Ashley Casasola
Georgia State senior Ashley Casasola discovered her passion for cooking at a young age, and it’s continued to guide her through college. As she completes her degree in hospitality administration, she’s planning to pass on her knowledge by nurturing the next generation of hospitality students.
Interview by Jordan Ferguson
Tell us about yourself and what you were doing before enrolling at Georgia State.
I’m from Gwinnett County, Ga., and I attended Meadowcreek High School. While there, I got involved in the culinary program. I did a high school culinary internship called the Navigate Program, and competed in Pro Start — the largest high school culinary competition in the nation — and placed first in Georgia for three years in a row. I was also able to go to nationals twice.
After that, I started to see hospitality as a career for myself. My family is originally from Guatemala, and I have core memories of being there and cooking with them. Cooking brings people together, and I thought that was very special. As I grew older and got to high school, I started catering events as a part of my high school culinary program, and I saw that on a larger scale.
What is your goal after graduation?
My ultimate goal is to pursue a career in hospitality finance or become a controller — someone who controls finances and does all the accounting behind food services. I want to return to GSU and earn a master’s in accounting. Later, I want to start a nonprofit baking and pastry company where students and young adults ages 15 to 24 come in and intern, leading them into a road of hospitality — very similar to what I did in Navigate. We received training in soft skills and hard skills and got the certifications necessary to succeed in the hospitality industry and in life. I want to carry that on and help develop the next generation of future hospitality students.
What type of opportunities have you had since starting college?
After a month at Georgia State, I got an internship with the Georgia Restaurant Association that lasted about a year and a half. I was an administrative assistant in planning and running competitions. At the same time, I was also working at Farmed Kitchen and Bar, where the first African American master chef in the world started. I worked there until last year. Currently, I am interning as an operations assistant with the Navigate Foundation.
Bringing high school students on board has been a fantastic experience for me. It has allowed me to reflect and share my experiences and show them the path they can take if they want to further their hospitality education. I even got a chance to study abroad this past year.
Where did you go?
My classmates and I went to Dubai for eight days. We learned a lot about Emirati culture, their government and their hospitality. Getting to go to Dubai was like the epitome of hospitality. The experience was so surreal. We had the opportunity to go inside the Grand Mosque and Presidential Palace. Seeing how they handle business showed us how we can improve and change hospitality in the U.S. It’s something I will never forget.
How is Georgia State preparing you for the next steps in your career?
I think Georgia State has a fantastic business program. It’s given me a broad perspective on what business can offer. I found my interest in wanting to do the financial side of hospitality, and I loved my accounting and finance courses. I love numbers.
Learning about the financial side of hospitality in my senior-level courses has broadened that scope more, helping me realize there are so many things that are specific to hospitality. The professors at the School of Hospitality have been amazing resources. They are knowledgeable, have many connections and invite industry leaders to come in and speak to us, letting us learn about what they’re doing and how we can be part of those great things.
But more toward the business side, learning all the nuances behind what it takes to manage a successful business and how to be the best we can be has been a fantastic experience. What I love most about it is the people of the Cecil B. Day School of Hospitality. They are also industry veterans. They have been there, so they know, and they provide a fantastic perspective that shows what hospitality has to offer.
