Northern Alabama students interested in studying culinary arts or hospitality will not have to travel far for their studies. They will have a culinary arts program taught in Decatur by Calhoun Community College.
The idea has been floated for over a year by Calhoun Community College president Jimmy Hodges and State Sen. Arthur Orr (R-Decatur). In the 2025 legislative session, Orr secured $3.2 million in funding for the program, and off the program goes.
The school is now putting together a culinary arts program and certification.
Hodges said they are always looking to expand their coursework, but he had noticed a need for a culinary program as the River City continues to grow.
"There's a lot of students who ask us for different programs all of the time, and when I mentioned that we are going to start a culinary arts program, everybody raised their eyebrows and said this is something they would be interested in," Hodges said. "We are going to create a state-of-the-art facility that will offer second-to-none training, and I expect that it will produce award-winning chefs."
Calhoun is seeking a building to serve as both a classroom and a practice restaurant for the school.
"It will enable individuals to stay here in North Alabama and receive this training," Hodges said.
Hodges is hopeful to have the first class of culinary students by Fall 2026.
The Culinary Arts/Hospitality Program is a two-year program designed to incorporate the National Restaurant Association's "ProStart" curriculum. Students will explore potential career paths in the food service industry, with emphasis on technical skills, customer relations, restaurant organization, and the ServSafe sanitation program. Students will complete career exploration and study projects in the hospitality industry, which includes lodging, travel, and tourism. Students who successfully complete the program will receive nationally recognized certificates.
The program can prepare students for careers as:
- Hotel/Motel Manager
- Travel & Tourism
- Restaurant Manager
- Chef
- Cook
- Baker
Jim 'Zig' Zeigler's beat is the colorful and positive about Alabama -- her people, places, events, groups and prominent deaths. He is a former Alabama Public Service Commissioner and State Auditor. You can reach him for comments at [email protected].
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