Summer Culinary Exploration Training offers taste of food service industry
August 4, 2022
Students who attend the Summer Culinary Exploration Training Program at the Food Bank of Delaware are offered a real taste of the food service industry during their six-week class which graduates on Aug. 17 and Aug. 18. The Milford and Newark classes already enjoyed a real kitchen experience – making biscuits and cupcakes.
Inside our commercial kitchen, Chefs Tish, Kattie, Cynthia and Ron, members of our culinary team, guided these students through the process from hand-washing to following a recipe, measuring, using a mixer, and baking techniques.
The program for students diagnosed with an intellectual disability includes field trips to food-service industry sites as well as kitchen and classroom participation. The students will also be making fudge, cookies, pasta, muffins, home-made pretzels and more!
The program is a partnership between the Food Bank and the state Division of Vocational Rehabilitation. The program runs Monday-Thursday from 9:00 a.m. until 1:00 p.m.
This fall, the Food Bank of Delaware will open The Kitchen School – a new program offering specialized training designed to provide employment opportunities for adults with disabilities in the food service and hospitality industry.
The Kitchen School represents a partnership between the Delaware Restaurant Association and the Food Bank in collaboration with teachers and counselors specializing in work with individuals with disabilities.
The 12-week curriculum has been developed to include group instruction and individualized training in our two Culinary School professional kitchens – one in Newark and one in Milford. The Food Bank’s professional chef instructors and job coaches will train students to enter food-service workplaces; students will learn kitchen safety, some hands-on cooking skills, sanitation procedures, and earn a ServSafe® Food Handler Certification.
The program also includes soft skill training, workplace support, and assistance in finding an employer whose needs match student strengths.
Stay tuned for more information about The Kitchen School!
