Student-run catering program holds last event of season, high hopes for next year
by Dana Serum
A group of five Eleva-Strum students were busy prepping, serving and presenting their meals during a workshop event at the Eleva-Strum High School on June 24. This particular event was extra-special to the group, as it marked the 21st catering event the Cardinal Catering program has been involved in over the course of the 2014-15 school year.
Food Service Director and Family, Consumer and Education (FCE) teacher, Stephenie Ebsen, who was busy showing her students how to make decorative swirls on top of a strawberry shortcake dessert that day, said that she came up with the idea for Cardinal Catering as a way to save the FCE program.
“I had no idea it would take off like it did,” Ebsen said. “And when it did, it just went, kaboom!”
Currently, the Cardinal Catering class has a total of six female students, who all wear matching Cardinal Catering uniforms for their events. The types of catering events the class covers continues to grow, as they are trained to prepare a wide variety of meals. Ebsen said the students work with the client on what the unique food needs are for each event. The students final summer event was cooking for administrators from several school districts in Wisconsin, and other bordering states.
The class is already busily prepping for next year; they are currently bidding on an anniversary dinner event for more than 500 people in the fall.
As part of the students final project, Ebsen said each student had to create three catering event proposals, including theme, color, menu and cost. She plans to select the best three and submit them to the client.
“It would be a shot gun experience for most of them,” she said of the opportunity, as the school year would just be beginning.
For the 2015-16 school year, Ebsen has already accepted 15 students into the class, including 13 females and two males. Although more students applied, Ebsen said this seemed to be a feasible limit due to the current lack of adequate space and equipment. The class is currently held before lunch, and the only cooking space is in the food service area, so it can at times be a challenge.
Ebsen said she is still working on getting a permanent space for the catering classes.
This year, there will be a Cardinal Catering 2 level class for those who took the course this past year. They will focus on things like recipe creation and menu costing, while the first year students will focus more on cooking basics, and safety and sanitation practices. In the future, she hopes to build a college-level commercial food service kitchen-type classroom. With a larger class size, students can branch off, allowing for several teams of caterers; there are currently two sections planned, plus a third section for the accounting and marketing team.
“I have big plans to work towards making the class a Pro Star Program, which could earn the students college credits for the course,” she added.
The current students have been working to fund-raise for the program’s growing needs. An outdoor charcoal chicken event put on by the class, held May 8, helped raise $2500 for the program. Ebsen hopes to put the money towards equipment and serving needs.
Incoming senior Grace Toft said her favorite part of last year’s events was the Valentine’s dinner, where the class served more than 220 people.
“We created our own homemade meatballs, and we got a lot of praise,” she said. “For prom, we did mini-cupcakes and they turned out so good.”
The program is dependent on fundraising and donations, as students are required to be certified on ServSafe Food Safety Skills, which comes with a cost of $100 per student, and an additional $30 each for uniforms.
Ebsen said since she currently cannot pay the students for their services, she enjoys giving them unique perks throughout the year.
“It’s not much, but it is something,” she said. “They get a lot of hugs!”
Ebsen said a long term goal for the program is to be able to pay for membership into the NACE program, the National Association of Catering and Events, which is around $300 a year for non-profits.
“Being a part of this professional organization would help us to network, and open new doors for our program and my students,” Ebsen said. “Educationally and financially.”
As the students began the clean up process, they were met with a round of applause by attendees. Ebsen said each event holds a unique theme; the workshop held a ‘manly’ theme with tin serving trays and mason jars.
Toft said after her first year of involvement in the program, she is much more aware of all the planning that goes into a catering event.
“The hardest thing about being in the program was being on time with the food,” she said.
As the last event of the summer came to a close, the students, all of which will continue the class in the fall, have a lot to look forward to.
“It will be so nice to have more people in the class,” Junior Grace Anderson said.
Ebsen is ready for next year; she shared her excitement to assemble a “monthly planning wall” where she imagines each month being full with events.
The programs brochure explains how Cardinal Catering is a student-run catering business, where students learn hands on skills such as basic and advanced food preparation techniques, baking and pastry decorating, event catering principles, and more. Students are also required to be certified on ServSafe Food Safety Skills, which the brochure explains to qualify the students to work in any food service establishment in the United States. Ebsen said “even more importantly, they learn skills such as teamwork, patience, flexibility and professionalism. These are the core skills they will need no matter what career path their life takes them on.”
To plan a catered event, contact Stephenie Ebsen by phone at 715-695-2696 ext. 2097 or by email cardinalcatering@esschools.k12.wi.us. To find more information, visit the website at www.CardinalCatering.weebly.com or check them out on Facebook at www.facebook.com/cardinalcatering.
