Culinary camp gives nutrition staff the skills they need to be confident in the kitchen

While school is out for summer at Lewisville Independent School District in Lewisville, Texas, some members of the district’s school nutrition team, which is managed by Aramark, are hard at work learning new skills in the kitchen as part of the department’s five-day culinary camp.

The camp began two summers ago by Executive Chef Alicia Rivera who uses it as a way for school nutrition staff to grow their skills and improve their confidence in the kitchen.

Since its inception, the camp has garnered a positive response from attendees and the number of campers is due to only grow next summer.

 “Next year, we're going to have to [have the camp] in a bigger kitchen,” Rivera notes.

The first day of camp begins with a culinary 101 session where Rivera goes over kitchen basics, including knife skills.

From there, each day of the camp centers around a specific theme, such as pastry making. This summer, Rivera also added a global component where staff learned all about Moroccan and Tunisian cuisine.

Alongside learning new recipes and culinary skills, the camp also focuses on instructing staff on the concept of WEST (Welcome, Engage, Smile and Thank you).

“We incorporate that into the lesson plan because it's something that they have to practice every day with the students and staff,” says Rivera.

The camp culminates with a cooking competition where staff must prepare a three-course meal using their skills they learned over the week.

Gearing up for next summer

Since starting the camp, Rivera has noticed that staff who have participated have become more engaged in the kitchen and are excited to share what they have learned with their peers.

“When I do visit campus, for the ones that came through the camp, I’m like, ‘Okay, now that I know that you know how to do this, I expect that.’ And they're like, ‘Yes, Chef.’ And they are excited to see when we're going to do this again next year,” she says.

In preparation for next summer’s camp, Rivera will ask staff throughout the upcoming school year if there’s anything they would like to learn over the summer, she also sends out a QR code survey where staff can share what they would like to see added to the camp’s curriculum.

For those looking to also start a culinary camp at their district, Rivera encourages her peers to spend time on the curriculum and look for ways to make it fun and engaging for staff. She also recommends that operators should reach out to the team and ask them what they struggle with during the school year.  

“Definitely engage with the staff,” she says. “See what it is that they're needing to enhance their skills, or where is it that they need more help in.”