What is Skill Kitchen?
Skill Kitchen is a hands-on culinary culinary education program created by The LEE Initiative in collaboration with local youth organizations. Launched as a pilot program in Spring 2025 with Louisville Youth Group, Louisville Pride Foundation, and Poco Pop Ups, Skill Kitchen gives youth ages 5-24 hands-on culinary education in safe, affirming environments. Students explore cooking, food systems, and sustainability while developing personal agency and community connection. Each semester, The LEE Initiative partners with one or more local youth organizations, who help recruit and support students participating in the program.
In Fall 2025, Skill Kitchen will become a permanent program managed by The LEE Initiative in partnership with Poco Pop Ups. The curriculum integrates cooking with local and seasonal ingredients, gardening and sustainability practices, and exploration of food systems and justice.
Why Does Youth Culinary Education Matter?
Youth thrive in inclusive spaces where culinary learning is connected to food justice, life skills, and sustainability.
In our pilot program, participants demonstrated measurable growth in food literacy, teamwork and self-confidence — showing the power of hands-on education in a supportive, values driven environment.
Participants practiced essential cooking skills like proper hand washing and knife safety, chopping vegetables, sautéing, and building flavors with dried herbs and spices. Students completed reflective worksheets that captured their food preferences and interests, revealing a wide range of culinary curiosity. One student expressed an eagerness to recreate their dad’s famous chess bars, while others showed curiosity about diverse food cultures, including Greek, African, and Hispanic cuisine.
Together, the class highlighted both the diversity of young students’ food experiences and their excitement to learn new skills and cuisines in a hands-on, supportive environment.
