Approved!!
I submitted the application through the Los Angeles Consulate on November 13th & the next day I was asked to submit my flight itinerary & a better photo of myself. I received my approval email around 1 hour ago.
I will be attending Arun Thai Cooking School!
I found so much helpful information on this page. Thank you to everyone.
Update: I just wanted to say in case anyone is looking into it that so far Arun Thai has been very patient and accommodating with all my questions and concerns. I've emailed them a bunch just trying to clarify small things and they've been great. Once they received confirmation of enrollment they sent an email with class information and everything else I need to know. I'm happy to answer any questions.