As Tater Tots® hit the Big 60, the Idaho Potato Commission celebrates six decades of tot-inspired menu creativity.

When Tater Tots® began arriving in grocery stores in 1954, they quickly caught on as a snack food, a side dish and the foundation for casseroles at dinner tables across America. (Tater Tots are a registered trademark of Ore-Ida, a division of the H.J. Heinz Company).

Across the next 60 years, foodservice operators capitalized on tot popularity, enthusiastically integrating them into menus ranging from quick service to white tablecloth. As these bite-sized potato croquettes officially move into middle age, the Idaho Potato Commission (IPC) salutes the tot as both an inspired potato product and a springboard for potato creativity.

This second installment in a four-part series on assessment methods focuses on oral presentations and class participation.

By Dr. Fred Mayo, CHE, CHT

Last month, we discussed several assessment methods: attendance, open-book tests and take-home examinations. This month, we will discuss two complicated areas: oral presentations and class participation. Next month, we will examine evaluating food preparation, dining-room service and teamwork, and in December, we will discuss the topic of assessment criteria and rubrics.

Details of Oral Presentations
In many of our classes, we ask students to develop and deliver oral presentations, which are a great strategy to help students learn material and build public-speaking skills. Sometimes, the presentations include PowerPoint or Prezi slides and other times they only include talking and gesturing.

While these assignments make sense as teaching strategies, they can be extra hard for students if we do not provide details about the assignment and the ways in which it will be evaluated. Simply asking students to make a presentation does not give them enough information to do it well. Therefore, tell them what you expect in the format of the presentation: a 10-minute talk with handouts, a presentation with 9x9 presentation (nine slides with nine lines per slide and no paragraphs), or a 15-minute presentation without notes or slides.

Does anything scare new cooks more than gravy? And what to do when faced with a sweet potato AND a yam? Chef Weiner explains how educators can assuage students’ fears of preparing traditional Thanksgiving sides from scratch—and teach it all successfully in 50 minutes.

By Adam Weiner, CFSE

Hard to believe, the holidays are upon us. For many of your students, they learned from a young age the important lesson that love must go into the food. However, they probably watched their parents “freak out” about Thanksgiving dinner or, worse yet, watched their parents purchase canned and packaged food.

So it is your job how to teach them to make great-tasting, healthy, homemade side dishes. Here are five items that can all be easily made in one class day, or prepped on one day and finished the next.

1. Cranberry Sauce. There is absolutely nothing easier to make than cranberry sauce. Yet, almost everyone resorts to cans. If your student can boil water, he or she can make homemade cranberry sauce in under 15 minutes.

Rinse a 12-ounce package of cranberries. Add 1 cup water and ¾ cup to 1 cup sugar into a heavy pot. (Amount depends on how sweet you like the sauce.) Simmer for about 10 minutes. The longer you simmer, the thicker the sauce. If you want the sauce smooth, just push the mixture through a strainer while it is still hot. Want to kick it up a notch? Add in diced dried apricots, lemon zest or a pinch of cinnamon, or let your mind be creative.

Integration of industry and education better prepares students for success and makes a school essential in the eyes of all stakeholders. Good news is that opportunities for your program to partner with your local business community are endless.

By Paul Sorgule, MS, AAC

Sometimes programs tend to underestimate the breadth of resources and educational talent at their disposal. We look to our full- and part-time faculty as the primary resource and strength of a program, as one would assume.

However, those program administrators who see the potential to draw the hospitality community into the folds of their faculty resources can build a truly dynamic curriculum to rival the largest and finest colleges. Creating a stage for Partners in Education allows business leaders to understand how they might assist in building extraordinary opportunities for young people aspiring to a career in hospitality.

We all understand how this might occur through internships and externships, giving students the ability to apply the hands-on skills they are developing in a campus program, but few programs understand that this “partnership” can extend to all academic courses, as well. Hands-on can apply to every part of your curriculum. Considering that most students enrolled in culinary programs are tactile learners, this application approach can result in a more-engaged student, enhanced relationships with outside stakeholders in your program, and a truly balanced graduate.

Students, parents and accrediting agencies are collectively holding college administrators and faculty members to a different standard. Everyone seems to want measureable, and visible, outcomes that make a difference in a student’s professional life. Stakeholders are looking for value.

New research from the National Restaurant Association shows a substantial number of operators are implementing sustainability best practices into their businesses.

A recent survey of 1,000 full-service and quick-service operators by the National Restaurant Association (NRA) found that nearly three quarters of operators recycled used fryer oil, fats and grease. More than six in 10 recycled their cardboard and paper, used compact fluorescent lighting and bought products made of recycled materials. About three in 10 installed faucet aerators to conserve water.

“More operators are looking at ways to increase efficiency—environmentally and fiscally,” said Scott DeFife, executive vice president, Policy and Government Affairs, for the NRA. “Restaurateurs today know a lot more about how sustainability can reduce utility costs and, in some cases, increase profitability.”

Key findings determined that: