Keith Schroeder

Keith Schroeder is the founder and CEO of High Road Craft Ice Cream, Inc. He is also a veteran chef, cookbook author, and cooking magazine columnist. High Road Craft Ice Cream was started in Atlanta by a group of chefs who made ice cream with exceptional flavor for other chefs to serve in restaurants, hotels, and resorts. The company has expanded rapidly, and High Road Craft Ice Cream is now found in grocery stores and specialty food stores in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Prior to founding High Road Craft Ice Cream in 2010, Schroeder served as an executive chef for Westin and Marriott hotels and at the New England Culinary Institute. Schroeder became one of the youngest chefs to be named Executive Chef of the New England Culinary Institute at age 28.

Schroeder is a 2010 Executive MBA graduate of the Coles College of Business at Kennesaw State University. During Schroeder’s MBA program, High Road won the 2010 International New Ventures Competition at the University of Nebraska. The company used the competition’s 7,500 USD prize money as seed capital. Additional investors followed, including fellow MBA students.

A dedicated KSU and Coles College alumnus, Schroeder frequently sponsors events at the Coles College and with KSU Athletics. He has served as a classroom guest speaker, distinguished lecturer, and supporter of the college’s accreditation and strategic direction. And in true demonstration of his devotion to his alma mater, Schroeder worked with High Road to create an ice cream flavor just for KSU.

Schroeder's entrepreneurial spirit is evident in his successful development of a company that creates ice cream for food enthusiasts. High Road's Bourbon Burnt Sugar ice cream is a Specialty Food Association Sofi Award winner. High Road has also earned recognition from O Magazine, the New York Times, Travel + Leisure, Bon Appetit, Serious Eats, and Alton Brown’s Alton Browncast.

Schroeder's ice cream company was also named grand champion of the 2012 Flavor of Georgia Food Product Contest for its Brown Butter Praline ice cream. Further, High Road Craft Ice Cream won first place in the competition’s dairy category. In 2012, Schroeder was a finalist for the Atlanta Business Chronicle and the Metro Atlanta Chamber Business Person of the Year Award.

Schroeder writes a monthly ""Cooking Class"" column for Cooking Light magazine, and he's the author of Cooking Light Mad Delicious: The Science of Making Healthy Food Taste Amazing. Schroeder won his first James Beard Award in 2015 for this book in the Focus on Health Book Award category.

Schroeder has significant accomplishments as a social entrepreneur, as well. His ice cream business uses local organic ingredients and pasteurizes its own dairy. The company purchases regionally sourced nuts, buttermilk, and berries. High Road finds ideas for new flavors in places near and far, and Schroeder leads the company to honor the people and cultures that inspire its innovative flavors.