Career and technical education students worked together on the project celebrating CTE Month, held in February.

By Rachel McReynolds

What better way to celebrate CTE Month than with delicious food and hands-on learning?

At Centennial High School, the career and technical education department marked the occasion with a “food truck” pop-up — a cross-collaborative showcase of CTE skills including hospitality, culinary arts, digital media, marketing, child development, computer science, health science, journalism, photojournalism, business planning and floral design.

CTE department chair Lynn Runnels said the project was hospitality and tourism teacher Shirah Martinez’s idea, and aimed to meet a district goal of creating engaging learning experiences.

“We wanted to give students the opportunity to use future-ready skills to collaborate and create together,” Runnels said.

And collaborate they did.

First, CTE marketing students researched popular food trucks and handed off that research to hospitality and tourism students. That group then designed the theme and overall concepts and built the food truck models. From there, other CTE classes decided what they wanted to contribute. Thanks to this complex but well-organized process, the project was off and running.

“A few years ago, we did a food truck project, but nothing like this,” said Zoe, a Centennial junior and FCCLA member headed to the state competition this spring. “It’s nice to see they’re incorporating all the different parts of CTE into one project.”

On presentation day, six teams clustered around presentation boards and shared their work. They explained their food truck concept and design, pointing to menus and truck models, handing out food samples to administrators, PTA parents and students who judged their work.

At the first “food truck,” Greasy Burger, students explained all the work that went into their project. They built the menu with a wider audience in mind, including halal and veggie options, and showed off their conceptual sketches and a web page with a unique, interactive menu, coded by a computer science CTE student. Their treat was s’mores pops, made by food science and culinary CTE students at Centennial.

“It’s been fun — we got to be creative with it,” said team member Doneld, a hospitality and tourism student. “We got to make the content for the food, the design. We just had fun with it.”

The event not only gave students a chance to apply their classroom knowledge but also highlighted how CTE programs prepare them for real-world careers.

“The skills our CTE students learn carry them into adulthood and prepare them for real life beyond the comfort and structure of high school,” Martinez said. “Critical thinking, problem solving, teamwork and creativity are all skills that employers look for in any career or chosen profession.”

In the end, the Hola Kitty Taco food truck won the overall prize, but on a day celebrating CTE programs, success could be seen all around.

“We were limited to 100 students, but many others wanted to join once they saw it come together,” Martinez said. “It sparked interest in CTE, which was the goal!”

Learn more

Career and Technical Education classes are offered on students’ home campuses and the CTE Center.

Programs of study
2025-26 Academic Course Catalogs
Certifications offered through CTE courses