cooking and proper hygiene when cooking. 

     Jymeria Rodman, a senior at Rose, has been in Culinary Arts since her sophomore year. Something that Rodman says makes this class different from cooking at home is the rules. 

     “The rules are kind of strict,” Rodman said. “It’s not like the same rules you have in your house; it’s more professional.”

     One of the skills she has learned from Culinary Arts is better time management. The class has also improved her awareness of what is going on around her. 

     Why would Rodman recommend that you join Culinary Arts?

     “It’s fun, and after you finish cooking you could eat anything you made,” Rodman said.

     Culinary is just as important from a teacher’s perspective as well. 

     Carrie Overby is a Culinary Arts teacher at Rose and has been working there for the past 17 years. She’s been teaching the class for 20 years. She started after someone reached out to her asking if she wanted to teach a culinary class. 

     So what makes this class so important? 

     “Everybody needs to know how to cook, plan meals and make a menu,” Overby said. “Especially when you leave home and go on your own, it’s important that you know these skills.”

     In the past, students would cook for the community and the colleges in Greenville. However, COVID-19 has prevented them from doing so. 

     “We do a lot of outside functions and a lot of outside orders,” Overby said. “It’s not like it used to be; usually, we would do a whole full Thanksgiving meal for the ECU students for Thanksgiving, but we’re not allowed to do that yet.”

     Overby states that one challenge about this class is teaching kids who know very little about cooking how to cook. 

     “It’s like I’m basically starting from scratch,” Overby said. “Some kids don’t know what a measuring cup is or knife skills, but it’s fun to teach them.” 

     There are also a lot of aspects about teaching Culinary Arts that Overby loves, such as the many cooking experiences her students have.

     “I love watching the kids have hands-on experiences and get all excited when they cook something new and different from what they cooked before,” Overby said.

     Overby believes that Culinary Arts teaches valuable lessons and gives her reason on why students should take the class.

     “I think they would enjoy this class,” Overby said. “It would give them the skills they need once they’re out on their own.”