Orange County's Newport Harbor High School sweeps culinary, management events at California ProStart Competition

Newport Harbor High School's culinary and management teams both won first place at the eighth annual California ProStart Competition, or Boyds Coffee Culinary Cup, hosted by the California Restaurant Association Educational Foundation (CRAEF). This is the second consecutive victorious year for the Newport, Calif. school's culinary team. The teams won scholarships and will be sponsored by CRAEF to compete in the 2010 National ProStart Invitational in Overland Park, Kansas April 30 through May 2.

"This year we felt confident, but honestly I didn't think we would win because there were a lot of strong teams," senior Edgardo Meza said. "It feels awesome to accomplish something like this. We earn a lot of respect from our peers when we're able to come back to school as winners."

Five juniors and seniors enrolled in the school's ROP Culinary Arts program competed at the event at Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts in Sacramento. The culinary team included Meza, Gabriela Gomez, Jessenia Hernandez, Eduardo Medina and Kasey Hyde. The management team included Gabriela Gomez, Jessenia Hernandez and Irene Martinez.

"It's incredible to be recognized for something that day in and day out we're putting our hearts into," Hernandez said.

Instructor Janet Dukes enlisted help from industry professionals who served as mentors including Jason Labahn, chef instructor at Le Cordon Bleu College in Las Vegas, Nev.; baking and pastry chef Emeliano Nino; and architect John Hill of Costa Mesa's Robinson Hill Architecture.

In the culinary competition, La Quinta High School of La Quinta won second place and Pacific Grove's Pacific Grove High School earned third place. In the management event, Pleasant Valley High School of Chico earned second place and Los Angeles' Santee Education Complex came in third place. Second- and third-place teams also earned scholarships to several culinary and hospitality higher-education programs. Nearly 100 students from 11 California high schools convened for the event.

"Congratulations to Newport Harbor for such a strong showing in the competition," CRAEF Executive Director Alycia Harshfield said. "We are so proud of all the students who participated in the event. They show so much dedication to the field and truly are the future of the industry."

About the California Restaurant Association Educational Foundation:

CRAEF has awarded more than $1 million in scholarships and grants since its inception in 1981. CRAEF works to enhance education and training programs within the hospitality industry. ProStart is a two-year program designed to prepare high school juniors and seniors for exciting careers in foodservice.