Growing Staff in Columbia Dining, One Julienne at a Time
This March, while students enjoyed a week off from class during Spring Recess, Columbia pantry workers and short order cooks hit the *cook* books. Over the course of two days, 40 Columbia Dining staff members took part in two courses: Knife Skills and Kitchen Equipment.
Columbia Dining is committed to serving the student community good food – accomplished thanks to quality ingredients, menu planning, and countless hours in the kitchen. But it’s not just the culinary team that’s charged with this mission: the entire operation is involved. Now, Columbia Dining is ensuring that staff across all positions are trained with necessary foundational skills to contribute in the kitchen. This is also a critical component of the organization’s staff development initiative.
Executive Chef Mike DeMartino emphasized that the skills training benefits both the individual and the team. Staff with a broader range of skills can rotate to a greater number of positions and go up for promotion when openings become available.
Continuing education helps grow our staff and find the best fit on the culinary team for them. And happy staff make good food for happy students. That’s what it’s all about.
The knife skills class led by Chef Mike included proper handling and review of techniques, like Bâtonnet, Julienne, Slice and Mince. The kitchen equipment session was taught by Devante Dickerson, Apprentice Chef de Cuisine, and reviewed how to use basic tools, like a food processor and slicer, working through recipes for hands-on learning and emphasizing operation, safety and sanitation.
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Slide 1: Chef Mike goes over technique with a staff member
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Slide 2: The knife skills class was held during Columbia's spring recess
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Slide 3: Apprentice Chef de Cuisine Devante Dickerson walks staff through a recipe for a pesto
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Slide 4: Staff members learn the technique for cleaning a hand mixer
Byron, a Short Order cook at John Jay attended trade school for culinary training, but said the opportunity to have Chef Mike help him refine his knife technique makes prep work easier. The recipe instruction introduced him to new topics that may be helpful to his career advancement too – “Now I know, in case the opportunity comes up for a special menu, I know what to do. Or if a new a position opens up, that means I’m ready to move.”
Said Fran at Chef Mike’s Sub Shop “I practiced an easier way to peel ginger and had fun learning to make balsamic vinaigrette, seeing how it comes together. Plus these skills allow me to move up and grow my career.”
The growth mentality in Columbia Dining is strong throughout the organization. It's operated by 250 University staff, 75% of whom have been promoted once and 55% have been promoted twice.
