The Sabin-Schellenberg Technical Center has many programs that caters to a vast group of students, whether that be radio broadcasting, cosmetology, or business classes. One of the most beloved classes at this technical Center is culinary, and there are many different levels for this class in which the students can work their way up. An issue that is frequent at schools, is the lack of the diversity. Many of the teachers are white and male, this has been going on for decades, but Market of Choice is showing students that becoming a chef isn’t just for white men.

On April 18, the Sabin-Schellenberg Technical Center was able to bring in professional chefs with all different types of backgrounds. These were new and faces for students, there were men and women of all different races that could each provide different techniques and advice for the future. Different chefs from Market of Choice were coming in throughout the two day event and showing demos, there were a variety of different cuisines to learn about, such as indigenous foods, cheese and dairy, as well as bakery style desserts.

The focus point of these demos were to show students that their gender, race, or sexual orientation doesn’t define them in this field of work. There were women chefs as well as members of the LGBTQ+, showing students that there are people that looked like them achieving their dreams. This is an inspiring change and gives students hope for their own future, they don’t feel as if there is a barrier between them and their dreams. This was especially important for the students at the Technical Center because there is a sense of relevance; there is a large demographic of students that identify in the groups this event is trying to provide for.

This experience was one to remember for many students, and they feel like they took in a lot of useful information that they could use in the future. “I think talking with Ray [helped out the most], because he he told me a lot about the culinary schools, and if you want to be accepted into a restaurant you have to work hard, and you have to be on top of your stuff, keep going, push yourself.” Says Angela Fedosov, a junior at Milwaukie High School. She talked about the different stations that students were offered, thinking that having the different chefs at the school were definitely helpful and encouraging.