Lexington College to honor McDonalds' Fields at fall gala

Lexington College, the nonprofit, all-women hospitality college in Chicago, will host a fall benefit dinner on Nov. 2 to honor Jan Fields, executive vice president and chief operating officer of McDonalds USA. The event aims to raise scholarship funds for future women leaders in the hospitality industry.

Mia Martinez, co-anchor and reporter for CBS Channel 2, will be the master of ceremonies for the benefit dinner, which takes place at the Chicago Marriott Downtown Magnificent Mile. For more information, visit www.lexingtoncollege.edu.

NRAEF and CHART honor scholarship recipient

The National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation (NRAEF) along with the Council of Hotel and Restaurant Trainers (CHART) was pleased to award Charles Eng, a ManageFirst student from The Ohio State University, with a $2,500 scholarship to support his education and career in the restaurant and foodservice industry. The scholarship was presented during CHART's 76th Semi-Annual Hospitality Training Conference in Cleveland, Ohio, on July 27.

(l to r) Jennifer Kovacs, director, National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation; 2009 NRAEF-CHART scholarship recipient Charles Eng, hospitality and finance student at The Ohio State University; and Curt Archambault, FMP, CHART Scholarship Chair, and regional training and development manager, Jack In The Box

This scholarship is presented annually to a student pursuing a career in the restaurant and foodservice industry. Charles Eng is a junior at The Ohio State University pursuing a dual degree in Hospitality Management and Finance. He is also studying the NRAEF's ManageFirst Program, which will further prepare him for a successful career. He believes his education along with the experience he is gaining while working at the ViewPoint Restaurant will serve him well in today's growing global economy. Eng's ultimate goal is to work in foodservice and provide people a place to dine that is relaxed and culturally enriching.

The National Restaurant Association’s ManageFirst Program is a management development program that equips students with the key competencies they need to begin or advance their management careers in the restaurant and foodservice industry. ManageFirst is in use at more than 350 colleges and universities and in a variety of restaurant and foodservice companies. For more information, visit www.managefirst.restaurant.org.

Go wild with wild rice

The California Wild Rice Advisory Board is calling on all chefs-in-training and culinary professionals in California and Nevada to compete in the "California Wild Rice Rocks My World Recipe Rumble" for up to $5,000 in cash and prizes.

The California Wild Rice Advisory Board, which is sponsoring the event, is challenging culinary professionals to create interesting new ways to incorporate and serve wild rice in restaurants, catering operations and other foodservice settings.

The rumble kicks off Sept. 1 with the start of California Wild Rice Month and closes Feb. 28. The winners will be notified no later than March 31. Contest entry forms and rules can be found online at www.cawildrice.com.

*Photo courtesy of the California Wild Rice Advisory Board

Four top OC chefs to participate in scholarship fundraiser

Four of southern California's top chefs will participate in the inaugural Orange County Celebrity Chefs Culinary Arts Scholarship fundraiser at The Winery Restaurant & Wine Bar at The District in Tustin to help five aspiring chefs earn their associates degree in culinary arts at Orange Coast College in Costa Mesa, Calif.

Yvon Goetz, executive chef and partner at The Winery--along with Pascal Olhats, executive chef and owner of Tradition by Pascal and Brasserie Pascal; Andrew Sutton, executive chef of Napa Rose at Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, Calif.; and Rob Wilson, executive chef at The Ritz-Carlton, Laguna Niguel--will prepare a six-course dinner for the guests. A portion of the proceeds from the dinner will be added to The Winery Culinary Arts Scholarship Fund. In February, The Winery's owners will review all scholarship applications, and the winners will be announced at a campus-wide ceremony in May.

The event takes place at 6:30 p.m. on Sept. 23. For more information or to make reservations, send an e-mail to Rochelle@TheWineryRestaurant.net.

ProStart director wins Herman Breithaupt Award

Bill Nolan, director of ProStart, received the Chef Herman Breithaupt Award from the International Council on Hotel, Restaurant and Institutional Education (CHRIE). The award, presented to Nolan during the International CHRIE Annual Conference in San Francisco, honors the memory of Breithaupt by recognizing achievement and contributions to foodservice education by a chef-educator.

During his tenure with the National Restaurant Association (NRA), Nolan has created several training programs targeted toward culinary education for secondary school teachers. He also has helped develop the National ProStart Invitational, the NRA's culinary and restaurant management competition for ProStart students. At this competition, he oversees a team consisting of 14 culinary professionals and post-secondary judges who evaluate the student competitors in the culinary side of the competition.

ProStart is a career-building program for high school students who are interested in culinary arts or foodservice management. It is supported by the NRA. For more information, visit prostart.restaurant.org.

Le Cordon Bleu announces all-online culinary management degree program

Le Cordon Bleu Schools North America (LCB) and its parent company, Career Education Corp., announced the launch of a new online bachelor of arts degree in Le Cordon Bleu Culinary Management.

The 15-month online program focuses on theory, science and business development and builds on a student's culinary skills with an award-winning interactive educational platform.

"This online degree was designed to create a dynamic learning experience through interactive course materials and engaging relationships that form among students and faculty," Jeremy J. Wheaton, senior vice president of operations, Culinary Arts (Career Education Corp.), said in a press statement. "Now, culinary professionals currently working in the food and hospitality field have the option to further their education without putting their career on hold."

The degree program features audio and video lessons in addition to readings and clickable exercises. The curriculum includes Wine & Beverage Management; Gastronomy; Health Cuisine and Food Science; Small Business Development; Event Management & Art of the Event; and Customer Service. In the capstone course, students are required to develop a real-world business plan, with marketing, product/menu/services and financial analysis; and profit and loss projections.

The online program is offered by Scottsdale Culinary Institute (SCI). SCI is licensed by the Arizona State Board for Private Postsecondary Education and is accredited by the Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges (ACCSC). A natural transition for LCB alumni with associate degree programs, the online BA in Le Cordon Bleu Culinary Management accepts graduates from most accredited associate degree culinary programs.

"If prerequisites are necessary before enrollment in the online program, Scottsdale Culinary Institute offers online 'bridge' classes to assist in beginning this new program," Jake Elsen, president of SCI, said in a press statement.

The platform was developed by the same Career Education Corp. team which recently received the 21st Century Achievement Award in the Education and Academia category in the International Data Group (IDG) Computerworld Honors Program for the development of the Virtual Campus at American InterContinental University.

The inaugural class began this week.

SkillsUSA student will travel to Canada to compete in culinary competition

Craig Growney of East Rutherford, N.J., and a student at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, N.Y., will represent the United States in Calgary, Canada, in the WorldSkills Cooking Competition. SkillsUSA, the organization that represents the United States in the WorldSkills Competition, will send 16 total students from various areas of study to compete in the 40th international event to be held Sept. 1 to 7 as part of the United States "WorldTeam."

Growney earned the right to be a member of WorldTeam by winning local, district and national contests in cooking under the SkillsUSA program. Competitors must be under the age of 23. According to WorldSkills International, cooking competitors will be expected to:

• prepare, season and cook a variety of foods according to recipes
• create and test new recipes
• operate machinery associated with food preparation
• carve meats, determine portion sizes, arrange foods and add sauces, gravies and garnish to servings
• bake desserts and pastries
• prepare buffets such as platters and showpieces
• oversee menu planning, estimate food requirements and obtain the necessary food from storage or from suppliers to maintain an inventory of kitchen provisions
• prepare and follow budgets
• supervise kitchen staff
• understand the needs of special diets due to culture, health or religion

Every two years, hundreds of young people from 51 member countries or regions compete in the prestigious WorldSkills Competition. Considered "the best of the best," these contestants compete for four days in 45 occupational skill areas from economic sectors including manufacturing, information technology, transportation, construction and services. Accompanied by their teachers, trainers and industry technical committee experts, these young people compete before the public in contests that are run by and judged by industry using demanding international standards. For more information, visit www.skillsusa.org or www.worldskills.org.