Where does an award-winning culinary arts instructor find opportunities for students to practice their cooking skills outside the kitchen classroom? Everywhere, according to Secondary Educator of the Year Mary Levinski.

Exposing students to foodservice work in a variety of environments helps solidify skills, builds a sense of accomplishment and is very beneficial to students with language and behavioral challenges. And, as Paul Sorgule recently said in a Think Tank article, “Skills are measured in terms of competence and confidence. Competence and confidence come from not just exposure, but rather repetition and measurement.” Levinski has become an expert on finding, creating and offering chances at skill repetition for her students.

The teacher and department chair at Sauk Rapids-Rice High School in Minnesota recently shared her experiences finding culinary work for students within her school through operating a morning bistro and catering venture as well as working with local ACF chefs cooking for events and involving her students in food shows working with the school’s food vendor.

Levinski believes opportunities for supplementary culinary work abound and an instructor should look internally and externally and then just ask. “I believe it doesn’t hurt to ask, all they can do is say, 'no' and almost always the answer is, 'yes.'” she said.

(Click here for a previous Gold Medal Classroom article featuring Levinski’s suggestions for finding and creating successful community partnerships and sponsorships.)

What are your thoughts on the importance of hands-on experience for students and why instructors should look for any opportunities to give students time to practice?
Students in a hands-on culinary program will remember the material better, feel a sense of accomplishment when the task is completed, and be able to transfer that experience more easily to other learning situations. When more than one learning method is accessed during hands-on learning, the information has a better chance of being stored in the memory for useful retrieval.

Students who have difficulty in the learning arena for reasons of ESL barriers, auditory deficiencies, or behavioral interference can be found to be on-task more often because they are part of the learning process and not just spectators. In-school labs provide the knowledge and beginning hands-on skill development all students need. As a lab teacher, I believe in hands-on practical application of skills at least several days a week.

Please describe your curriculum’s requirement for hands-on experience outside regular classroom instruction.
I teach the ProStart curriculum. This program stresses the Certificate of Achievement, which is an industry certification for high school students. It requires 400 experience hours outside the classroom. As part of my program, students are required to participate in one or more of our many catering opportunities. Much like our school’s music department requires students to participate in concerts outside the normal school day, I do the same with our catering business. Catering is our music performance piece. Students look forward to the events as they love sharing their creations and welcome positive feedback.

Can you please describe your school’s bistro?
Our bistro operates out of our classroom. We are open 2-3 days per week from 7:15 to 8:15 a.m. We prepare all the food from scratch, which limits our time to be open. We begin the bistro officially following the ServSafe completion which means we start around the second month of school. Also, before we open, I train students on equipment, processes and the POS system.

Our typical menu consists of coffee drinks, tea, smoothies, and pastries (both sweet and savory). Food production is based on previous sales, so we typically make several dozen or more of the treats. Beverages are all made to order. Our bistro funds help support student activities in the culinary program as well as our competition teams. Hours spent cooking in the bistro count toward the required hours of experience.

Does your school provide both in- and out-of-school catering services?
We cater our school’s Hall of Fame event each fall. We also make and serve up to 250 people brunch for the induction ceremony. We cater for various activities and events throughout the year. We do off-site catering as requested. Overall, we have catering events scheduled about once every other week. Students who work in these events count the hours toward their required experience.

Describe some of the production events your students have participated in with outside professionals at community events.
We work closely with our ACF chapter on several big events where our students are paired with professionals in the industry to prepare the food and serve for each event. Their work with these chefs is invaluable to their growth in their skills and plans for working in the industry. We also work closely with a mentor chef to our program where our students are involved in promoting and preparing a multi-course dinner as a fundraiser to support the ProStart program. These events really bring confidence to their abilities and the community loves to see what these students can do.

How do students benefit from these outside activities?
Students involved in these activities can use their experience to complete the hours required for their Certificate of Achievement as well as adding experience to their resume. As a result of my students’ participation in these events, I have had two students earn the ACF Student Chef of the Year award plus many others have received scholarships to pursue culinary and hospitality careers beyond high school.

How did you find these opportunities?
I am a member of many food-related organizations and always look for opportunities for my students to become involved, learn from others, and see the bigger culinary-world picture. I reach out to our community and ask how we can help in activities. We have been around now for so many years, that our program and its reputation get many requests for students to share their skills that I rarely search out opportunities anymore.

How would you suggest others find opportunities such as these?
My first suggestion is to become a member of your local ACF chapter. They have so many educational opportunities that are free for students. It is a great start to find chefs to partner with and serve as mentors. They promote your program as much as possible and help others take notice and contact you. Suggest to your school’s activities director your availability to cater for events and activities as needed. Check with your food vendor and see if your students can attend and assist with their food show. My belief is that it doesn’t hurt to ask, all they can do is say, 'no' and almost always the answer is, 'yes.'