Riverdale Alum Returns to Teach Students the Science of Cheese-Making

1/14/2010

Riverdale alumnus Michael Raven ’09 visited the Hill campus on Thursday, January 14 to teach seventh grade science students the art of cheese-making.

Michele Blum’s class had fun making and tasting the home-made cheese, which is made with just a few simple ingredients: milk, vinegar or lemon juice, and salt. It was a messy experience, but the students showed a lot of enthusiasm and didn’t seem to mind getting a little dirty in the classroom.

Michael currently attends Green Mountain College in Poultney, VT where he majors in environmental studies and works on the student-run farm on campus. He first became interested in making cheese after taking a food preservation class in which he learned how to make a variety of different foods from cheese to the Korean side-dish, kimchi.

After the cheese-making, Michael told the students to stay positive in school and pursue whatever makes them happy. Michael is pursuing his interests in sustainable agriculture and food production and hopes to instill a similar interest in younger students.