College leaders taught a thing or two by students for Colleges Week!
17/10/2011
Left to right - Jenny Poore, Russell Strutt, Adrian Dodwell and Suri Araniyasundaran
Staff and students from the College turned the Colleges Week 2011 theme of 'Have a Go' on its head, when the Senior Leadership Team, including College Principal Dr Russell Strutt 'Had a Go' at blacksmithing, bricklaying, manicures and professional cookery, overseen by students, keen to demonstrate skills learnt on their courses!
The events took pace at the Crawley campus on the morning of Thursday 29 September, with all four College Leaders assembling in their 'uniforms' ready for their first session. Principal Russell Strutt was paired with Executive Director of HR & Communications, Jenny Poore, and they headed off to the welding workshop for an introduction to blacksmithing, suitably attired in fire retardant overalls and heavy work boots! The 45 minute session saw Level 3 Apprentice, Charlie Whittingham, who is 18, and from Epsom, teach them how to make a hook in the forge, overseen by blacksmithing tutor, Mark Lewis.
Blacksmithing is a new course offered at the College, and both Russell and Jenny were extremely enthusiastic throughout the task, despite braving the heat of the forge on the unseasonably warm late-September day. They were thrilled to be able to take away their hand-made hooks from the session.
After a quick change into smart new chef whites, Russell and Jenny joined Chef Lecturer Mark Russell and his Professional Cookery class in the production kitchen, where they helped to prepare food for the lunchtime service in the College's training restaurant, Le Cordon Vert. They were tutored by students Jeanne Bluett-Duncan and Matt Coomey in the art of making the perfect bread roll, followed by a crash-course in duchesse potatoes - a delicate process involving a piping bag and a steady hand!
Meanwhile, Deputy Principal for Students, Curriculum and Quality, Adrian Dodwell, was teamed with fellow College Deputy Principal, Suri Araniyasundaran for two masterclasses which also took place during the morning. They started off the day trying their hands at manicures in the College's Intuition beauty salon, where after watching intensely during the demonstration, they treated two lucky students to a buff, re-shape and polish.
Next on the agenda for Suri and Adrian was a crash-course in bricklaying, overseen by tutor, Mark Blake. After donning their overalls, they were shown the basics by a group of Level 1 students, whom, despite only having recently enrolled, proved extremely capable and helpful teachers throughout the task, which included handling mortar and building a wall.
The 'Have a Go' event at Central Sussex College was a hugely enjoyable and successful event with students able to demonstrate their expertise in newly-learned skills to College leaders, and College leaders able to get a real taste of some of the training they are more used to managing from behind a desk!
