Haney selected as top Massachusetts ProStart educator

The Massachusetts Restaurant Association Educational Foundation (MRAEF) selected Nancy Haney of Tri-County Regional Vocational Technical High School (TCRVTHS) as the Massachusetts 2009 ProStart Educator Excellence Award recipient. Haney, a graduate from Johnson & Wales University, has been teaching for 23 years. She also runs a Gourmet Club and is the student council adviser for TCRVTHS.

(l to r) Tri-County Regional Vocational Technical High School student Evan Paine with Nancy Haney

Haney will join 31 other top educators at the National Restaurant Association Solutions (NRA Solutions) ProStart Educator Excellence Awards weekend, May 15 to 16. The NRA Solutions Educator Excellence Awards recognize educators using the ProStart program in their classrooms.

MSU's School of Hospitality fund-raising campaign under way

The School of Hospitality Business at Michigan State University announced there are still "naming opportunities" available for sponsoring its Culinary Business Learning Lab (CBLL) revitalization project, ranging from the teaching and research kitchen to the kitchen’s workstations. The School of Hospitality Business launched a two-year fund-raising campaign last May to support the CBLL.

Successful completion of the $5.8 million campaign will allow the 11,000-square-foot facility to be rehabbed and updated to include a teaching and demonstration theater, teaching and research kitchen, Alumni Association Hall of Fame, entryway and display gallery, gathering space and dining room. For more information, visit the School of Hospitality Business Web site.

Culinary Business Learning Lab teaching and research kitchen

ACF Northeast Pastry Chef of the Year to compete in Food Network Challenge

Megan Ketover, CPC, pastry chef of retail bakery outlet Bakery Hill at the Midwest Culinary Institute in Cincinnati and Midwest Culinary Institute pastry-arts instructor, was selected to compete in an upcoming episode of Food Network Challenge. The American Culinary Federation named Ketover the Northeast Region Pastry Chef of the Year after she won the ACF Northeast Regional Conference competition in February.

Ketover will compete in Food Network's Cereal Bridges 2 Challenge, to be filmed April 30. "I am excited to have been chosen to compete for Food Network's Cereal Bridges 2 Challenge, and I am gearing up to try to create something that seems impossible--a bridge primarily made of Rice Krispies," she said in a statement.

After filming the Food Network Challenge, Ketover will continue preparing for the national ACF Pastry Chef of the Year competition, which will take place during the 2009 ACF National Convention July 11 to 14 in Orlando, Fla.

CIA partners with institutions in Catalonia

The Culinary Institute of America (CIA) has partnered with the Alícia Foundation and Prodeca, both based in Catalonia, Spain, to facilitate an exchange of culinary faculty, students and experts.

El Bulli chef Ferran Adrià (second from left), CIA president Tim Ryan (second from right) and Spanish chef José Andrés (far right), toasting with Catalonian officials

The agreement, signed March 25, will allow CIA faculty and students to study at the Alícia Foundation, a research center devoted to the technological innovation in cooking. Additionally, visiting CIA students and faculty will be able to experience first-hand the top kitchens, markets and producers of Catalan food and wine. The agreement also will fund a 2009-2010 program series of visiting guest chefs and other leaders in Catalan gastronomy at the New York and California campuses of the CIA. For more information, visit www.worldsofflavorspain.com.

(Photo courtesy of the CIA/Keith Ferris)

University of Gastronomic Sciences to hold information session

On April 22 Italy’s University of Gastronomic Sciences will hold an information session at Bethesda Green in Bethesda, Md., for prospective students interested in learning more about the school’s programs and application procedures. Staff and alumni will be available to explain the university's educational philosophy, present the undergraduate and graduate degrees and discuss internships and work opportunities. The session is open to all students, professionals and members of the public.

Co-founded in 2003 by the international nonprofit Slow Food Movement and the Italian regions of Piedmont and Emilia-Romagna, the school's approach is to create a new understanding of gastronomy, linking eating and producing. For more information, visit www.unisg.com.

UC students take first in RCA Student Culinology Competition

A student team from the University of Cincinnati took first place in the Research Chefs Association's (RCA) third annual Student Culinology Competition, held March 7 during the RCA Annual Conference & Culinology Expo at the Sheraton Dallas Hotel.

The UC students received a $5,000 cash award for their Texas Prairie Duo meal, which was made up of braised chuck flat beef strips in a sweet, tangy sauce accompanied by a medley of fire-roasted vegetables. The UC team was led by faculty adviser Christopher Keegan, CEC, senior research chef at Cargill Flavor Systems; and team leader Christian A. Serrato, CC. Team members included Robert Coltrane, CC, John Parsons, CC, and Andrew Scholle, CC.

A student team from Johnson & Wales University, in Providence, R.I., took second; and Louisiana State University placed third. For more information, visit www.culinology.com

Breaking news: FENI Summit 2010 in Chicago!

The 12th Annual FENI Summit will be held in Chicago Feb. 13 to 15, 2010. Make plans to attend and obtain more information by visiting www.fenisummit.com! FENI is produced by Chef Educator Today magazine and Talcott Publications, in cooperation with leading culinary institutions.