CHICAGO — Kendall College and the Center for the Advancement of Foodservice Education (CAFÉ) presented the 2012 CAFÉ/Kendall College Green Award to Seattle Culinary Academy, a division of Seattle Central Community College, June 23 at the CAFÉ Leadership Conference in San Antonio, Texas. Chef-instructor Keijiro Miyata, CEC, CCE, AAC, accepted the award on behalf of Seattle Culinary Academy from Christopher Koetke, CEC, CCE, HAAC, vice president of the Kendall College School of Culinary Arts and the Laureate International Universities Center of Excellence in Culinary Arts.
“Seattle Culinary Academy was one of the first culinary schools in the nation to offer formal coursework in sustainability, highlighting the value of local and seasonal sourcing,” Koetke said. “The program is exceptional because it integrates health and environmental sustainability throughout the educational experience.”
Believing and teaching that chefs are gatekeepers of the food system, Seattle Culinary Academy’s efforts to embed sustainable principles and practices into its curriculum began in 2000. Today, sustainable food-system practices are part of mandatory coursework for students enrolled in culinary arts and specialty desserts and breads.
Additionally, students learn how to plant, tend and harvest 2 acres of donated land, with harvested produce incorporated into menus at school. The school also maintains a plant-science lab/green house, teaches nose-to-tail butchery and food-preservation skills, and operates a GMO-free kitchen.
“We embrace and integrate sustainable practices into our curriculum to positively impact our students and the environment,” says Linda Pal Chauncey, Seattle Culinary Academy’s associate dean. “It is my hope that our success will inspire others—especially those at public institutions who have felt constrained by budgetary cuts similar to ours—to move forward on sustainability initiatives so crucial to the development of culinary students and the health of our food system.”
Seattle Culinary Academy joins past CAFÉ/Kendall College Green Award recipients Johnson & Wales University’s Charlotte, N.C., campus (2009); Technology Center of DuPage (2010), Addison, Ill.; and Colorado State University’s hospitality-management program (2011).
The CAFÉ/Kendall College Green Award is the first-ever national award to recognize secondary and postsecondary culinary-arts and baking/pastry programs for their commitment to sustainability. Selection criteria are based on the integration of sustainability into educational programs and/or operations, and the objective of the award is to build the body of sustainability resources in foodservice education. The winning program also receives a $1,000 cash prize.
About Kendall College:
Kendall College, founded in 1934, is located in Chicago, Illinois. Kendall offers undergraduate degrees in business, culinary arts, early childhood education and hospitality management to a diverse and passionate community of more than 2,200 students. The curriculum combines strong academics with practical experience and international educational opportunities that help give students in business, hospitality and culinary arts programs the skills and expertise they need to be leaders in their professions. Kendall College was ranked the number one program in Chicago for preparing students for careers in hospitality management and culinary arts in a survey of management at Chicago's leading hotels and Michelin Guide restaurants (ORC International – 2011 Survey). Kendall College, a member of the Laureate International Universities network, is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission and is a member of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools (NCA), www.ncahlc.org. For more information, please visit www.Kendall.edu.
About the Center for the Advancement of Foodservice Education (CAFÉ)
Founded in 2002, CAFÉ links the foodservice classroom to the foodservice industry to provide needed resources to educators so that they may more successfully train students for vibrant, fulfilling careers in the ever-evolving foodservice industry. Through its Web portal, online magazine “The Gold Medal Classroom” and annual Leadership Conference, as well as its series of regional skills workshops nationwide, CAFÉ is dedicated to addressing the unique needs of highly specialized professionals who wear two hats as culinarians and teachers. For more information, visit www.CafeMeetingPlace.com.
CAPTION: Chef Keijiro Miyata (l.) accepts the 2012 CAFÉ/Kendall College Green Award from Chef Christopher Koetke, June 23 at the 8th-annual CAFÉ Leadership Conference in San Antonio, Texas.
Source: Kendall College