Culinary school's president got his start in barbecue Culinary school's president got his start in barbecue advertisement Christine L. Romero The Arizona Republic Jun. 28, 2004 12:00 AM Jon Alberts wanted to bus tables making $2.10 an hour. But the restaurant instead hired him as a cook at Love's Wood Pit BBQ, which sealed his fate in love and career. "I met my future wife at Love's," the president of the Scottsdale Culinary Institute said. "We fell in love at Love's." Alberts has cooked at and managed several local hotels and has had the helm of the cooking school since 2002. He hopes to double student enrollment in the next five years to 2,000 at its two campuses. More career-seekers are looking to the culinary field as the profession gains wider popularity. The Food Network, the TV series The Restaurant, and demographic trends are among the drivers, Alberts said. Baby boomers have more disposable income and that fuels the restaurant industry. Alberts expects students graduating from high schools to start looking toward the field. "This is now looked at more as a profession," he said. "You can earn a degree." Alberts is working to have his school offering bachelor's degrees soon, he said. The school now offers several "Le Cordon Bleu" degrees, including those in baking, occupational studies, and hospitality and restaurant management. The school has two restaurants, L'Ecole and L'Academie, dishing up student-crafted cuisine. This gives the students real-world practice and offers the school wider exposure.