Spice it up!
Cooking program lets students get creative

RACHAEL WORKMAN photos/St. Albans

TOP: Senior Greg Hunneshagen, a member of St. Albans’ ProStart competition team, operates the cappucino machine in the ProStart classroom. MIDDLE: Kelsey Guthrie, a senior and member of the ProStart general class, checks on a dish in the oven. BOTTOM: Senior Gina Baker heats a pot on one of the classroom’s stoves.

By Megan Young
St. Albans High School

The ProStart program at St. Albans High School is one of the most prestigious culinary programs at the high school level in West Virginia. It’s one of only two ProStart programs in Kanawha County. (The other is at Riverside.)

ProStart, a two-year program for students interested in the restaurant and food-service industries, has been in West Virginia for nine years and at St. Albans for four. Currently there are 50 programs in operation in West Virginia, with more than 1,000 students enrolled each year.

The program was started due to the lack of quality food service training in the state. It is sponsored by West Virginia Hospitality Education and Training on the state level and the National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation on the national level.

“I think one of the reasons the program has done so well is because it has had a lot of support from the very beginning. Our principal, Dr. Tom Williams, was on board with the idea even before the new school building opened,” said Joey Halstead, who was recently named West Virginia ProStart teacher of the year for 2006.

ProStart combines business and leadership training with students’ interest in cooking. The National Restaurant Association provides ProStart teachers with additional training in business management and culinary skills to prepare them to teach the classes.

The program approaches teaching in a very unique way, treating everything as a hands-on activity. These activities provide students with opportunities to concoct recipes and dishes that are all their own invention.

“I really like the hands-on approach,” said general class member Sarah Beane. “It has really helped prepare me for culinary school.”

ProStart also provides students with many post-graduation opportunities. Students who participate in the program are eligible for college credits at more than 30 colleges and universities (12 in West Virginia). In 2006, more than $400,000 in scholarship money was given to ProStart students at the West Virginia Hospitality Cup Competition. Many employers also will hire students based on their ProStart background alone.

The St. Albans ProStart program has two branches — the competition team and the general class. Both are only open to juniors and seniors with GPAs of 2.5 or higher.

Students wishing to take the general class must attend an interview with Halstead before being admitted to the class. “In general about 35 to 40 kids ask to be in the program, and I only let in about 30,” Halstead said.

Students on the competition team come from the general class. They must audition to be on the competition team.

In that audition, each student is given one hour and a variety of ingredients and asked to prepare a meal. A panel of judges from the community is brought in to select the top five students. Students are judged based on how their dish looks and tastes and who used the ingredients most creatively. Members chosen to be on the competition team must also show competency in the business aspect of the class.

Only five students are admitted to the competition team each year, and juniors must re-audition if the wish to be on the competition team the following year.

“We had to fill out an application and write an essay, then we had to come in and cook for a panel of judges. We had a whole list of criteria that we were required to meet, like following safety instructions and knife handling,” said Kristine Kraft, a senior on the competition team.

The competition team meets once a week after school for private instruction from Halstead and Duane Legg, former chef at The Clay Center and Sleepy Hollow Country Club. Legg acts as a mentor to the students, offering cooking and preparation advice, as well as food presentation and business management tips.

Each year the competition team competes in the Hospitality Cup at Stonewall Resort. The Hospitality Cup is designed to tests students’ knowledge in business management and culinary skills. For three years in a row, St. Albans has come in first out of 12 teams in the business management category of the competition.

The team and general class also participate in the WVHEAT-sponsored Culinary Day at Glade Springs Resort, a day of hospitality education, training and demonstrations.

“My favorite part of Culinary Day was seeing real chefs cook and hear them tell stories of how they became chefs.” said Megan Emmit. “I also thought that the ice sculptor display was pretty cool.”

The ProStart facilities at St. Albans are just as impressive as its reputation. The program has its own fully-functional commercial kitchen, which is attached to a classroom. The ProStart room also features several round restaurant tables and a lunch counter where students can observe Halstead while she is cooking.

The ProStart program also provides the school with culinary services as a way to raise funds. Each week, the general classes make several enormous batches of pepperoni rolls and cinnamon rolls to sell at lunch. Students line up before the lunch bell even rings to be sure to get one.

ProStart also has a cappuccino machine that is turned on all day, and students can buy cappuccino or hot chocolate for $1. The money raised from these sales goes directly back into the ProStart fund and is used to buy materials, such as practice ingredients for the competition team.

In addition to those fundraisers, ProStart also does catering, providing meals to many of the organizations that use the school as a meeting place. Some of the events they cater include alumni dinners, sports banquets and show choir events.

ProStart provides a unique education for its students. It offers a practical business skill that can be used in almost any workplace, while providing students with a fun and creative way to explore their culinary desires.

“I think this is a great opportunity,” Halstead said. “I wish it were an opportunity when I was in high school.”