NEW  ORLEANS—The Louisiana Restaurant Association Education Foundation (LRAEF) has named Lindy Reeves of West St. John High School as the 2008 ProStart Teacher of the Year.

Reeves, West St. John’s ProStart instructor for more than three years, was bestowed the honor during the LRAEF’s 7th Annual ProStart Competition Awards Ceremony, February 22, 2008, at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center. The competition showcased the culinary and academic talents of 154 ProStart juniors and seniors from 25 high schools from across Louisiana.

Reeves and her students were thrilled when the announcement was made. “It is a great honor to be named ProStart Teacher of the Year,” said Reeves. “For the LRA Education Foundation to recognize the work I’ve put into making the program successful is a great feeling. It reaffirms that I’m doing the right thing for my students.”

“One of the best moments in anybody’s life is when a child looks at him or her and says, ‘You have shown me what I want to do for the rest of my life,’” Reeves added. “I have been the ProStart teacher at West St. John  High School for the last three years, and I have had that unique pleasure on several occasions.”

Reeves regularly attends LRA Greater Baton Rouge Chapter meetings, which caught the attention of Bruce Attinger, Baton Rouge chapter president and Outback Steakhouse partner. “Lindy’s dedication and commitment to her ProStart students is truly admirable,” remarked Attinger. “She really goes the extra mile for her students to make ProStart a successful program at West St.  John High School.

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ProStart is a two-year, culinary management program for high school juniors and seniors with a curriculum designed to teach students culinary techniques as well as restaurant management skills. ProStart is in 42 high schools statewide and nearly 1,000 students participate in the program. 

The Louisiana Restaurant Association is one of the largest business organizations in the state, representing more than 7,500 restaurant operations and related businesses. The restaurant industry in Louisiana is the state’s largest private employer with 140,000 employed directly and another 55,000 indirectly employed. Restaurants in Louisiana are expected to generate sales of $4.8 billion in 2008.

Wendy Waren

Director of Communications

Louisiana Restaurant Association