According to Mary Petersen, founder and president of CAFÉ, the winning program will be selected for its level of innovation; perceived impact on students’ understanding of sustainability practices and their importance; and the ease with which elements of the program can be implemented in other programs nationwide.
Last year’s award went to Cascade Culinary Institute (CCI) at Central Oregon Community College, not only for its Sustainable Food Systems for Culinary Arts Certificate that delivers instruction directly relating to the theoretical aspects of sustainability within the restaurant industry and beyond, but also for successful management of day-to-day operations including composting, recycling and use of green chemicals for ware washing. Runner-up for the 2013 award was Metro Tech High School in Phoenix, which operates Sustainable Table Café, a public eatery featuring local, sustainable foods prepared by culinary-arts students.
Cascade Culinary Institute and Metro Tech High School join previous CAFÉ/Kendall College Green Award recipients Seattle Culinary Academy (2012); Colorado State University’s hospitality-management program (2011); Technology Center of DuPage (2010), Addison, Ill.; and Johnson & Wales University’s Charlotte, N.C., campus (2009).
Full information about award criteria and the application process is located at www.CafeMeetingPlace.com under the “Instructor Scholarships/Awards” tab. Applications must be postmarked no later than April 1, 2014, and the winner(s) will be notified by May 1, 2014.
For more information about the Kendall College School of Culinary Arts’ sustainability initiatives, visit http://culinary.kendall.edu/about/going-green.
Photo: Recipients of 2013 CAFÉ/Kendall College Green Awards were Gene Fritz, M.Ed., director and executive chef, Cascade Culinary Institute, and Christina Hahn, CWPC, lead instructor, Metro Tech High School’s culinary-arts department.Culinary programs nationwide are invited to submit their best ideas for this sixth-annual recognition program by April 1.