The Miner Diner located on the campus of Nevada Union High School (NU) in Grass Valley will be opening its doors to the general public beginning September 10, and students in the advanced levels of the culinary arts courses are ready to roll up their sleeves and serve up some hot or iced drinks, baked goods, and healthy lunch items.
If you are dropping off a student, or just in the neighborhood of the NU campus located at 11761 Ridge Road, Grass Valley, think about dropping by the Miner Diner for a latte, a chai tea, espresso, or a smoothie.
Food items made from scratch by students vary from day to day, but often include muffins, scones, cinnamon breads, turkey wraps, or a homemade chicken salad.
The Miner Diner is located in Building B in the high school campus, just along the U-shaped driveway past the main entrance; parking in front of the diner makes it easy to pop in and place an order.
Indoor and outdoor seating is available.
The hours of operation will be somewhat irregular depending on the bell schedule at the school each day; for example, during final exams, students may not be serving. Signage will be displayed in the large front window to let customers know on a day-to-day basis if they are serving.
Typically, during the school year, the culinary students will be ready to greet customers from approximately 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Preparing for the workforce
The goal of the program is to give students culinary skills, but beyond that the program aims to have them demonstrate workability skills that can transfer to any profession they might choose to go into, according to Kelli Sawyer, culinary arts and Career Technical Education (CTE) teacher at NU.
“We don’t expect all of our students to be chefs or work in a kitchen or catering, but they are going to work somewhere,” Sawyer said, “and all the skills that they’re learning in this class and other CTE classes are intended to get them ready to be in the workforce; that’s really important for us.”
Workability skills, commonly referred to as soft skills, are the essential non-technical abilities — personal qualities and workplace habits — that help individuals get, keep, and succeed in a job. Soft skills include critical thinking, teamwork, leadership, conflict resolution, respect for diversity, and personal accountability.
“If people wanted to come by and be regular customers, all the proceeds go back just to our culinary arts program,” Sawyer said. “We want to try and be self-sustaining. That’s another goal of ours.”
Funding is always a challenge and “groceries are really expensive,” Sawyer said.
Student leadership and business experience
Students like intern and manager of the Miner Diner, Parker Barrett, take on a significant amount of responsibility for running the coffee bar and keeping the food case full and fresh. Barrett doesn’t receive an hourly wage, but tips are welcomed.
Barrett and others in the culinary management course are basically helping Sawyer “run the business,” she said.
“They’re in charge of running this coffee bar, both behind the scenes and the business aspect of it,” Sawyer said.
Last year, Sawyer and her manager students started making free meals for students and their families for the weekends through a partnership with Universal Technical Institute in Sacramento. To purchase the food supplies for the free meals, Barrett and other advanced students prepare and sell up to 30 lunches for NU teachers and staff to purchase once a month.
Student decorate the kitchen/classroom, prepare the lunches, serve, and clean it all up.
“That’s what we’ve been working on,” Sawyer said. “We’ve been trying out recipes to have our first staff meal at the end of this month and create a whole menu. Like this first one, we’re gonna do like a chorizo risotto with a side salad, tiramisu whoopie pies, and some little breadsticks.”
A whoopee pie consists of two pieces of cake sandwiching a creamy filling.
With the new cafe opening to the public, they have had to cut back on the number of catering and serving events compared to past years; however, the advanced students are currently preparing for a Nevada County Contractors Association event in December.
“We’ve done a ton of catering in the past,” Sawyer said. “It’s a lot to take things off site, and it was just too much for us last year. I’d rather focus on having people come to us.”
The general student population at NU is not allowed to purchase coffee drinks and sweets at the Miner Diner due to federal laws regarding sugar or caffeine offerings in public schools, and that is another reason support from the public is so important.
Students learn “homestyle cooking” in the beginning culinary classes taught by Home Economics Teacher Katie Reif.
On the day of the interview they were starting the fruits and vegetable unit, which focuses on knife skills and making pico de gallo.
Students will make veggie fajitas, and do a yeast quick breads unit, and then a pie unit, and a poultry unit.
The curriculum touches on different food groups with nutrition embedded in the curriculum, as well as an understanding of healthy alternatives to high fat or sugary foods and healthy proportions, according to Reif.
Funding paths to careers
Along with CTE funding, the popular culinary program also receives a Perkins Grant and Career Technical Education Incentive Grant (CTEIG), a state-funded program in California designed to enhance high-quality CTE career paths.
The culinary arts program is the most requested CTE “pathway” in the high school district, according to Sawyer.
A very minimal amount of per pupil funding comes from district sources; however, approximately five years ago, facilities, kitchens, and classrooms for the beginning through advanced classes were constructed. Much of the modernization and culinary arts kitchen were funded by Measure B, passed by Nevada County voters in November 2016 as a property tax bond.
Sawyer has been employed as a teacher for the Nevada Joint Union High School District (NJUHSD) for 10 years and has seen the culinary arts program blossom.
“It’s very busy — controlled chaos — but I do so love it,” Sawyer said. “The students are really passionate.”
Another “awesome” aspect of the program is students can earn “at least 12 units of college credit just by taking our classes” through a dual partnership with Lake Tahoe Community College, Sawyer said.
Almost all CTE pathways within the NJUHSD are dual enrolled, including agricultural mechanics, animal science, and patient care.
To contact Staff Writer Marianne Boll-See, email mboll-see@theunion.com.
