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Felder: Women in culinary education mentor the next generation of chefs

Felder: Women in culinary education mentor the next generation of chefs

Women Chefs & Restaurateurs, an organization that promotes the advancement of women in the industry, annually recognizes outstanding individuals with its Women Who Inspire Award. At WCR’s national conference earlier this month, the group presented a new award in recognition of the importance of education in the industry. The inaugural 2007 Educator of the Year award went to chef Eve Felder, associate dean of culinary arts at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, N.Y. Felder grew up in Charleston, S.C, helping her mother in the kitchen. After appeasing her parents with a college degree in psychology in the late ’70s, Felder began working full time in restaurants. She had worked her way up to executive chef at an Omaha, Neb., restaurant when she decided to go to culinary school. After graduating with honors from the CIA in 1988, she went to work for Alice Waters at Chez Panisse, in Berkeley, Calif. She also traveled to Asia, Europe and North Africa, studying the indigenous foods and culinary traditions of different cultures. Felder returned to the CIA in 1994 as an instructor. A certified executive chef, Felder is responsible for developing the curriculum, monitoring food quality and cost, evaluating faculty, and responding to students’ concerns.

Why did you leave a successful career for teaching?

When I received the award, I thanked the students because without them my sense of self and leaving a legacy would not have been possible.

You also talked about how the CIA has graduated 38,000 students, including 10,000 women, but where are all those women today?

It’s a complex issue. If you have primarily white males teaching in culinary education, females do not see themselves, or Asians do not see themselves, or African-Americans. And the likelihood of feeling good about how they fit into this industry isn’t great. It can also be a life-work balance. My challenge to the industry is how do we create a work balance so we’re able to have productive, happy employees from a diverse perspective?

What can female chefs and restaurateurs do?

Come to teaching. That’s my rallying call. It’s up to us to mentor the next generation. Women have to have confidence. If you’re in a situation where you are not seeing people like you, where does your confidence come in? How do you begin to think: I can work the hot line, I can lead this line, I can lead this kitchen, I can own this restaurant? It’s up to us to help them and train them.

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