Learning to Cook at Sheridan High School

The cooking class, (in no particular order) Shari Surwald; Jaselene Wehling; Leocadia Field; Naomi Andersen; Abby Gomke; Kylie Carter; Raeleigh Ridl; Morgan Anderson; Alex Weber; McKinley Chase. Not pictured is Brock Oberlie.

The Career and Technical Education program at Sheridan High includes a cooking classes. Christy Andersen, Sheridan High School teacher, talked about the class.

This year there are 12 students, juniors and seniors. Some took the class last year as well. ProStart is an industry-backed two-year culinary arts and restaurant management program for high school students through the National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation.

This year the class, which offers certificates as well as concurrent enrollment with Sheridan College, is also offering a ‘Safe Serve’ certificate. Anderson explains why that is important.

She said many of the students have jobs over the summer in the industry.

Brock Oberlie, senior, has taken both classes. On Wednesday, Nov. 16, he and the class were learning ‘plating’ that is making the plates attractive. Proper food plating and presentation is important in today’s restaurants.

The classes help prepare them for the professional culinary world and help if they want to go on to college for a more advanced degree. The Culinary Arts and Hospitality Foundations Certificate Program at Sheridan College is designed to prepare students for entry-level placement in the Culinary Arts and Hospitality field. The program can transition into the Hospitality and Tourism Management Associate of Applied Science (AAS) program.

When asked if she followed up on any of the students from the class, Anderson said:

In Wyoming the pro start program is celebrating 20 years. Anderson didn’t know how long the class has been available at SHS.

She said there are competitions every year where students learn to talk in front of judges, work under pressure, and how to work as a team. “Sometimes the students feel they know everything.” Andersen said. “But just working in those environments gives them an opportunity to learn to work under that kind of pressure and find out how well they perform.” State winners can go on to the national competition.

Learning to cook is a valuable skill, whether the student plans to go on to work in the food industry or just to learn the basis of safe food handling and how to make nutritious, tasty meals for the family. The CTE program at Sheridan High School offers a wealth of knowledge for the students.