By Cindy Kranz
The Cincinnati Enquirer

UNION TWP. - Wearing a white chef's hat and apron, Kirby Schneder stands over a hot stove, sauteing onions and green peppers for a black bean and rice Cuban dish.

Tuyet Duong, 14, and Jordan Moore, 16, prepare lunch for the administrators at Glen Este High School as part of their World Culture and Cuisine class. (Steven M. Herppich photo)

The 16-year-old Glen Este High School sophomore has found his niche through World Culture and Cuisine, an intersession class at the school.

"I love to cook," said Kirby, who aspires to become a chef some day.

Kirby is among 25 students who took the class, in which students made and tasted 17 recipes from eight countries. They decorated their own white aprons with phrases such as "Kiss the Cook" and "Mmm, Mmm, Good!"

Intersession, a two-week period (March 22-April 2) between the second and third trimesters, offers students a chance to sample other academic fields or take enrichment classes while earning up to a half-credit.

It's a staple of many colleges and private high schools, but few public high schools in the Tristate offer intersession.

During the two weeks, students immerse themselves in traditional or non-traditional classes. Many students use that time to obtain fine arts or physical education credits.

Since Glen Este High School was redesigned into five small schools two years ago, certain graduation-required electives might not be available in their small school or do not fit into their schedule.

Ashley Green, a 15-year-old sophomore, is enrolled in the Human Kinetics and Wellness school. She took sculpture and 3-D design, because she needed an art credit.

Intersession gives students a chance to get away from their normal high school, Ashley said as she painted a plaster mask of her face. "You're with the same people every day. This gives you a chance to meet new people from different small schools."

Glen Este Principal Dennis Ashworth is a big fan of the intersession because of the opportunities it affords students. Sixty-seven different classes were offered this year. Improvements were made after student feedback last year.

"One of the things we found out last year was an intersession that stayed on campus wasn't very popular," Ashworth said. "We had some that didn't take field trips."

Now, everyone takes at least one field trip. Students studying the Civil War went to Gettysburg and other battlefields. The choir traveled to Austria to perform. Forty-two students learned to scuba dive off the Florida coast.

"We have six kids who've never seen the ocean," Ashworth said. "Now, not only do they get to see the ocean, they get to swim in it."

Most classes cost in the range of $50 to $80 to defray costs of material, transportation and tickets to venues. The school works with needy parents on payment plans. Students going on more expensive trips do fund-raisers to offset costs.

---

E-mail ckranz@enquirer.com