BILLINGS, MONT. (LEE)-One hundred gallons of gravy isn't in the lesson plans for many high school classes, but students in the Career Center's culinary arts program have come to expect nearly everything in their class to be on a grand scale.

The students in the Billings School District 2 program, called Cafi Protigi, volunteered Tuesday at the Billings Food Bank to help cook the huge Thanksgiving meal that will be served at the Montana Rescue Mission.

Under the supervision of Mike Sammartino, the owner of Bruno's Restaurant, the students were right at home stirring the massive vat of turkey gravy in the food bank's industrial kitchen.

Their class is held in the commercial kitchen at the College of Technology, which is also used as the food service facility for the college.

In the class, students expect to learn the basics of commercial cooking, but they're also getting a course on the food-service industry as a whole. They will learn food safety and sanitation and aspects of kitchen and restaurant management, marketing, menu design, fine dining service and presentation, baking and other specialties. Cafi Protigi is also a catering service for district events and meetings.

Rebecca Dostal, 18, is interested in pastry arts and is planning on attending a culinary arts college after graduation this spring. Eventually she'd like to be a wedding cake designer. She was surprised at how much management is taught in the class and how serious the coursework is.

"People think, oh, if you're in a vocational school, you're not smart enough for something else. But you can be intelligent and just not want to, like, be a math teacher - but to be something different," Dostal said.

At the completion of the course, the students will be certified through the National Restaurant Association's ProStart program, which is recognized in 43 states. Students also have the opportunity to earn Serve Safe certification, which requires a test on sanitation and food safety.

"When they finish the program they won't be a chef, but they'll have a little advantage in the industry because they'll know all the basics," said Cafi Protigi teacher Dorothy Sieler-Bonk.

If Cafi Protigi students decide to go to a culinary college, they can earn six to eight advanced-placement credits depending on the school they choose to attend.

The course also requires 400 hours of mentored work in the food service industry. Students who already work in restaurants can use their work experience, but students can also do mentorships with local professional chefs.

"There are a lot of restaurants in town that are really flexible and great about giving the kids freedom to experiment," Sieler-Bonk said.

Experiences such as working at the Billings Food Bank are also part of the curriculum. The students volunteer for the food bank's major fundraisers as well.

"In this business, they need to know it's more than making a buck, you've got to give back to the community," Sieler-Bonk said.

Students are required to keep a portfolio and photograph their work. Before graduation they'll have to design a menu and create their own recipes. Along will the other students at the Career Center, they also learn job-finding skills, resume writing and interview technique.

Sieler-Bonk taught middle school in the district for 25 years and was the part owner of a local restaurant before becoming the instructor for the Cafi Protigi class. She was trained at Kendall College in Chicago.

She praised the food classes offered in the regular high schools and said they make a good prerequisite for Cafi Protigi. The culinary arts program at the Career Center has a focus on commercial cooking, whereas the regular foods classes focus on family menu planning and nutrition.

"This is an elitist class, but it's not for straight-A students," Sieler-Bonk said. "It's for kids who have a love of food and deserve a little recognition for what they can do."

Cafi Protigi is in its second year at the Career Center, and Sieler-Bonk said a couple of her students from last year have gone on to culinary schools. One is attending the Johnson and Whales Culinary Institute in Denver.

Another student came to the class on the verge of dropping out, said Sieler-Bonk, and by the time he'd graduated, a local family hired him as a personal chef. He's now enrolled in a Florida Art Institute culinary program, and working in a restaurant in Sea World.

"He's going to be somebody. He's going to make it," Sieler-Bonk said.

Contact Laura Tode at ltode@billingsgazette.com or 657-1392.