Ivy Tech Community College-Northeast’s Wedding Cake Production I class recently practiced their skill by delivering multi-tiered cakes to four area nursing homes.  Eight students majoring in Baking and Pastry Arts showcased their talent and completed their final project for their class on Tuesday, July 27.

Four groups of two students each rotated deliveries to Saint Anne Home, Heritage Park, Woodview Healthcare, and Bethlehem Woods nursing homes. Instructor Cheryl Hitzemann chose nursing homes for the summer delivery for their perfect fit – a place where the cake delivery might generate some excitement and a place where over 100 pieces of cake could be served and enjoyed. Two of the nursing homes embraced the idea and conducted a formal reception for residents.

Hitzemann stated, “I can teach my students what they need to know to deliver a cake, what can go wrong, what to think about, but until they actually have a cake in their car driving down the road worrying about every bump, directions, and temperature inside the car, it’s only talk. This is a perfect hands-on example of experiential learning that is crucial to their success as bakers.”

Students in the Wedding Cake Production I class who made the deliveries included Alyssa Augustyniak, Lisa Bradley, Renee Dickerson, Jenna Fields, Katy Gensic, Nicole Kuhn, Rhonda Nelson, and Bryce Verfaillie. Without giving away their grades, Hitzemann stated, “They all did a wonderful job.”