Great things are cooking in the Katy Independent School District, and it’s more than just delicious dishes that are created and enjoyed at the Miller Career & Technology Center’s (MCTC) culinary program. A national recognition can now be added to all those tasty recipes found in the school kitchen. This week Chef Chelsea Gumm was recognized as the winner of the 2020 Carl J. Schaefer Memorial CTE Teacher Candidate Award, a national recognition coveted by CTE teachers from across the United States.
The Carl J. Schaefer Memorial Award was established in 2013 to honor Dr. Carl J. Schaefer. As a life long champion in career and technical education (CTE), he gained national recognition as a CTE educator and author. He was also one of the founders of the National Occupational Competency Testing Institute (NOCTI). This recognition is a tribute to his legacy and aims to recognize outstanding CTE teachers, who are making a difference in future student culinary careers.
“To receive such a recognition is an honor and at the same time a motivation to my students that culinary art is a pathway where one’s passion, creative flair and goal to craft unique dishes can be limitless,” said Chelsea Gumm, Culinary Arts instructor at MCTC.
Chef Gumm has served as a culinary instructor at MCTC for the past six years. In December 2016, Gumm was named Greater Houston Restaurant Association’s Educator of the Year. Gumm and her students operate the Old Town Bistro, an on-campus restaurant open to the public, as well as provide catering services for events within the Katy area. Her culinary arts knowledge and hands-on training provide students with the skills needed to be successful in their culinary careers after high school.