North Star School: Rachael Albert’s zest for baking a recipe for sweet success

June 6, 2023 Updated Tue., June 6, 2023 at 7:23 a.m.

Rachael Albert has a sweet spot for exotic desserts. Her affection for crafting macaroons, eclairs and other delicacies is icing her path toward a career in the baking industry.

Homeschooled from an early age, Albert began her journey with North Star, an alternative educational program offered through Mead Learning Options, shortly after her family moved to Spokane from Sandpoint. Her academic experience has been enriched over the years from the blended mixture of at-home instruction, personalized curriculum and local community interaction North Star has provided.

"My mom decided to put me in it, because it sounded like a really good program from where I was at," Albert said. "It's a lot more fun. You have the opportunity to do a bunch of other stuff you just can't do at home, like pottery and martial arts," said Albert, who earned her black belt in Taekwondo three years ago. Her other hobbies including painting, drawing and playing musical instruments, such as the piano and marimba.

North Star mentor teacher Shellie Jones speaks highly of Albert's ambition.

"She and her mom really worked hard to tailor things (to) her interests and the way that she learns and they were very focused on providing an education for Rachael that suited what she wanted to do with her life, her interests and her passions," Jones said. "She's got a great work ethic and she's worked hard and she's been very thoughtful about the courses that she's taking as a high schooler."

During her junior year, a knack for cooking steered Albert into NEWTech Skill Center, a tuition-free public education service that provides hands-on career preparation to high school students. She found her niche in a culinary arts program crafting elegant desserts.

"I originally went in there just for the cooking part of it, but when I started doing the baking I realized I was really good at it," Albert said.

She even won a competition among first year students.

"It was a pineapple cake with pineapple filling and a lemon frosting and orange whipped cream for decoration," Albert said.

Her NEWTech teacher later suggested she enroll in the Running Start program at Spokane Community College with a focus on baking where Albert has excelled, savoring the creative latitude assembling desserts affords.

"When you’re decorating cakes you have the freedom to like, I don't know, just go wild," said Albert, who will graduate SCC with a baking certificate this summer and has already been hired to design a wedding cake after she finishes high school.

Albert hopes to sweeten her prospects for success in the baking industry with the addition of a college business certificate in the near future. "My dream job would be to run my own bakery and be a part of that," she said.

Local journalism is essential.

Give directly to The Spokesman-Review's Northwest Passages community forums series -- which helps to offset the costs of several reporter and editor positions at the newspaper -- by using the easy options below. Gifts processed in this system are not tax deductible, but are predominately used to help meet the local financial requirements needed to receive national matching-grant funds.

Get breaking news delivered to your inbox as it happens.