BOCES 2 culinary arts teacher honored as Educator of Excellence
If culinary teachers were rated on the same scale as restaurants, Michael Mirabella would earn five stars.
The New York State Restaurant Association (NYSRA) Educational Foundation recently honored Mirabella as the 2016 New York State ProStart Educator of Excellence. He teaches culinary arts at WEMOCO, the Career and Technical Education Center at BOCES 2.
Liz Soscia, educational coordinator for NYSRA Educational Foundation, and Rick Samson, director of NYSRA, presented Mirabella with the award in the WEMOCO dining room on January 11. The award came as a surprise to Mirabella and was presented in front of the morning culinary arts students.
“It’s his vision, it’s his belief in this industry, it’s working with you young men and women so you have a future when you leave here. All of that, you can’t put a dollar sign on that,” said Samson about selecting Mirabella for the honor. “What he does, yes, he gets paid, however it’s above and beyond a paycheck for Michael, there’s no doubt in my mind.”
Mirabella thanked Soscia and Samson for the award and spoke to the students in attendance. “I hope that you really do understand that we are here to help you and give you a better future,” said Mirabella. “I just hope that you take the information that I have for you and do the best you can with it.”
“It is pleasure to teach all of you, I hope you know that,” added Mirabella. “I hope you learn a little bit every day and I hope that you have great futures in the industry because it does have a lot to offer you.”
The culinary arts program at WEMOCO has been part of ProStart since ProStart’s inception 15 years ago. The National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation’s ProStart Curriculum is used by the teachers, and ProStart assessments are given to the students. BOCES 2 students also participate in events associated with NYSRA members and compete in the NYSRA ProStart culinary competition.
“Mike was the ProStart team leader last year for our student team who participated in the state competition,” said CTE Executive Principal Jill Slavny. “Mike continues to look for opportunities for our students to apply the knowledge they learn at WEMOCO. He exemplifies the connection between curriculum and industry.”
Mirabella will take a team to the New York ProStart Culinary Competition this year from February 26 to 27 at Schenectady County Community College.
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Director of NYSRA Rick Samson, Mike Mirabella and Educational Coordinator for NYSRA Educational Foundation Liz Soscia.
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