types of bed baths, including partial bed baths, which are performed when only certain areas of the body need to be cleaned. This might be necessary if a patient has fragile skin, is unable to stand or bear weight, or cannot get out of bed due to illness or injury. Students are taught to assess each patient's unique needs and to adapt their approach accordingly. Equally important, they learn to preserve the patient’s privacy and dignity, while encouraging as much independence as the individual is capable of during the process. These are not just technical skills, they are the foundation of compassionate care.

Celebrating Special People in Our Littles' Lives--- The Early Childhood Occupations Education program hosted a heartwarming event in the nursery school classroom, where our "Littles" invited their special family members to visit and share in a joyful celebration. Each child thoughtfully created a handmade gift for their guest, and the classroom was filled with smiles, laughter, and love as they celebrated the important people in their lives. It was a meaningful opportunity for connection and a beautiful reminder of the strong bonds between our students and their families and home, and school relationships. This event also offered a valuable learning experience for our Early Childhood Education students, who helped plan and lead the day’s activities. As future educators, they had the chance to engage directly with families, build relationships, and become part of a caring, supportive community. We are so proud of our Littles, their special guests, and our aspiring teachers for making this event such a memorable one!

Thank you to our Business Advisory Committee for taking the time to meet this week. We value your collaboration and creative input as we work together to strengthen our Business program and shape meaningful opportunities for our students’ future success.

Something eggstraordinary has happened at You 'N' Me Nursery School! 🐣 As part of our Early Childhood Education program, our little learners had the joy of watching baby chicks hatch from their incubators this week. It was a hands-on lesson in life, growth, and gentle care, and their excitement was contagious!

We hope you had a wonderful vacation! We look forward to seeing you on Monday, April 28th! Welcome back!

Today the Electricity and Heavy Equipment Operation programs proudly participated in the ABC Maine Craft Championship, the largest statewide workforce development event. High school students from across the state gathered at the Augusta Civic Center to explore a wide range of skills and experiences within the construction industry. The event featured over 40 contractors, businesses, and schools who set up booths, tables, exhibits, and hands-on activities to engage students and provide them with a glimpse of their future workforce opportunities. Additionally, some exhibitors hosted career fair style tables, offering valuable information about employment and training opportunities within their organizations. We are absolutely thrilled to share that our two electrical competitors, Ben W. and Griffin S., both earned impressive placements, with Ben securing 3rd place and Griffin finishing 6th out of 20 competitors. We couldn't be more proud of their accomplishments and our students' respectful behaviors during this trip. A heartfelt thank you to the Associated Builders & Contractors of Maine for making this enriching learning experience possible for our students. Your support and commitment to workforce development are truly appreciated!

On Sunday, March 23, WRVC Culinary Arts students helped prepare, cook, and serve a dish at the ACF (American Culinary Federation) CascoBay Chapter's Annual Banquet Dinner. Students Worked with Chef Nikkol Mulligan, the Executive Chef of the Black Point Inn. The dish they presented was a pan-seared skate wing served over cauliflower puree with lemongrass and ginger tomato jam! Yummy! Thank you to our students who helped at this event.

WRVC Futures Fair: A HUGE thank you to our Futures Fair coordinator, Mrs. O'Toole, for the impeccable job she did bringing this special career-focused event together for our students, local businesses, colleges/universities, military, and our trades-related stakeholders! 👏👏👏 A heartfelt thank you to all the students and staff who contributed to the setup and cleanup efforts, as well. We received such positive feedback from our vendors, who were impressed by the organization, friendliness, and engagement of our school community. Our visitors couldn’t stop raving about how delicious the food was—thank you to the Culinary Arts program for making it all possible... Everything was AMAZING! 🤩🤩🤩 Thank you to the MELMAC team for their continued support with this event, we appreciate all you do for WRVC.

A huge thank you to Bonny Eagle Middle School for inviting WRVC to their Career Day, and to South Portland Middle School for including us in theirs as well! We had an absolute blast connecting with the students and sharing what WRVC is all about. We can’t wait for more opportunities to engage with these amazing schools in the future! A special shout-out to Ms. Atripaldi and Ms. O'Toole for representing WRVC with enthusiasm and dedication at these events. We truly appreciate all of your hard work!

WRVC students and staff having a blast at the Maine SkillsUSA Competition Opening Ceremony!

Our very own Lorelai N. (Cosmetology, Tech I student) graced the Maine State SkillsUSA Opening Ceremony with her beautiful rendition of our National Anthem! She started this special event off with heart and prideful energy and received a standing ovation. Thank you, Lorelai—your voice is a gift!

Business I Students Earn Microsoft Office Specialist Certification Five first-year business students have earned their first industry credential - the Microsoft Office Specialist (Word) certification. This endorsement helps job seekers stand out to potential employers seeking qualified business employees and signals expertise in Microsoft Word. Tina N., Will P., Edson N- B., and two other students

ProStart Invitational Competition (Culinary Arts) Follow Up: Our ProStart Invitational competitors (please see the News Article) received $1,500 scholarships for placing 2nd in this challenge! We wanted to share the information we received to help celebrate our students, Chef Hernandez, Captain Anestis, Chef Rascati, and other school personnel who helped to make this happen. We especially want to thank Hospitality Maine, ProStart, and the Culinary Institute of America for their generosity and belief in our students! ---As a recognition of their exceptional achievements, we are excited to share that the Culinary Institute of America has awarded scholarships to the top-performing teams in the 2025 ProStart Competition: First Place Award: $2,000 Second Place Award: $1,500 Third Place Award: $1,000 These scholarships serve as a well-deserved recognition of your students’ hard work and success. We hope this scholarship will help them continue to grow and pursue their culinary dreams.