What he learned in a one-month trip will change the way he teaches in the classroom. Associate instructor Robert Brener ’01 was the sole chaperone for 19 students who traveled to Switzerland and Italy for a Study Abroad of European wines and cuisine in June.

Students visited cheese factories, breweries, chocolatiers, vineyards, olive oil pressings and truffle producers. Brener was intrigued by the subtleties of production that distinguish cheeses at each of the three factories the group visited.

For Brener, this trip brings him full circle. As a student at the Charleston Campus, he traveled to Ireland. As an instructor, he may have learned just as much as the students.

“I wasn’t the teacher. I learned as a teacher,” Brener said. “I got to see how other cultures work in the classroom; I was a fly on the wall. When you watch that firsthand, up close, it changes your perspective.”

Peemoeller Wins National Title In a city known for gaming, the odds were against Chef Harry Peemoeller. The 2008 National Bread & Pastry Team Championship, held in Atlantic City in September, was the associate instructor’s first major competition. “I practiced this summer every day, except Sundays, for 10 to 12 hours a day,” Peemoeller said. “Placing first? I didn’t dare dream it. Through hard work and dedication and the great support of JWU, we pulled off an upset!”

Chef Peemoeller teamed up with former JWU instructor, Sadruddin Abdullah ’00. Peemoeller was the underdog, with competitors wondering who the guy was with the German accent.

Peemoeller created a sculpture made exclusively of edible bread dough, shaped like Euterpe,  a mythical Greek muse of music. He hit the jackpot with the $10,000 overall first-place prize. The Providence Campus team of Mitch Stamm and Eugenia Jimenez-Constantin placed fourth overall. www.breadandpastrychampionship.com