For Immediate Release: March 2, 2009

Contact: Lisa McPheron
Director of Communications and External Relations
The Collins College of Hospitality Management
(909) 869-3151, lcmcpheron@csupomona.edu
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15 High Schools Descend on Cal Poly Pomona for Statewide Culinary Competition
The Collins College & the California Restaurant Association’s Educational Foundation
will Co-Host the ProStart Competition

** Update - Monday, March 9 - Newport Harbor High School took first place in the culinary competition and La Quinta took first place in the management competition. **

POMONA, Calif. — Fifteen high schools from across California will compete to see who has the best culinary and management chops on March 6 & 7 during the Boyds Coffee Culinary Cup, which is the California Restaurant Association’s Educational Foundation’s annual ProStart competition.

This exciting event brings together talented high school students from ProStart programs throughout California who collectively represent the future of the restaurant and food service industries. The competition will take place at The Collins College of Hospitality Management at Cal Poly Pomona. Boyd Coffee Company, based in Portland Oregon, is the title sponsor.

Dr. Jerald Chesser CEC, CCE, FMP, AAC, is leading many faculty, staff and students to run the two-day competition. The judges include Cal Poly Pomona Alumni Association President Art Barajas, the college's 2009 Distinguished Alumni Jill Bosich and Bob Spivak, who is a member of The Collins College's Board of Advisors and chairman & founder of The Grill/Daily Grill. Sam Facchini, president of Metro Pizza in Las Vegas and member of the National Restaurant Association’s Board of Directors, will also be a judge and emcee.

Culinary Competition

Teams participating in the culinary competition will have 60 minutes to demonstrate their creative abilities by preparing a three-course meal using only two butane burners. Their performance during this practical session will be observed and rated by industry professionals. Culinary competitions will take place on March 6 from 10 a.m. until 3:15 p.m. and on March 7, from 8:30 a.m. until 1:45 p.m.

Management Competition

The management competition will include a case study and the Quiz Bowl. The case study will simultaneously test students' problem-solving skills, communication skills and their ability to apply industry knowledge to practical situations. The Quiz Bowl will use the same format as Jeopardy and takes place March 6 from 6:45 p.m. to 8 p.m. in the college’s Wine Demonstration Auditorium.   

Winning teams from each competition will be awarded first-, second- and third-place trophies and, most notably, scholarships to aid in their pursuit of a post-secondary education. First-place winning teams from each competition will also be sponsored to compete in the 2009

National ProStart Invitational, held in San Diego from April 24 through April 26.

For more information, contact Lisa McPheron, director of communications & external relations for The Collins College at (909) 869-3151 or lcmcpheron@csupomona.edu.

About the California Restaurant Association Educational Foundation – CRAEF, headquartered in Sacramento, was established as a non-profit organization in 1981. CRAEF brings its educational programs, including ProStart,  into public high schools to encourage students with training in useful skills that can and will prepare them to find work in the California restaurant industry. ProStart is a two-year program that provides instruction in 25 subject areas, ranging from service to sanitation. This program encourages high school students to embrace and experience all of the skills necessary to operate and manage a successful food service establishment. ProStart also helps students develop the good business management skills crucial to future industry growth.

About The Collins College — Founded in 1973, The Collins College of Hospitality Management at Cal Poly Pomona is the first and largest four-year hospitality management degree program in California and the only hospitality management college on the West Coast. More than 1,000 undergraduate students receive a superior education in the state-of-the-art Collins College facilities, where they learn to apply hospitality management theories and concepts to real-world settings. Part of this unique academic experience includes managing and operating the full-service Restaurant at Kellogg Ranch.

 

 



Participating High Schools

  • Atwater High School, Atwater
  • Banning High School, Banning
  • Dorsey High School, Los Angeles
  • Fallbrook High School, Fallbrook
  • Golden Valley High School, Merced
  • La Quinta High School, La Quinta
  • Lakeside High School, Lake Elsinore
  • Newport Harbor High School, Newport Beach
  • Pacific Grove High School, Pacific Grove
  • Pacifica High School, Oxnard
  • San Juan High School, Citrus Heights
  • Santee Education Complex, Los Angeles
  • Scripps Ranch High School, San Diego
  • Sherman Indian High School, Riverside
  • Whitney High School, Rocklin