Student Spotlight – Dana Kemper

Dana is a current student with Escoffier Online Culinary Academy’s Pastry Arts Program. We hope you enjoy hearing her story!

My name is Dana Kemper (24) and I’m originally from Shoham, Israel. My husband and I moved to Miami, FL this past September and we are due to stay here until August 2014.

My passion for the kitchen began at age 16, when I started to be interested in nutrition and in preparing my own food. My family was never very adventurous about food and I developed a major interest in food combinations and creating my own masterpieces. My background in art also had an impact on my desire to be creative in the kitchen. I naturally bonded much more with the “sweet” world, savoring every bite of it.

Even while completing my BA I knew that I was not cut out for an “office” job – I needed the thrill, dynamity and hard work. I decided to follow my love for desserts and pastries and to make a profession out of it. I didn’t get a chance to study the pastry arts in Israel because of the move to FL so I searched the web for culinary institutions (in FL) and unfortunately they were all way over my budget. One day I encountered the Escoffier advertisement online and read further about it. It was the best option for my pocket and my needs.

I have big plans once I finish the program – first, I’d like to get an internship in a commercial kitchen and acquire some “hands on” experience there. I’d also like to open a pastry shop in Israel and maybe write and illustrate a children’s cookbook one day.

Dana Kemper
Current Pastry Arts Student

We thank Dana for sharing this great story with us! Check out more of our student spotlight stories to see why our students chose online training, how they are living their culinary dream and where they have ended up after completing the online program! If you have a story to share or would like to learn more about our program, please contact us at (877) 452-5489 or [email protected].