Former Dorseyville Middle School teacher Luann Letterle, who retired last year, said
the café project evolved out of the entrepreneur experience that has been part of
the family and consumer sciences eighth grade curriculum. She came back to help
Mr. Duso with the café. “The class flows nicely from entrepreneurship to this,” Mrs.
Letterle stated.
Social studies teacher Dave Snyder, who along with some of his DMS colleagues ate
lunch at the café, said “The kids do a fabulous job. For a lot of them, it’s the first time
they cook. It’s interesting to see the kids enjoy cooking.”
Diners commented on how delicious the food truly was and that they appreciated how
much time the students spent preparing it.
According to student hostess Maggie Dankis, “I liked that we got to do most of the
work and that it’s a real-world experience.”
A group of Hartwood Elementary School staff
walked across the parking lot to Dorseyville and
enjoyed lunch at the café. First grade teacher
Kristen Vergerio commented that it’s always nice
to see her former students.
It’s all part of the cross-curricular,
project-based unified arts program.
Middle school students at all three
grade levels take unified arts. The
sixth grade units include art, mobile
devices, and technology education;
the seventh grade units include art,
health, information technology,
and technology education; and art,
family and consumer sciences, and
technology education are offered in
eighth grade.
Eighth graders who were preparing to work later
in the week were invited to the café on the first
day. They said they enjoyed seeing the other half
of their class working as the café staff.
Sandwiches
Menu
Italian
Sub
This
baked
hoagie
includes
ham,
salami,
pepperoni,
and
provolone
cheese.
Lettuce,
tomato,
and,
Italian
dressing
served
on
the
side.
Philly
Cheese
Steak
Sub
Shaved
steak
with
grilled
mushrooms,
onions,
and
peppers
topped
with
provolone
cheese.
Lettuce,
tomato
and
mayo
served
on
the
side.
French
Bread
Pizza
Open-‐faced
bread
baked
with
pizza
sauce,
provolone
cheese
and
your
choice
of
toppings.
Available
toppings
include:
peperoni,
green
peppers,
mushrooms,
and/or
onion
Chicken
Caesar
Wrap
Take
this
salad
“on
the
fly”.
Grilled
chicken,
romaine
lettuce,
and
Parmesan
cheese
served
inside
a
wrap.
Chicken
Caprese
Wrap
Grilled
chicken,
fresh
basil
(grown
here
at
DMS),
mozzarella,
tomatoes,
and
romaine
lettuce
with
a
balsamic
vinaigrette
dressing.
Turkey
Club
Wrap
Warm
turkey,
bacon,
and
Swiss
cheese
with
lettuce
and
tomato,
topped
with
ranch
dressing.
Tuna
Salad
Sub
Fresh
m ade
tuna
salad,
lettuce,
and
tomato
Salads
Chef
Salad
Ham,
turkey,
and
provolone
cheese
with
tomatoes,
green
peppers,
cucumbers,
and
a
hard-‐boiled
egg,
served
on
a
bed
of
DMS
arugula
&
DMS
lettuce.
Shaved
Steak
Salad
Shaved
steak
with
tomatoes,
green
peppers,
cucumbers,
and
topped
with
mozzarella
on
a
bed
of
DMS
arugula
&
DMS
lettuce.
Spinach
Bacon
Salad
Spinach,
tomato,
hard-‐
boiled
egg,
and
fresh
cooked
bacon,
served
with
a
warm
bacon
dressing.
Chicken
Caesar
Salad
Grilled
chicken,
romaine
lettuce,
and
Parmesan
cheese
served
with
Caesar
dressing.
Sides
Potato
Soup,
Wedding
Soup,
Fruit
Salad
Side
Salad-‐
DMS
arugula
&
DMS
lettuce
Dressings
Ranch,
Italian,
and
Balsamic
Vinaigrette
Beverages
Coffee,
Iced
Tea,
Lemonade,
Bottled
Water
All
meals
are
Meals
include
a
sandwich
OR
dinner
salad
plus
a
side,
drink,
and
cookie.
“Hold
the
meat”
on
any
item
to
make
it
vegetarian.
$5
Fox Chapel Area | Summer 2016 | icmags.com 17
FOX C HAP E L ARE A SC HOOL N E WS
Hannah Drum said she was “quite busy” working as a server. “Mainly you have to stay
on top of things.” She pointed out that the soups were very popular that day, and for a
period of time, the kitchen was out of potato soup.
Fox Chapel Area
Students who worked as expeditors assembled the food orders
on trays so that they could be taken to guests at the café. Each
lunch included a choice of entrée, a side, a drink, and a cookie.
Sixth graders learned about and
grew vegetables in their hydroponic
garden, one of the components of
the technology unit taught by Mike
Wolinsky. In a nod to the “buy local”
movement, some of the produce
used by eighth graders for their café
project came from the “local” DMS
hydroponic garden. Additionally,
eighth graders created and designed
menus under the direction of art
teacher Cheryl Etters, that were used
in the café as a part of the art unit.