HENDERSONVILLE, N.C. (July 05, 2023) –Henderson County Public Schools (HCPS) hosted a North Carolina K-12 Culinary Institute Workshop on June 27-29 for School Nutrition managers from the region. The workshop is part of a series of workshops held across the state this summer. The institute was developed by the N.C. Department of Public Instruction, Office of School Nutrition in cooperation with a team of registered dietitians and chefs to increase the availability of fresh, appealing, nutritious meals at school. School Nutrition managers from Henderson, Buncombe, Haywood, Transylvania, Cleveland, Johnston and Pitt counties participated in a K-12 Culinary Institute regional workshop.
“We care about the health and well-being of our students. The N.C. K-12 Culinary Institute is one step that we are taking to equip our School Nutrition professionals for their important roles in the schools,” said Robert Rolfe, director for Henderson County Public Schools, School Nutrition Program.
The NCDPI, Office of School Nutrition worked with Chef Cyndie Story and the K-12 Culinary Team in development of the institute to meet five core objectives: Improve student health, well-being, and academic success through nutritious, appealing meals at school; Increase participation in high quality, enticing School Nutrition Programs; Expand the capacity of local School Nutrition Programs to purchase, prepare, and serve fresh, locally grown produce; Increase consumption of fruits, vegetables, and whole grain-rich foods, and provide continuing education opportunities for School Nutrition personnel.
Over two hundred new recipes have been developed for school meals in North Carolina, featuring whole grains, fruits, vegetables, lean proteins, low fat dairy and locally grown ingredients. The menus and recipes developed for the K-12 Culinary Institute include scratch, convenience, and modified scratch products and techniques, instructions written for production amounts consistent with pack or pan sizes commonly available in school kitchens, and nutritional analysis files for easy import into software programs and adjustments for standardization in Public School Units (PSUs). Planned instructional segments for the institute include topics such as knife skills, weighing and measuring accurately, preparing foods for just-in-time service, work simplification and scheduling, effective use of equipment, and quality food preparation and service for a variety of meats, grains, fruits, vegetables, and condiments. In addition, merchandising, marketing, and nutrition education best practices are addressed.
The N.C. K-12 Culinary Institute graduates are chef ambassadors and culinary specialists. These ambassadors are prepared to teach other School Nutrition professionals at the PSU/school level utilizing institute teach-it-forward lessons and resources. The NCDPI, Office of School Nutrition is the State Agency (SA) in North Carolina administering the School Breakfast Program, National School Lunch Program, Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program, Special Milk Program, After School Snack Program, Seamless Summer Option, and Summer Food Service Program with federal assistance from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Additional information regarding School Nutrition Programs in North Carolina and the N.C. K-12 Culinary Institute can be found on the NCDPI, Office of School Nutrition website. HCPS Child Nutrition Department administers School Nutrition Programs at the local level. More information can be found on the HCPS website: HCPSNC.org. USDA, NCDPI, and Henderson County Public Schools are equal opportunity providers and employers.
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