Students from 11 New York City schools competed in the first Teen Iron Chef competition of culinary skills and talent organized by HealthCorps®, Family Cook Productions and Urban Assembly School of Music and Art. Guest Judges included: Broadway composer Stepp Stewart; Chef Chris Cheung; School Food Chef William Dougherty, and an array of educators and culinarians. Four teams of four students created four dishes representing four cultures. The teams were judged on a variety of criteria, including: knife skills, food safety, organization, entertainment value, and taste and presentation.

This is just one of many programs co-sponsored by HealthCorps®, a proactive health movement responding to the obesity crisis through school-based health education and peer mentoring, in addition to community outreach to underserved populations—mostly Hispanic and African American. HealthCorps (http://www.healthcorps.org) was founded in 2003 by cardiac surgeon Mehmet Oz.

Along with educating students about healthy lifestyle principles, HealthCorps® extends their mission to the students’ families and communities. Their goal is to shift the paradigm towards health and wellness now and for the future of our children.

For more information about HealthCorps, please visit: http://www.healthcorps.org.