Join us with Ross Katz, the program teacher of the Junior Chef Academy and president of RHB Resources, alongside Tony Fernandez, a graduate of the Junior Chef Academy who won first place at the inaugural World Food Championships Jr.

Tony and Ross whipped up a version of Tony’s Tex-Mex Pozole soup, the dish that secured his first-place victory at the World Food Championships Jr.

This fantastic program began from scratch, building on fundamental cooking techniques and elevating those skills to compete on the global stage.

Paramount is committed to expanding this program, with plans to accommodate twice as many students next year and potentially host the Junior World Food Championships in Indianapolis.

Recently, students from the Junior Chef Academy at Paramount Schools of Excellence journeyed to Dallas, Texas, to participate in the first Junior Chef Competition at the World Food Championships, the largest Food Sports competition.

Tony Fernandez, an Indianapolis student chef, along with sous chef Tiffany Smith, both 14 years old, emerged victorious, claiming a $2,500 prize.

A total of twelve junior division teams competed, with six from the Dallas/Fort Worth area.

Another Paramount team, led by chef Rylee Pate and sous chef Gavin Watson, secured fifth place.

The program’s participants initially competed in the school’s Perfect Bite competition during the TURN Festival in September, with the top performers earning golden tickets to participate in the World Food Champions’ new junior division.

Notably, other local student chef teams also participated in the Perfect Bite competition, and four teams from Indianapolis secured golden tickets, two from Paramount and two from Ben Davis Area 31 Career Center.

It’s a journey of culinary talent and community support.