Twenty-eight students from Pennsylvania College of Technology, Williamsport, and 11 graduates were selected to help prepare and serve food in the high-end venues of Churchill Downs during the 144th running of the Kentucky Derby on May 5.

The Derby, known as the most exciting two minutes in sports, is steeped in tradition with mint juleps, spectacular hats and the playing of “My Old Kentucky Home.”

A behind-the-scenes tradition for more than 25 years has been the involvement of Penn College students.

The event provides a one-of-a-kind learning experience for the aspiring hospitality professionals, who are pursuing degrees in baking and pastry arts, culinary arts, and hospitality management.

Some of this year’s staffers are returning for the second, third or fourth time in their collegiate careers.

Their past assignments have included work in the Jockey Club kitchen, which caters to jockeys and serves a three-floor restaurant; the Winners Circle kitchen, which caters to horse owners and serves a restaurant; the Turf Club, an exclusive members-only lounge; The Mansion, where celebrities and millionaires spend their time at the famous horse race, and a host of other VIP dining venues where seats for the Kentucky Oaks and Kentucky Derby races can range from $1,000 to over $20,000.

They also help to staff the bustling main kitchen, which supplies the entire facility.

They work alongside the likes of Chef Robin Rosenberg, vice president and chef de cuisine for Levy Restaurants, who oversees fine dining experiences at stadiums, entertainment venues and such events as the Grammy Awards; Chef Rick Tramonto, a “Top Chef” judge who was the 2016 celebrity guest chef in The Mansion and has earned the highest culinary accolades; and acclaimed food writer and James Beard Award winner Chef Virginia Willis, the 2017 Mansion guest chef.

In addition to the kitchens, Penn College students are recruited to work in the “front of the house.”

Throughout the week in Louisville, Ky., they prepared tons of food for the showcase race and the events that led up to it.

“The magnitude of the event itself amazed me,” said Natascha G. Santaella, who traveled to the Kentucky Derby for the second time. “I had a thought that the track might be smaller, or that we would be working three or four days, but in reality, you’re working from day one at creating this amazing experience that people want to check off their bucket list. And that alone makes me so happy.”

While many assignments are not glamorous - such as reporting to the grounds at 3 a.m. each day to help prepare breakfast for “Dawn at the Downs” guests, as baking and pastry arts student Cynthia R. Setzer did, or spending six hours with a fellow student cutting 6 tons of carrots, as culinary arts and systems student Dylan H. Therrien, of Reading, did during one of his four visits.

Students cite many reasons the hard work is worth it.

Bridget M. Callahan, a culinary arts and systems student from Pottsville, was pleasantly surprised by how much students were involved.

“Going into any new situation to help, there is always a chance that you will just be ‘the help’ and only needed for some tasks here or there,” Callahan said. “When we go to The Derby, we are part of the team, and everyone is in the same boat ... We all work on tasks together, and we are treated as if we are on the same level as everyone else there,” she said.

For many, the connections that arise from that teamwork mean as much as the hands-on experience.

“The chefs are super appreciative of our help and actually remember us from year to year,” Callahan said. “Over the week in Kentucky, it seems like you form a little family with the group you work with, and they don’t forget you when you go back.”

Local Penn College students who traveled to the Kentucky Derby include:

Baking and pastry arts: Maria E. Berrios, of Bethlehem; Jacqueline R. Dull, of Mohnton;

Culinary arts and systems: Bridget M. Callahan, of Pottsville; Dylan H. Therrien, of Reading.

Hospitality management: Noeiris Pliego, of Reading;

Applied management students who have earned associate degrees in baking and pastry arts are: Brittany L. Mink, of Allentown;

To learn more about hospitality-related majors at Penn College, call 570-327-4505 or visit pct.edu/hospitality.

For information about Penn College, a national leader in applied technology education, visit pct.edu, email admissions@pct.edu or call toll-free 800-367-9222.