4
Winter 2014 Issue
Did you know that the food service
industry is the third largest private sector
employer in the state of Ohio? Did you
know that the Ohio ProStart
®
program
has 2,300 high school students enrolled
in the program receiving instruction from
59 schools and 77 teachers?
The ProStart program has a pipeline of
potential students for you to employ. Are
you interested in hiring junior and senior
students who are currently learning
culinary arts and restaurant management,
including ServSafe practices? Do you want
to support the Ohio ProStart program?
When we think about our first jobs, I’m
sure you will agree that we have come
a long way since those days. There’s
something to say about experience and
maturity. Do you think we grow into our
jobs? Do we know our “career identity,”
our internal job description even when we
begin our first job? I didn’t have access
to career guidance or career training
programs when I went to high school.
There weren’t even career training
programs available in the 1960s. These
types of programs didn’t start in Ohio
until the 1970s and in 2001 the Ohio
Restaurant Association (ORA) supported
our first Ohio ProStart foodservice career
and technical training program.
I believe we have a talented group of
young ProStart students who will stay
in the industry if we help them get
started. It is the responsibility of the
Ohio Restaurant Association Education
Foundation (ORAEF) and our ProStart
teachers to cultivate and nurture their
interests, and grow their talent. The
majority of our ProStart students are
passionate about their interest in the
foodservice industry and enjoy going to
school. They stay after school hours,
including weekends, and participate in
ProStart activities.
The ProStart program
reinforces the 4 Rs:
• Providing a
rigorous
foodservice
training and certification program;
• Fostering
relationships
with teachers,
students, industry leaders, members
and post secondary partners;
• Providing
relevan
t training by
connecting local restaurant industry
partners to our ProStart schools;
• Expecting industry certification
results
from our students.
You can count on the ORAEF and the
ProStart program to support Ohio’s
foodservice work force.
Our ProStart students are energetic and
passionate about the foodservice industry.
Help these students get the required
200 work hours in the industry so they
can obtain their ProStart Certificate of
Achievement (COA), the gold standard
certificate for the industry.
The ORAEF can help you with your
employment needs. A free online posting
service is available to all foodservice
establishments to help you with hiring
needs. If you are currently hiring,
please send the following information
to ORAEF Administrative Assistant Erin
Thomas at
or (614) 246-0220:
• business name
• business phone number
• contact person (whom the student
should ask for when applying)
• position available
• application method (online or
in-person)
Shortly after receiving your information,
Erin will place your information on
Ohio ProStart Facebook
page and Twitter.
Please partner with the Ohio ProStart
program support not only our youth, but
your local community, as well. We look
forward to hearing from you!
By Sharon K.M. Fish,
Executive Director,
Ohio Restaurant Association
Education Foundation
Education is Our Foundation
Free Job Posting for your Company’s Hiring Needs
SAVE THE DATE
ORAEF Ohio ProStart
®
Annual Celebration of the Stars
event is May 4, 2015, at NorthPointe Hotel and Conference
Center in Lewis Center.
This event honors Ohio ProStart students, scholarship
recipients and industry professionals.
