Washtenaw County high schoolers bring home accolades in manufacturing, cooking, and more

This article is part of Concentrate’s Voices of Youth series, which features stories written by Washtenaw County youth with guidance from Concentrate staff mentors, as well as adult-written stories spotlighting local youth perspective. In this installment, adult writer Jaishree Drepaul interviews local students about their success in career and technical education competitions.

For many Washtenaw County career and technical education (CTE) students, few experiences are as transformative as being recognized as future leaders in their career paths. From awards to accolades, CTE students are experiencing the added value that this type of hands-on educational training can unlock.

“You know, you don’t really think that going to school is going to turn into a $10,000 check,” says recent Saline High School graduate Semmy Badenhop. “Then, I’m here explaining how it does.”

The 19-year-old enrolled in a CTE manufacturing class in his junior year of high school. Enthused by the teaching style of his instructor, Trent Trout, he expanded his CTE studies. By senior year, Badenhop could see himself working in the industry. At the same time, Project MFG announced its first National Machining League Championship.

Badenhop enrolled and excelled in the championship’s high school level. With Trout in his corner, Badenhop then traveled to Southwestern Illinois College’s Advanced Manufacturing Facility to compete nationally this past April. After competing against 180 students from across 45 schools, Badenhop won the competition’s $10,000 prize.

“I just kind of looked at Mr. Trout, and I was like, ‘I shouldn’t – I don’t think I should have won,'” Badenhop says. “I wasn’t saying that out loud, obviously, but I just looked at him, and I was like, ‘Holy smokes, buddy, we did it.’”

“I could do something I actually enjoyed and make money”

Trout says that moment felt like he was coming “full circle,” hearkening back to winning a CTE competition as a student himself in 2018. He recalls the moment when Badenhop’s win was announced.

“Third place gets called; it’s not him. Second place gets called; not him. And then first place; it’s him,” Trout says. “And I just remember him looking up at me, like, ‘Is this real? Did I actually win?’ I was like, ‘That’s you, man.’”

Badenhop credits his success in manufacturing competitions for giving him the confidence – and financial means – to leave a job he disliked at Chipotle, where he’d worked as a grill cook, cashier, and food prep cook. He now works as a CNC machinist at a machine shop.

“I quit Chipotle. I absolutely hated working in that establishment,” Badenhop says. “And I realized that I could do something I actually enjoyed and make money.”

Badenhop was also part of a school team that competed in the automated manufacturing technologies category at SkillsUSA. SkillsUSA hosts annual trade and vocational competitions for students across the United States. Students compete in regional, state, and then national rounds. Some competitors go directly to the state level, and all students placing first at that level move up to the nationals.

“One of the biggest benefits of SkillsUSA is that it gives students experiences they’ll remember for the rest of their lives,” says Trout, who is also a SkillsUSA advisor. “It’s something that changes the way they view things. It opens doors to job opportunities, because businesses see their dedication and want to hire them.”

He shares that the recent competition season proved to be a remarkable journey. Badenhop went to Delta College in University Center, Mich., for a manual machining competition and took first in the manual milling category. The momentum continued at Ferris State University in Big Rapids, Mich., where he placed among the top three competitors in surface grinding. The season culminated at the SkillsUSA Nationals in Atlanta, where he was on a team that placed 10th. 

“It was definitely interesting to go and meet people from different states at nationals,” says Hugh Willatt, who was one of Badenhop’s teammates in the Atlanta competitions. “There were people from the Dominican Republic, Alaska, and Hawaii competing for the same thing. That was interesting.”

Willatt also won the SkillsUSA state championship in the 3D printing category. After this victory, he went on to compete at the national championship in Atlanta, where he placed eighth. Looking ahead, the 18-year-old’s ambitions are global. Next month, he’ll head to British Columbia, where he’ll be working at a ski resort.

“I’m taking a gap year to focus less on engineering, and focusing on growing my social skills and working with different people,” he says. “I recently got into the University of Sheffield in England. A big part of my application was talking about skills and what I did at CTE competitions.”

“It feels bigger than just a medal”

Since Samantha Dye became lead chef for Ann Arbor Public Schools’ CTE Culinary Arts program at Huron High School in 2018, she’s witnessed something remarkable: her program’s student roster jumped from 19 to 100. Dye credits the program’s hands-on approach and its focus on real-world experience, especially through competitions.

“Students participate in SkillsUSA competitions in culinary arts, baking, and restaurant service. They have to be decision-makers and critical thinkers,” she says. “If they’re in that kitchen and they notice they’re behind, they have to figure out how to accommodate for that time loss and still get done on time.”

Nha Nguyen is among Dye’s students who have received recent accolades. Dye says Nguyen’s wins have been particularly inspiring to watch. 

“She was a junior last year in her first year in the program. She was very, very timid and shy,” Dye says. 

However, Nguyen went on to win first place at both local and regional SkillsUSA competitions, then placed 25th out of 54 in a national competition. The 12th grader is partnering with the Washtenaw Intermediate School District this year for the district’s leadership program, taking entrepreneurship courses at Washtenaw Community College, and getting a paid internship with Zingerman’s. 

“Having professional chefs judge me was really important to me. And it feels bigger than just a medal,” Nguyen says. “It shows that industry professionals see potential, and that’s motivating me to keep improving in my path.”

Dye is proud and excited, noting that a dessert Nguyen created will be a new menu item at the renowned Miss Kim restaurant in Ann Arbor. Through the Culinary Arts program, Nguyen was given the opportunity to lead the dessert team for a pop-up dinner at Miss Kim. At the moment, she’s not certain when it will appear on the menu. She is, however, certain that diners will enjoy it.

“We were doing Asian cuisine, and Asian cuisine doesn’t have a lot of sweets,” Dye explains. “So she took a panna cotta – which is a classical French Italian dessert – and added a mango-passionfruit puree to it.”

Nguyen is still slightly in disbelief that Kim loved her dessert enough to feature it. and that Miss Kim diners will enjoy her talents. 

“Expect a refreshing and really tropical flavor for the top layer, but then the bottom layer will be creamy,” she says. “When it’s all together, it creates a balance between freshness and creaminess, but it also has some tropical flavor.”

Liahni Quijada was also on the Miss Kim pop-up team with Nguyen. The junior is happy that she placed third last year at the local SkillsUSA competition. She didn’t place in the top three at the regionals, but she’s going to compete again this year. 

“I’ve been seeing how chefs feel once they win or get this recognition,” she says. “I felt that too, and am pretty proud of myself.”

She adds that CTE training has given her skills and confidence that she uses in and out of the kitchen.

“A lot of my classmates now look up to me and come to me when they have a question in class, or when they make a mistake,” Quijada says. “Seeing how comfortable people and Chef Sam have gotten with me, I feel like almost a role model in this course.”

Simon Fiser, 17, is another rising culinary star under Dye’s tutelage. His email profile picture is set to an image of the notorious Chef Gordon Ramsay. 

Should Fiser have the chance to cook for Ramsay, he would present a shrimp pasta dish to win over the seasoned chef.

“I love shrimp and I love pasta, because I can put a lot of my own personal touches into it,” Fiser says. “I could make him a dish that would really tell him about who I am as a chef.”

He would also be able to tell Ramsay that he recently wowed SkillsUSA judges, taking home second place at the regional level. Along with a medal, he was given a $700 scholarship to Oakland Community College.

“I feel like this shows people not only that I’m capable, but also that I’m willing to push myself to another level,” Fiser says. “I’m expanding my network, and I’m already getting my foot in the door with a lot of industry insiders.”

For Dye, seeing her students receive awards and accolades is powerful.

“There’s a moment in your heart that is just like, ‘Oh man, like, you got this’. And that goes with all my students,” she says. “You see that growth, and the expressions on their faces and the confidence build out into their future careers.”

Click here to read more from the Voices of Youth series.