Inclusion Cafe Academy graduates first cohort, asks local businesses for support

• Inclusion Cafe Academy graduated its first cohort of students Wednesday teaching students key culinary skills to secure a job in the restaurant industry.
• The training has enabled graduate Matthew Blair to get a job at McAlister's Deli.
• Watch the video to hear about his next steps and how the program shaped his future.

BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:

The community is rallying to support the first ever graduates of the Inclusion Cafe Academy.

That's program providing training to people with intellectual disabilities so they can seek employment in the restaurant industry.

We're hearing from a recent graduate about his next steps working with one deli in our neighborhood.

A love for cooking runs deep for Matthew Blair.

"My mother loved to cook," said Blair. "She really enjoyed it."

Matthew lost his mother to cancer. That's when he turned to the kitchen.

"It's been a very, very good coping mechanism, it really has," said Blair.

Blair said he carries a piece of his mother with him when he is in the kitchen.

It is connection he was able to foster through the Inclusion Cafe Academy, a program that teaches key culinary skills to people with intellectual disabilities so they can get a job in hospitality.

Blair graduated from the program this week.

"It made me more comfortable in the kitchen," said Blair. "It made me more comfortable using an oven, using a pan, frying stuff, it made me more comfortable being myself."

Blair said before this program, he was worried about trying to find a job.

And yet Blair starts a new job Thursday at McAlister's Deli.

"I would say [Blair's] personality alone blew me away honestly," said Presleigh Whitley and Philip Formica, managers at McAlister's Deli in our neighborhood. They said it's importnat for them to recruit from local schools and training programs.

"Only thing we look at in interviews is experience, drive, work ethic, really just how much you really want to move forward," said Whitley.

Skills, they tell said, Blair showed in abundance.

"I don't think anybody should have less of an opportunity to show what they're capable of or to move forward with something that excites them," said Whitley.

A message, founder of Inclusion Cafe, Bill Schack is hoping to instill in other businesses in town.

"We're not teaching just cooking skills," said Schack. "We're teaching life skills here that will apply to any restaurant, any business in the city."

If you are interested in joining the Inclusion Cafe Academy, you can sign up for their next cohort of students now by visiting their website .

The course will begin in August.

In NW Tallahassee, MS, ABC 27.