Scoop School History
After taking over the reigns of the Ross Manufacturing Frozen Custard Class in 2004, Steve Christensen revised the curriculum to reflect the challenges of real-world entrepreneurs striving to be successful in the frozen custard business. The facility was relocated from Escanaba in Upper Michigan, to St Louis Missouri to centralize travel needs and become more ingrained in the retail custard world.
A strategic partnership was also developed with the Culinary Studies Department of St Louis Community College.
The Stoelting Company purchased Ross Manufacturing in 2006, and that acquisition brought a broader focus in training classes, introducing soft serve, batch frozen products and frozen beverages to the curriculum. The facility was renamed the Frozen Dessert Institute to reflect the broader subject matter taught monthly.
A partnership with Italian Manufacturers also brought in a global influence in training both here and internationally.
In 2009, the facility moved into a partnership with Christensen and his former retail frozen dessert experience in purchasing an existing frozen custard business west of St Louis, and training classes began to be taught in a fully functional and operating retail ice cream location, at Mr. C’s Ice Cream Emporium, Ballwin Missouri.
Mr. C’s Ice Cream Emporium
2014 saw the Vollrath Company purchase Stoelting, and the training program moved to Sheboygan Wisconsin. Christensen’s expertise in frozen dessert training and education soon saw him travelling around the country and around the globe training industry experts and new equipment representatives.
In order to reduce travel and concentrate on more entrepreneurial and family activities, Christensen left Vollrath and started Scoop School in St Louis in 2016. What followed was construction of a state-of-the-art facility incorporating a wide range of equipment, appliance, and product manufacturers, unlike anything the industry has seen.
Curriculum and content expanded to daily “You Tube” videos, a wide range of consulting programs, custom classes and live stream sessions. Christensen personally has helped open over 900 ice cream and frozen locations in the US and around the world and has trained tens of thousands in the art and business of ice cream and frozen desserts.
In 2021, the Scoop School facility, bursting at the seams, moved into a new facility in Wildwood MO. The new space boasts double the square footage of the previous facility with dedicated training rooms and a functional ice cream production space catering to all types of frozen dessert products.
We would love to see you in class some day soon.