Jefferson State Culinary student Evgeniya Koshelyaevskaya earned the nation’s top honor in the National SkillsUSA Commercial Baking competition in Atlanta with a first-place gold medal. Koshelyaevskaya, a Homewood resident, competed June 20-24 among students across the country who had won top honors in their state competitions. During the competition, each competitor prepared and baked seven recipes for judging.
“Being in front of thousands of people and hearing your name called for the gold medal ... wow, I was so proud,” Koshelyaevskaya said. “I am so thankful for the support from my Jefferson State culinary instructors. I prepared for the competitions for many hours a week and my instructors were always willing to help me through every step.”
Jefferson State students William Barial III of Homewood won the third place bronze medal in Restaurant Service and Ambre Bevers from Talladega placed seventh nationally in Culinary Arts. All three students represented the Jefferson State Culinary and Hospitality Institute and Alabama by first being awarded state first-place gold medals.
“Participants in the SkillsUSA competitions are the best of the best, so it is exciting to see our students excel on the national level,” said Jefferson State Culinary Institute Director Joseph Mitchell. “Our students worked so hard to prepare for both the state competition and the national competition, and we are extremely proud of their accomplishments.”
During the SkillsUSA Championships, more than 6,500 outstanding career and technical education students –– all state contest winners –– competed hands-on in 108 different trade, technical and leadership fields. Students worked against the clock and each other, proving their expertise in occupations such as electronics, computer-aided drafting, precision machining, medical assisting andGold medal SkillsUSA June 2022 culinary arts. Contests are run with the help of industry, trade associations and labor organizations, and test competencies are set by industry. Leadership contestants demonstrate skills including extemporaneous speaking and conducting meetings by parliamentary procedure.
For more information about SkillsUSA, visit SkillsUSA.org.
For more information about Jefferson State’s award-winning culinary and hospitality program, visit JeffersonState.edu/CHI.
-- Submitted by Stephen Dawkins
