2017-2018 ProStart Opportunities
The Florida Restaurant & Lodging Association Educational Foundation (FRLAEF) offers events, activities, monetary support as well as teacher and student support for your ProStart program. The FRLAEF believes participation in these activities can lead to a richer learning environment for you and your students. Events and opportunities are listed throughout the August NewsBites below.
Florida Restaurant & Lodging Show
The Florida Restaurant & Lodging Show will take place Sunday, September 10 through Tuesday, September 12, 2017 at the Orange
County Convention Center in Orlando. ProStart instructors are welcome to attend free of charge all three days of the Show. Below are the guidelines for student attendees.
TEACHER & STUDENT REGISTRATION FOR SHOW
ProStart students may attend the 2017 Florida Restaurant & Lodging Show as long as the guidelines below are followed. Failure to follow these guidelines could result in expulsion from the Show floor. There is alcohol on the show floor. Please keep this in mind when selecting your students.
•Attending students must be at least 16 years of age. Students must provide proof of age when they pick up their name badges. •There must be one chaperone for every 5 students. The chaperones must be within eye-sight of the students. Chaperones must be at least 21 years old. •No more than a total of 10 students may attend from one school. •No more than 5 students and 1 chaperone may walk the show floor together. If all 10 students and 2 chaperones walk the show floor together, show management may ask them to leave the show floor. •Students must be dressed in business attire or chef attire.REGISTER (Use this registration if you would like to attend with students.)
ProStart students and chaperones may attend the show one of the three days (Sunday through Tuesday). There is no fee to attend. To register, complete THIS SPREADSHEET and return to laura@frla.org. The spreadsheets will be processed as they are received. Only a limited number of student spreadsheets will be processed. Once that number is reached no more spreadsheets will be processed. Spreadsheets must be received no later than September 1, 2017.
TEACHER REGISTRATION FOR SHOW (Use this registration if you would like to attend without students.)
CLICK HERE to receive your complimentary registration. You do not need an FRLA Member Number.
ServSafe During the FRLA Show
The FRLA is offering the ServSafe review class and exam on Sunday, September 10, 2017 during the FRLA Show. The exam
review class begins at 9:00 am at the Orange County Convention Center. The exam begins at 2:00 pm following a break. Examinees will be taking the paper/pencil version of the exam. FRLAEF will cover the cost of the review class and exam for ProStart instructors.
CLICK HERE TO REGISTER. You must use this link to get free registration.
The deadline to register is Friday, September 1, 2017.
ProStart School Classification
At the beginning of each school year the FRLAEF asks schools to commit to their level of participation i
n the ProStart program. There are three levels of participation: PREMIER, FULL and CURRICULUM ONLY.
PREMIER LEVEL
The FRLAEF will determine which schools qualify as 2017-2018 Premier schools based on the benchmarks the school met during the 2016-2017 school year. In order to be classified as a Premier school for the 2017-2018 school year, the program must have done the required work during the 2016-2017 school year.
FULL OR CURRICULUM ONLY
Schools that have not earned the Premier level for the upcoming school year may choose between the Full and Curriculum Only classification. For schools that become Full ProStart schools, they have the opportunity to work towards becoming a Premier school for the 2018-2019 school year by meeting the 2017-2018 benchmarks.
PARTICIPATION COMMITMENT 
The FRLAEF will send an email to all ProStart schools containing classification details including which level of classification a school may achieve based on their 2016-2017 participation data.
Please read through the details of the classification carefully to determine if you will be able to meet the requirements before committing. In order to be classified at any level, you must have and be using both the Level One and Level Two Foundations textbooks.
If the FRLAEF does not receive your commitment form by September 1, 2017, the FRLAEF will assume your school is a Curriculum Only program. This is an ANNUAL contract.
Mini Grants
The FRLAEF is offering $80,000 in Mini Grant funding to Premiere and Full Florida ProStart schools this year. T
here is no fixed amount for individual grant awards, but to assist your planning, the average award last year was $800.
There are two prerequisites for grant funding: 1) you must currently teach the ProStart curriculum, and 2) you must be a Premier or Full ProStart school.
The FRLAEF Board of Directors prefers to fund items that will make your classroom self-sustaining. If a piece of equipment is requested, it should be something that will be used frequently throughout the year.
The application deadline is Friday, September 1, 2017.
CLICK HERE for the online Mini Grant application.
GRANT AWARD NOTIFICATION: September 22, 2017. If awarded, funds must be spent no later than November 17, 2017.
FRLAEF Regional Workshops–Registration Now Open!
The FRLAEF is offering six Regional Workshops this fall. ProStart teachers may bring up to five students to each event. There is no fee to attend a Regional Workshop. Lunch will be 
provided for all attendees at each event. Chef coats will be given to all participating ProStart students at each event. Travel to and from events is on your own.
If Regional Workshops reach maximum capacity prior to the deadline, all subsequent schools will be placed on the waiting list. Most events begin at 8:30 am and conclude no later than 2:00 pm.
Please do not register for more than one event. We only have space for first-time attendees at each event, so register for the event you are most interested in attending. If you are interested in another event, let us know and we will send you the link for the Waiting List.
CLICK HERE to go to the Regional Workshop page.
Hospitality Industry Internships
The Hospitality Industry Internship (HII) provides the opportunity for Florida ProStart & HTMP instructors to work in a foodservice/lodging establishment for at least 40 hours. Once the required paperwork has been processed, the participant will receive a personal check for $600 from the FRLAEF.
To qualify for an HII, the instructor must teach the ProStart/HTMP curriculum during the 2017-2018 school year. If you are already employed at a restaurant or hotel, you MAY NOT use that site for your internship. The restaurant/hotel must also be a new work experience for you, not somewhere you have worked before or used as an HII internship location.
The applicant must secure a position at a foodservice or lodging facility where a minimum of 40 hours of hands-on experience is guaranteed. The host location may pay the recipient but is not required to do so.
The FRLAEF will award 11 HII’s this school year on a first-come, first-served basis. So apply NOW! Work experience may begin once the applicant receives an award notification from the FRLAEF.
CLICK HERE to apply.
ProStart Culinary Team Competitions
The 18th Annual ProStart Culinary Team Competitions will take place Saturday, March 3 – Sunday, March 4, 2018 at the 
Rosen Plaza Hotel in Orlando.
On Saturday, March 3, half of the Culinary Teams and Management Teams will compete along with all Edible Centerpiece teams. On Sunday, March 4, the remaining Culinary and Management teams will compete along with all of the Waiter Relay Teams. The competition will be followed by an awards dinner at the Rosen Plaza Hotel.
STIPEND FOR COMPETING SCHOOLS The FRLAEF will provide stipends to offset the cost of participating in the event. The stipend amount will be announced when the number of competing teams is finalized.
RULES The National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation (NRAEF) has not released the rules to the Culinary and Management Competitions. Since Florida’s Culinary and Management Competitions mirror the national rules, we can not release the Florida competition rules until NRAEF has released the national rules. The Waiters Relay and the Edible Centerpiece competitions are unique events to Florida.
HOTEL The Rosen Plaza Hotel will be the host site for the 2018 ProStart Culinary Team Competitions. The room rate at the Rosen Plaza is $129 per night.
To reserve hotel rooms, use THIS LINK or contact the Rosen Plaza at 800-627-8258 and reference the FRLAEF ProStart Competition Salute to Excellence. The deadline to make hotel reservations is Wednesday, January 31, 2018.
PARTICIPATION CLICK HERE for the competition application. The application deadline is Friday, October 13, 2017. Applicants will be notified their status by Friday, October 20, 2017.
Foundations Second Edition Now Available
The 2nd edition of Foundations of Restaurant Management & Culinary Arts is now available for purchase. 
To learn more about the second edition, access select resources or to make a purchase, go to https://textbooks.restaurant.org.
The following resources are available for your reference:
o Table of Contents with Learning Objectives for Level 1 and Level 2 can be downloaded here.
o Dedicated site for Correlations: https://textbooks.restaurant.org/Explore/Correlations
o Foundations 2E Overview PowerPoint
How to Order, Receive a Quote and Foundations 2nd edition. Pricelist
o Orders can now be placed directly on https://textbooks.restaurant.org/Purchase-Products
o Quotes can be created online.
o *If your organization is tax exempt, please provide your tax exempt ID form. Otherwise, tax will be charged at the rate consistent with the zip code of the shipping address.
eBook Demo Request, Purchase Orders, and Exam Exchanges:
o Submit Requests for demo eBook access keys or demos through textbooks@restaurant.org.
o Purchase orders can be submitted to: purchaseorders@restaurant.org.
o Request for exchanging 1st edition exams to 2nd edition exams should be sent via email with the Subject “Exam Exchange” to textbooks@restaurant.org for processing.
NRAEF Data Collection (Fall Survey)
The National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation (NRAEF) will continue its ProStart Data Collection this year. The survey is managed by Westat. Be on the lookout for an email from Westat this fall. The email will contain a password unique to your program.
Once you complete the survey, the FRLAEF will send you an email where you can request $350 worth of free foodsafety materials. These are on a first-come, first served basis, so complete your NRAEF survey as soon as possible.
Salute to Excellence Awards Dinner
The Salute to Excellence Awards will take place on Sunday, March 4, 2018 at the Rosen Plaza Hotel in Orlando. The awards dinner will recognize all ProStart Competition, Pineapple Award, Scholarship recipients and Hospitality Excellence Awardees. Registration will begin in December 2017.
Complimentary Foodsafety Materials
Each Premier and Full ProStart program is eligible for free ServSafe or SafeStaff materials. To ensure you get the materials you need, you must notify us of your needs. Once we receive your ProStart Classification paperwork, you can order up to $350 of ServSafe/SafeStaff materials. Click here for the price list. Email Amy Parker to place your order–you do not need to fill out the form. Requests are filled on a first-come, first-served basis.
Complimentary ProStart Scantrons
The FRLAEF will distribute over $25,000 worth of free ProStart Exam Scantrons to Premier and Full ProStart schools during the 2017-2018 school year. Once a school has turned in their ProStart Classification paperwork, email Amy Parker to let her know how many ProStart Exam Scantrons you need. Requests are filled on a first-come, first-served basis.
Links From the Culinary + Food World
- UCF Set to Begin Construction of On-Campus Hotel
- Great Idea: IKEA Recipe Posters With a Twist
- Creative Food Packaging Ideas
- State of the Industry: Healthy Food Drives Dining Choices
- The Biggest Reason Restaurants Lose Customers
Scholarships
The FRLAEF will award $44,000 in scholarships during the 2017-2018 school year. These scholarships will be awarded during the Salute to Excellence Awards in the Spring. The scholarship application will be available in late Fall.
The 22nd Annual ProStart Teacher Training Institute will take place in June 17-23, 2018. The week-long training provides
Florida ProStart instructors with the knowledge necessary to teach the ProStart curriculum. Each day’s learning is built around topics covered in the ProStart curriculum.
LOCATION
All classes will be held at Johnson & Wales University (JWU) North Miami campus, 1701 NE 127th Street, North Miami, Florida, 33181.
PROGRAM COST
The FRLAEF will cover the cost of all Florida ProStart instructors who will be teaching the ProStart curriculum during the 2017-2018 school year. Attendees will be responsible for their travel and some meals.
REGISTRATION
Online registration will begin Spring 2018.