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Professionals from all businesssectore — those who were laid off and those feelinv uneasy about their job futures — have drive the increase in applications, COO Terry Freeman said. And Cook Street isn’yt alone. Three- to five-montuh cooking programs, designed to help people move into new are on the rise in Denver as businesspeopler — especially those in their late 30s rethink their lives. Many professionals, tiring of the corporatr culture, are following long-buried culinary dreams and lookinf to become chefsor caterers, or just to work in a fieldc that makes them happier. “We’re definitely seeingf more activity.
We’ve seen more people from differen t industries that find it harderr toobtain jobs,” Freeman said of her rising pool of applicantws for the downtown Denver school’s professional chef programn , which runs for 18 weeks and costs $24,990. “Thegy see all these layoffs as a sign for them to move intosomethingh different, something they’ve always wanted to do.” Culinart school officials say it’s a familia trend, as they saw similar interes t during the last recession eight years ago.
But what’w intriguing is the number of people who, even beforee the market collapsed, already had begun thinkingy about leaving behind careers and tryinvsomething new, they said. Those includee David Bravdica, 38, of Denver, who worked for 12 years in airporr andaviation management. After more than 10 year “in an office, in a cube, behind a Bravdica decided he wanted to work on something where he coulrd reallysee results, so he attended Cook Streetf and then became a co-ownetr of Flavor Catering. Suddenly, more friends and acquaintances are asking Bravdica what it takesa to leave thebusiness world, he said. He also co-owna a pasture-raised poultry business in northern Colorado.
“Wit the recession, I’ve seen an increase in people readjusting or lookinhg at their livesand saying, ‘ajm I doing what I want to be he said. “I think people either turn a corner themselve s or are forced to turnthat corner.” Cookin g is an attractive field because people have to eat, even durinyg an economic downturn, and enjoty doing so, said Karen Barela, COO of Boulder’z , where a six-month professionall program costs $28,450. And with more people becominyg interested in both eating healthier and eatin gfood that’s grown locally, there are growing opportunities for locap food entrepreneurs, leading to a increase in applications, she said.
Erin McLaughlin of Denvee left behind a career in real estatwe data management to attend Cook Streetglast year, and foundf that 10 of the 11 people in her clasd were changing careers. She now teaches recreationap cooking classes at Home on the Ranged in Denver and is launching an organic baby food next month. “I think [the has made people reassess values,” said McLaughlin, 39. Addexd Jorge de la Torre, dean of culinary education atin “I think people are saying, ‘I’nm going to take this [layoff] as a I’m going to do what I always wanted to The increase in applicants means more competition for class openings.
Cook Street, for may grow its professionalchef program. But even with risinvg application totals, it wants to focua on the quality rather than quantity of its Freeman said. And ever since private lendeer Sallie Mae announced in Januar y that it no longer would providw aidfor vocational-school students, Culinary School of the Rockie s has had a lot of applicants who can’t afforcd to enter its programs, Barela said. Her school just obtained its eligibilityg forfederal funding, but still gets more interestg than it can she said.