We Are Atlantic Cape

Grace Carpenter

Class of 2025, A.A.S. Culinary Arts w/Baking & Pastry option

Culinary Arts and Hospitality Management

“At Atlantic Cape I truly found my passion in culinary and now it’s something that I enjoy so much that I can’t wait to do it for the rest of my life. There are so many opportunities for culinary students to succeed at Atlantic Cape.”

What are your plans after graduating?

I am going right to work.

Why did you choose Atlantic Cape?

I chose Atlantic cape because it was close to home and I heard it had an amazing culinary arts program.

What opportunities has Atlantic Cape provided you?

There were so many opportunities for me at Atlantic Cape. For example, I competed in an MRE challenge, I was able to use the Academy’s food truck for a full day and had a lot of help from a couple of my chef instructors. I am also going on the Italy trip with the Academy of Culinary Arts this summer. They made it possible and affordable to go to Italy and explore a few of the culinary schools and culinary experiences in Italy.

What activities, clubs or sports were you involved with during your time at Atlantic Cape?

I was involved with the Culinary Student Association during my freshman year.

Describe the biggest challenge (or challenges) you were faced with getting to college or during your college career, and you overcame it (them).

My biggest challenge I faced during college was paying out of pocket. I wanted to pay for school out of pocket so I wouldn’t have any debt. Of course there were some scholarships opportunities that helped me out a little bit as well.

Did you attend classes at Atlantic Cape in-person, online, hybrid or remote?

I attended classes at Atlantic Cape in-person and online.

Who would you like to thank for helping you achieve your college or career goals?

I want to thank my parents for helping me throughout the few years I’ve been here and being supportive with everything I chose to do. I also want to thank all of my chef instructors who helped me along the way and opened up many opportunities along the way.

What does graduating from Atlantic Cape mean to you?

To me in means that I succeeded and I’m ready to start my culinary journey in the real world and industry.

What would you say to someone who is thinking about attending Atlantic Cape? Why should they consider Atlantic Cape?

I would tell them to consider Atlantic cape. If they are anything like me I had no idea what I wanted to do out of high school. At first I thought nursing, then business, then Xray, and finally landed on culinary. Once I finally decided on culinary I realized that it was the best decision I could have made. I truly found my passion and something I enjoy so much that I can’t wait to do it for the rest of my life. Atlantic cape is a great two year program that is affordable and allows you to take your prerequisites or get an associates degree it anything you could imagine.

Favorite quote and what is your advice for future students?

“It started with a spark. Now it’s a flame that can’t be put out.” My advice to future students is to take every opportunity that is thrown at you. There are so many opportunities to succeed at Atlantic Cape for culinary students and for regular student.