Culinary students impress celebrity judges

Today's the first day of school at EVIT, but that didn't stop second-year culinary students Brandy Rennic (Apache Junction) and Chelsea Hacker (Apache Junction) from showing off their skills!

On Saturday, Aug. 6, Rennick and Hacker were selected by instructor Chef Turcotte to compete in an "Iron chef" type event at the Sanctuary Resort as part of a "Lunch and Learn" event hosted by Tram Mai of Channel 12.

With a 15-minute time limit, the mystery ingredients were revealed and the students went to work creating their own salad for celebrity judges Eddie Matney and Michael DeMaria.

Meanwhile, event attendees enjoyed a four-course lunch that was prepared with the help of additional EVIT students in the Sanctuary kitchen.

When it was time to judge...the salads created were too delicious to pick a winner, so it was called a tie!

Gold medal awarded to fashion design student

Congratulations to Landry Low, a Fashion Merchandising student in Kristen Johnson's class. She was awarded the coveted Gold medal for Fashion Design at this year's FCCLA competition in Anaheim, Calif.

During her time in California, she also met Wesley Nault and Daniel Feld from Season 5 of Project Runway. They were so impressed that she was offered an opportunity to intern with them when she moves to New York for school. Way to go Landry and Kristen!

3D Summer Service Learning

This summer, a group of approximately 12 students participated in a four-week summer service learning program taught by Mr. Perez and sponsored by Kids Who Care, Inc.

High school juniors and seniors learned how to use digital technology such as animation, graphic design and production software techniques. They utilized these skills to create charts, posters and presentations on topics they are passionate about such as teen suicide, drug abuse and game addition.

Students also took a field trip to the Microsoft store in Scottsdale where they learned hands-on about Kodu gaming software and the newest products on the market.

Space is still available for fall classes! Sign up during Registration Days on July 27 and 28 from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. For more info, call 480-461-4000 or visit http://www.evit.com/.

Photo: Student John Guerrero works on a graphic for his Prescription Drug Abuse presentation.

Aviation students meet Air Force crew

EVIT aviation students met the crew from the U.S. Air Force's 55th Electronic Combat Group, which recently returned from active duty in Afghanistan and is based in Tucson.

The crew's mission is electronic detection and the jamming of enemy locations and radio transmissions. They can locate everything from cell phone traffic to the signal necessary to detonate some roadside bombs.

"It was a real pleasure to hear from the crew about their jobs and their aircraft," aviation instructor Lou Amadee said. "They were very eager and hospitable about showing the students around and answering their questions."

When Construction and Interior Design collide

EVIT Construction and Interior Design students are putting the finishing touches on their miniature houses this week in preparation for the Block of Dreams Open House coming up on April 28th.


The Construction students have spent the entire school year constructing the two-room homes, and now the Interior Design students are adding their own special flair with paint and decor.


To get an idea of the final result, check out last year's houses here. Hope to see you all on the 28th!

Cosmo students give kids the royal treatment

About 40 EVIT cosmetology students helped create a magical experience for 80 children from Hope Kids and March of Dimes last week.

The EVIT students partnered with the nonprofits and Disney on Ice to give the children "prince and princess" makeovers, complete with hairstyles, glitter and costumes.


Once the children were looking great, they were taken by limo for a special lunch before attending the Disney on Ice show.


"This experience changed some of the EVIT students forever," cosmetology instructor Pam Devine said. "Seeing the children's excitement and appreciation; our students were so inspired by them."

EVIT collision repair students turn car into airplane

EVIT Aviation Director Capt. Al Mittelstaedt went to the collision repair students earlier this year with an interesting request: "Can you make my car look like an airplane?"

Their answer? "Sure!"

Five weeks later, Capt. Mittelstaedt has a very unique mode of transportation:


The students opted for a WW2-style plane, complete with rivets, machine gun, dirt and rust.

Now he's sure to make an impression when he's out recruiting new aviation students.

Biotech students soak up info at symposium

EVIT biotechnology students learned all about nanotechnology and early cancer detection at the recent Mesa Community College Biotechnology Symposium.


High school and college biotechnology students from across the state attended the symposium at Mesa Community College. They participated in round table discussions with scientists and professionals in the biotechnology industry.

The EVIT biotechnology class had almost 100 percent participation: That's pretty great for a Saturday!

The final countdown

About 350 EVIT students still have perfect attendance with just 7 weeks to go in the school year. That means they are still in the running to win a 1998 Chevrolet pickup truck. Or maybe a 2011 Chevy Cruze!

Perfect attendance students gathered today for their quarterly assembly, where there were the usual shenanigans.


Now, it's crunch time. How many will be left standing at the end of the year? Who will win the vehicles?

EVIT students act like "victims"

Four EVIT EMT students worked as "victims" in a mock casualty drill earlier this month aimed at preparing local public service agencies for mass emergencies.


The students acted as victims of a mass shooter loose on the Arizona State University campus. They were found, "treated" and transported by EMS crews to area hospitals.

The kids had a great time and each earned a letter of recognition from PMT Ambulance.

Where creativity and science collide

EVIT Health Occupations students beefed up their science and creativity skills in the Second Annual Neuron Challenge last week. Students were challenged to create an illustration of a neuron, using all sorts of materials, from Twizzlers and Twinkies to pipe cleaners and brooms (yes, brooms).

Students had to label their neuron's muscle, dendrites, cell body, nucleus, node, myelin, and axon branch.
It was difficult to narrow down the 30-40 projects to just a handful of winner. They all looked so good (some even smelled good). Several were worthy of honorable mentions:

But a few stood out as being the most well-executed and creative:

And the Grand Prize Winner....

If you can't tell in the picture, the cell body is a plate of spaghetti, the nucleus is a meatball, the dendrites are forks ... and the guy with the chef's hat? That's the muscle. Ha!

More photos are here. Well done, students!

The perfect attendace truck is here!

EVIT students with perfect attendance will have the chance to win this at the end of the school year:


Steve Marley, service manager at Thorobred Chevrolet, dropped off the truck and passed the keys over to EVIT Campus Director James Fisher on Monday.

Now, it's up to the EVIT automotive and collision repair students to look it over and give it a fresh coat of a paint and an updated look.

This school year is extra special for perfect attendance students because they'll have two chances to win a vehicle. EVIT seniors with perfect attendance will also be in the running to win a brand new Chevy Cruze as part of General Motors' Chevy Drive for Perfection Contest.

The drawing will take place May 23rd.

Valley chefs "spice" things up at EVIT

Ten top Valley chefs donated their time and talent to help students whip up a beautiful gourmet dinner at the East Valley Institute of Technology Thursday night.


The chefs were participating in the school's annual Mystery Chef Dinner, which raises money for culinary student scholarships. Each year, the dinner has a different theme. Last year's theme was "cheese"; this year, it was "spice."


EVIT culinary students were hard at work all night, cooking, hosting and serving.


What a great event! Thanks to all the chefs who made the dinner extra special. To see more pictures from the night, click here.

Featuring 3D Animation

EVIT 3D Animation students are amazingly talented. If you've ever wondered what those students are able to create (and even if you've never wondered it), you have to check out this video.

Stick with it until the end, and you'll see something truly impressive.

Walking for Juvenile Diabetes

Nearly 1,000 EVIT students are participating in a Walk-A-Thon today in support of research for Juvenile Diabetes.

Here is the morning group, getting ready to start their two-hour walk/run around campus:

The event was organized by EVIT Health Occupations Students of America members who are raising money all school year for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation as part of their annual service project.

Students from other EVIT programs, such as construction, also joined in the Walk-A-Thon to lend their support. All together, students raised nearly $5,000.

Great job!