Posted on The Daily Courier, April 6, 2015
Culinary Arts is a popular Central Campus program at Mountain Institute JTED. However, Bagdad High School also hosts the MIJTED Satellite Program in Culinary Arts, and its instructor, Shaun Rose, recently was awarded a $500 grant from the Yavapai County Education Foundation for her “feeding the homeless” project, “Lead2Feed.” Her students took part in the special curriculum developed for “Lead2Feed,” which allows them to serve the communities in which they live, learn leadership skills and develop critical thinking, and enrich their compassion for others.
Earlier this month, Rose and 13 of her middle school and high school Culinary Arts students traveled to Prescott to work with the Coalition for Compassion and Justice, preparing and serving food for 150 to 200 clients in Yavapai County. CCJ has an Open Door program that operates every Tuesday to Friday, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m, at the United Methodist Church in Prescott. The students prepared a meal that included smoky meatloaf, mashed potatoes, carrots, and corn muffins. CCJ was also celebrating the organization’s 14th anniversary, so the students served cake and ice cream for dessert.
The Culinary Arts students were excited about the opportunity to use their cooking skills to meet the needs of others.
“It was an awesome experience seeing their smiles and knowing that we made a difference, whether it was big or small,” said Aiden Brown, an eighth-grader at Bagdad.
Bagdad High School senior Jacob Brady said, “It helped me to appreciate everything that I have and reminded me not to take it for granted.”
The students look forward to serving their communities again, whether through CCJ or other similar charities. They complete a range of catering events as part of their Culinary Arts training and curriculum, but working with the homeless has given them a new perspective on life.