The Pocket Green Guide

My sabbatical in 2008 was dedicated to doing research in Wales to look at how to gauge where the tourism industry was on sustainability practices and then guide them to be as sustainable as possible.  During that time I had the pleasure of reading hundreds of articles, books, websites, etc., on the topic of sustainability.  I did run across a condense pocket guide produced by World Wildlife Fund in Wales to educate people on being more sustainable.  The guide is a great resource for students and faculty interested in sustainability in hospitality. 

It can be downloaded at:
http://www.greenguide.co.uk/files/PGGWales2007.pdf

I Like Hell's Kitchen...Not!

There is a part of me that loves to watch Hell's Kitchen.  It reminds me of when I was a chef's apprentice under a European chef back in the 70's.  Now THAT was Hell's Kitchen!  I was yelled at daily and hit a time or two for being so stupid!  But since I was bound and determined to learn from my chef I took it all because there was no way I was going to leave that kitchen.  My unspoken mentality was "bring it on, bitch!"  I wanted to be a chef dammit and if that was the way of the chef then that was the way it was going to be.  I was going to take the bad with the good because my chef was a magician when it came to food; I wanted to learn how he made such amazing dishes from off the top of his head.  I imagine that many of you reading the blog today can attest to studying or apprenticing under such a chef.

BUT, that is NOT how it should be and the reason I do not like Hell's Kitchen anymore.  The first problem I have is that Hell's Kitchen is a made for tv chef's competition with Gordon Ramsay playing the role of ultimate asshole chef for the show.  Few people know Ramsay to be a very nice person in real life and doubt that they care.  What is troubling to me is that we all know far too many men and women in the white coat who are assholes for real and think that the role Ramsay is playing validates their bad behavior.  It does not and sadly perpetuates it

Worse still, is the way that the chefs talk to each other when they are in the red or blue kitchen.  They are not performing a role like Ramsay, they are behaving the way they think they need to behave to get food to the pass.  Take last night, both Nona and Russell were confrontational, both physically and verbally with members of their crew to get them to cook their dishes properly.  Russell even went chest to chest with one of his crew in front of the cameras.  THIS IS SENDING SUCH A BAD MESSAGE to those who are or one day dream of being a chef.  It may turn on those who are bullies and think that would be a great career.  It also must be a turn off to people like my wife who hates watching the show because she would not subject herself to that abuse. 

Finally, the cameras continue to roll after the battle that is waged in the kitchen.  Even in their downtime the chefs are shown to be petty and stupid.  And most if not all are chain smoking! 

So today I encourage all of you to pick any episode of Hell's Kitchen and show it to your class.  You can get them for free from Hulu.  Have them watch a show and then pick out behaviors of chefs that are exemplary and have them pick out behaviors that are verboten!  Then have them discuss how they would deal with those chefs who exhibit the verboten behaviors because you all know as well as I do that they are out there in kitchens and classrooms right now verbally if not physically abusing members of their crew.  In sum, the bad behavior of chefs must come to an end and we owe it to the profession to turn the tide in our classrooms and kitchens.

Finals Week

It has now come down to final exam week for the fall semester.  I do not know why, but I am always anxious at this time of year.  Perhaps it is because I was so anal about my grades when I was a student and would not settle for anything less than an A.  Perhaps it is because I have almost 400 grades to enter into the grading system this semester for the students taking the five classes I taught and am worried I will give one or more of them an incorrect final grade -- which then involves paperwork to correct it.  There may be more reasons for my anxiety that could be explained by Freud, Watson, or Jung but since our health care no longer covers counselling we will never know.

So to all of you, anxious or not, I hope you all had a successful quarter or semester.  I also hope you will join me in looking back upon your classes and use the necessary tools to diagnose whether or not the students got value for their tuition dollar.  It is not enough to just wrap up and move on to the next class of students; it is imperative that we look back and ask ourselves whether we did the best job possible so that our students learned all that they needed to learn from us to continue down the education path or did we let them down?  Were the exams fair?  Did we use the appropriate teaching methods to accomplish course objectives?  Were students allowed to stay in their comfort zone or did we press them to learn new and different things with fresh perspectives?  There are hundreds of other questions to be asked and answered but unless we attend to some of them we will not really know for sure whether teaching for learning has taken place under our watch.

No Line Out the Door

So far so good.  In one of my earliest blogs I bemoaned the fact that I dreaded the line of students who line up at my door at the end of each semester looking to lobby for individualized extra credit, take an assignment that was missed at the beginning of the semester, and all sorts of other concessions to improve their grade once they realize that the end is near and not happy about their final grade.  I then decided to do something to end the line and that was to add a policy in my syllabus that stated that students had one week following any assignment missed or not graded to their liking and approach me about it.  Once the week has passed there is no going back.

I put the policy in my spring 2010 syllabus for all the courses I taught that semester and had perhaps one or two students who wanted to try their luck and win special favors to improve their grade.  I simply referred them to the syllabus and that ended the conversation.  Besides it would be unethical of me to give special consideration to improve a grade to one or two students without offering to all students so had no problem enforcing the policy.

I am now in the middle of dead week and happy to report that no line has yet to have formed with even a single student in it outside my door to lobby for special favors. Those who have stopped by are doing so for happy reasons like saying good bye as December grads, thanking me for a good class, wishing me well over break and many other pleasantries.  But there are no students lobbying me for special consideration to change their grade.

I encourage you all to put this policy in your syllabus and let the semester wind down in a peaceful manner as mine is at Purdue and speeding to a blissful winter break.

Resource for Students

Many of us teach classes that require students to come up with a menu for one meal function or another.  Some are fortunate to have a library stocked with cookbooks for students to use when researching their menu.  Those that do not have a library can turn the students loose on the world wide web to find recipes -- which is good and bad news because students do not know if recipes they find online are tested or not (which can cost them the A they may desire).

The Pork Board has a good resource for students online when searching for recipes that have been tested.  The site is easy to navigate and has lots of interesting categories, especially what to do with leftovers.  Check it out and pass it along to students, they will thank you:  http://www.theotherwhitemeat.com/Recipes.aspx

Learning Communities Journal

Gregg W. Wentzell, Ph.D., Assistant to the University Director, Center for the Enhancement of Learning, Teaching, & University Assessment at Miami University has announced the second issue of the Learning Communities Journal is now available at http://www.muohio.edu/lcj/

Volume 2, number 1 (2010) of the Learning Communities Journal focuses on: "Exploring Opportunities for Research on Learning Communities."  Since FELC is its own learning community you might find this journal informative.

Both print and electronic subscriptions are available. An institutional site license gives your entire campus access to all issues and is a phenomenal value. The first issues (Volume 1) of both journals are also still available for purchase.  For information about subscribing, submitting manuscripts, or other inquiries, visit the Journal websites or contact Gregg Wentzell at wentzegw@muohio.edu.

The Green Future is Now at Cracker Barrel

I read todayin Smart Briefs that Cracker Barrel "has launched a test of electric-vehicle chargers at 24 of its Tennessee stores, part of a larger effort by ECOtality Inc. to install charging stations across the country. The chain's restaurants are typically located close to highway exits, making them ideal for travelers looking to charge up and quickly get back on the highway."

In case anyone is wondering, the green future is now.  Sustainable business practices are no longer something businesses are planning to do, THEY ARE DOING IT NOW and one has to wonder what we are doing to support the industry in response?  Especially since the foodservice industry has suddenly stopped dragging its archaic feet and embraced sustainability since they have ahve learned that they can SAVE MONEY without compromising CUSTOMER SERVICE QUALITY.

What does this have to do with culinary education?  Everything!  For starters, are sustainable / green initiatives being led by those who adminstrate your program?  Is the department chair showing leadership in this area by walking the tallk and pushing the faculty to do the same?  Are faculty pushing from the grass roots to do right by our students and equip them for the green movement?  Are students demanding it?

Cuz guess what!  Foodservice businesses are demanding more of our students.  The kid who can cook a steak to the right temperature and plate it properly is going to lose out to the one who can do that and tell the manager how to buy local, reduce engergy costs in the operation, prepare to serve the growing green demands of customers, and more.

To that end, the Department of Hospitality and Tourism Management will be launching a report card on sustainability initiatives for culinary arts programs after the first of the year so we will know where we are on the road to being green and preparing graduates to benefit employers in a likewise manner.  When it hits your mailbox please take the time to fill it out so that we can all work together to better prepare our students and move the industry forward.  In other words, simply teacing "farm to fork" is not going to get it done -- there is so much more to it than that and we need to act now.  We have a golden opportunity to  get ahead of the industry and show them the way to a sustanable future instead of the other way around, as is the case with Cracker Barrel and countless others.

Can You Spot Bad Teaching?

There was a great thread on the POD listserv that originated over the issue of students caught cheating on a midterm.  There is a video link as to how the instructor handled the situation.  After many people watched the video it became apparent that there was more wrong with the class than student cheating.  It really turned out to be a great case study on BAD TEACHING.

So view the video link below on your own or in a faculty meeting and see how many bad teaching practices the instructor reveals as he deals with student cheating.  There are at least 10 bad practices so give it a go and let me know how you did.  Of course, if guilty of some of the bad practices please feel free to stop it now.  View the instructors rant at the following link:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newsvideo/weirdnewsvideo/8140456/200-students-admit-cheating-after-professors-online-rant.html

Puzzlemaker -- Great Free Teaching Resource

When I was writing for Chef Educator Today, the magazine I conceptualized for culinary educators as a teaching resource well over 10 years ago, I often used puzzlemaker to develop teaching activities for readers in some of the issues.  I  have also used it in my class to introduce key terms for a lecture by simply creating the puzzle and giving one copy to each team in the class perhaps at the start or in the middle to change things up.  Once each team has a copy, they turn it over on my command and the first team to solve the puzzle gets bonus points, or cookies, or some treat.  They are all winners of this teaching technique because the words in the puzzle are covered in the lecture and appear on the next exam.

There are all kinds of puzzles available through puzzlemaker and can spice up a lecture and lab class.  Check it out at: http://puzzlemaker.discoveryeducation.com/

Student Blog -- Great Teaching Tool

Chef Thom England, CEC, at Ivy Tech Community College in Indianapolis, IN, shared a blog his students are doing in his garde mange class.  It was very cool to hear that his inspiration came out of an FELC session. The session Thom attended was on using technology and meeting the students where they are familiar which got Thom to thinking. So, instead of having the students write a paper for the class he has them do blog posts; the kids are more excited about that then writing papers. Thom also thinks it is neat because all the criteria they have is that they are to write about what they learned for the day. It has been great seeing that what they are writing about mirror my planned learning outcomes for the day.


Better still. the students have a facebook page set up for the class. They have taken turns uploading pictures from the class to the site. Interesting how this page has ignited some great discussions. One string started out when a student asked if a pizza was really a sandwich (was a quiz question that week). Twenty people chimed in on the discussion including ACF President Ty, who I didn't even know was following the page.

So check out an example of the blog at: http://gmivytech.blogspot.com/

Perhaps these two examples will inspire you as well!

Awesome Video Series

I wanted to share a collection of video case studies that were brought to my attetion by Cheryl L. Bielema, Ph.D., Retired, Instructional Development Specialist, University of Missouri-St. Louis.  The case studies are available to view at no cost and were created from a FIPSE grant called the MERLOT ELIXR Initiative.  The ELIXR offers a digital case story repository that hosts more than 70 discipline-specific multimedia stories. Digital stories for faculty development can provide real-life experiences of exemplary teaching strategies and the process of implementing them. These digital case stories can be used freely in faculty development programs and also accessed by individual instructors.

I have viewed many of the videos ranging from the First Day of Class to Assessment Rubrics and found them to be excellent.  If you are an administrator you could show these videos in faculty meetings and have a discussion to save time and money on faculty development without compromising effectiveness.

Check it out, you will be glad you did: http://elixr.merlot.org/

I Was Blown Away

Based on yesterday's blog post, you know that the students in the HR class wound up becoming engaged in the topic of unions by being turned into two Locals that were to negotiate with management (TA's and I) to not take the second exam.  As I wrote the blog post to share this engaging impromptu idea with FELC members yesterday I had no clue what awaited me in the classroom at 12:30.  I am so pleased to share what happened today in the hopes that it will inspire others to find opportunities to hook students on learning, too.  Although it will be next to impossible to share the details of what transpired in the class yesterday I can tell you that if you took similar risks you will reap tremendous rewards that happened in class!

At 12:30 I walked into class and there were 70 students dressed in business attire!  They had each elected a representative to deliver their presentation to management and negotiate their way out of the second exam.  Student Local 1 and Student Local 2 also knew that depending on their performance that one or both may take or be excused from the second exam (if that makes sense).  To make the simulation as real as possible I took a moment to pull the TA's into the hall to formulate our negotiation strategy for the management team just like I did as a union negotiator a long time ago at Xerox.  In essence, it did not matter what the union negotiators had to say -- we were going to do our best to shoot it down or refute it.  Hardball all the way, baby! 

As we got started, each Local was reminded that the syllabus was our union contract.  If they were going to win any concession from management it would have to be based on the syllabus policies, procedures, and so forth.  And away we went.

Student Workers Local 1 was up first.  One of the students had baked muffins for me and the rest of management (to butter us up apparently).  I told them I was diabetic and shocked they would want to see me sick.  Of course, I am not diabetic -- it was just a tactic I would have used back in the day to find any way to get my opponent back on their heels and gain an advantage in the negotiations.  It worked but then the negotiator on their side started to make the case for not taking the exam.  As it turned out, all the points they made to not take exam 2 could be tied back to negotiation principles and strategies (that I will reveal to them tomorrow).  We grilled them at every turn but they stood behind their negotiator -- solidarity, n'est pas?  Another key union concept.

Next up was Student Workers Local 2.  The management team was now warmed up and started to get on the case of the second negotiator.  He was dressed to the nine's and smooth but not smooth enough.  He got grilled, too, but we put his points for not taking the exam on the board opposite those of Local 1.  The team even had prepared a power point presentation to make its points for not taking the exam.  When points were made the rest of the students showed their support by cheering and expressing their unity.

You have no idea how impressed I was with my students.

We then went out to caucus, which meant sitting out in the sun and deliberating our response.  I let the TA's have as much say in what we would decide to do as possible -- they are managers in training and development in our program afterall (another win from this impromptu idea).  We spent about 12-15 minutes deliberating and headed back to class.

What we found when we walked in the door was not students looking to the door for an answer from us on the exam.  Instead, we found the student negotiator for Local 2 reviewing the worksheet that was due that day in class with the rest of the students who were shouting out their answers as he read teh questions and grading as they went.  I was blown away by this show of self-directed learning to say the least.

Unfortunately there was no time to walk through the good news and not so good news about the presentation that was made so they will know better if ever in a similar situation at a union hotel or any business establishment when negotiations are involved, especially that "kissing ass" can backfire.  Once I walk them through what they did they will get our decision because they have to wait until class tomorrow to find out.  I will not share that now on this post in case any of my awesome students are following the blog.  In the meantime, what do you think my answer should be?!

If wanting to quiz me more on the details that cannot be shared on this blog post give me a call at 765-484-6218 or send queries to mlalopa@fooded.org

Look for Ways to Engage Students

So we are in the human resource management class on Monday.  I had just finished the second module on unions so the kids will have some kind of clue on managing in that environment.  We had also reviewed a copy of a contract I had so they could see how wages, hours, and conditions of employment are spelled out in great detail, not to mention the responsibilities of management.

We then went through the worksheet that is assigned them for each chapter.  I explained this in an earlier post; essentially the kids trade worksheets and we go over and grade them and I have commentary on key aspects of the assignment.  The kids looked like zombies going through the grading and commentary no matter how excited I was about the topic of unions.

We had about 20 minutes left in class and a student raised her hand to ask a question about the second exam the class is take over 8 chapters of worksheets.  She said that she heard that the last class did not have to take the second exam and wondering if this class could be excused from taking it, too.  And THAT WAS WHEN THE OPPORTUNITY TO LEARN ABOUT UNIONS PRESENTED ITSELF TO ME.

I told the left hand side of the class (35 kids) that they are Student Workers Local 1 and the other side that are Student Workers Local 2.  They are to identify their union representative and formulate an appeal to management (the TA's and me) to not have to take the exam this coming Monday.  I gave them the remainder of the class to "organize themselves" to make their appeal to management today.  And that was when the zombies came to life and became engaged in the learning on unions because it was tangible and had a real consequence. 

I can also assure you that the kids will learn that they have taken a tiger by the tail because I was a union official and negotiator at Xerox corporation for four years and will create a real life situation.  I look forward to sharing with you the results of today. 

National Campaign for Sustainable Agriculture

Today is website Monday!

Perhaps some of you reading the blog are doing all you can to support local farmers.  Thank goodness more chains than Chipotle are looking to obtain protein and produce from truly local farms.  And as Walmart starts to squeeze its distribution system muscles to incorporate more local produce into its super stores the better it will be for those who are returning to the land. 

Indeed they are doing just that in Ireland now.  Since the Irish economy has tanked due to global competition the government has put place a training program to teach people to return to fertile soils and engage in sustainable farming. It may very well save the economy making it more sustainable since everyone has to eat!  There is a very LARGE waiting list to get into the program.

To that end, I wanted to share the website for the National Campaign for Sustainable Agriculture.  It is a nationwide partnership of diverse individuals and organizations cultivating grassroots efforts to engage in policy development processes that result in food and agricultural systems and rural communities that are healthy, environmentally sound, profitable, humane, and just.  Check out the website and/or share it with students at: http://sustainableagriculture.net/our-work/

Slideshare -- Great Resource for Educators

So, I am mucking about (I love my UK friends) on google today to gather information to update my presentation on ethics for my introduction to hospitality and tourism course with 205 students in two weeks.  I type "business ethics presentations" into google and lots of powerpoint presentations show up that one can use without permission (as long as cite source) and those that would like you to get permission.

Then I come across a gold mine resource for educators, known as http://www.slideshare.net/ and looks like the YouTube of powerpoints.  So I muck about at Slideshare website and find some amazing resources for educators such as this powerpoint that was uploaded on making great presentations, which is actually pretty darn good if you want to know if your powerpoint presentations stink:
http://www.slideshare.net/mrcoryjim/most-presentations-stink-connect4-ep

So if you have some time today check it out.  It may be a way for you to share your work with others or learn a thing or two to help you make a presentation of your own.  Good stuff!

Week 10 -- "The Look"

It is week 10 of the semester.  Many are starting to get that "look."  I see it in the classrooms, I see it in the hallways, and I see it when I look in the mirror.  We have been through 10 weeks of the semester and all it brings with it as I mentioned in my Month from Hell blog post last week.  I think the human brain can only take so much; it is not built for a constant onslaught of challenges, opportunities, problems, riddles, meetings, consultations, career advice and the rest that come with teaching. 

Teaching is completely draining and I LOVE WHAT I DO!  I cannot imagine how those who do not like what we do endure it on a day to day basis unless coping through emotional detachment.  And that is why I am seeing "the look."  The one that is ready for the semester to be over even thought there are 5 weeks remaining!   In the back of my head I can swear I hear that little train, "I think I can, I think I can!"

It is times like these that I remember a comment made by a peer of mine when we were working on our doctorate and so overwhelmed with what needed to be done to earn our Ph.D.  He said he sometimes looks out the window and watches the ground crew cutting the grass and finds he is envious.  Mainly because the person cutting the grass can only cut so much grass in a day and when the clock strikes 5, the day is done and the mower and the grass are left to wait until his return the next day.  He admired that greatly.  It does not work that way for a teacher as you all know.  And I am referring to GOOD TEACHERS.  Those who have high expectations of themselves and their students and an uncompromising adherence to standards and refuse to "phone it in."  Those are the ones who know "the look."

So to those of you who are out there right now and know the "look" I am talking about believe you me you have my deepest respect; you are what FELC is all about and remember you are not alone -- you have the rest of us in the learning community to talk to when feeling like giving in a little to the temptation of doing just a little bit less.  Don't do it.  Talk to someone in the learning community who understands your plight and can help re-energize you and your ambitious agenda to advance the foodservice industry one student and one class at a time.  God forbid you give in to the dark side and become that slacker(s) we all have in our academic units that we all know exists but remain in the job all the same no matter how much head scratching we do.  It is not worth it, all you get is pattern baldness.  So teach hard my brothers and sisters -- we got your back!

Community Service Option

As you know, I was attending a gathering at CIA in Hyde Park focused on the matter of community service.  I was particularly captivated by one of the day's presenters, Ms. Maureen Roche, with the Campus Kitchens Project.  As stated on its website:

The Campus Kitchens Project is an emerging leader in community service for students and resourceful anti-hunger programs for communities around the country.  What we do is kind of a no-brainer. We know there are people in every community who need nourishing meals. And, we know that every college campus has unserved food in its dining halls and brilliant students in its classrooms. So we put them all together.

We empower thousands of students each year to recycle food from their cafeterias, turn these donations into nourishing meals, and deliver those meals to those who need it most. Then, we open up that on-campus kitchen space to teach culinary skills to unemployed men and women, who in turn teach the college students a thing or two about poverty, stereotypes, and what it takes to make it these days.  So far, we're at 25 schools around the country: big schools and small schools; rural and urban; colleges and high schools (well, one high school).


Hence, the mission of The Campus Kitchens Project is to use service as a tool to:


• Strengthen Bodies by using existing resources to meet hunger and nutritional needs in our community;

• Empower Minds by providing leadership and service learning opportunities to students, and    
 educational benefits to adults, seniors, children, and families in need; and

• Build Communities by fostering a new generation of community-minded adults through resourceful
 and mutually beneficial partnerships among students, social service agencies, businesses and
 schools.

To learn more about how your campus could be involved in this most worthwhile project and teach community service principles and practices to students visit:  http://www.campuskitchens.org/national/
You will find a great short promotional video on the home page and lots of information on how to launch a program of your own perhaps!

Hell of a Month

The picture above says it all when it comes to the month of October in the fall semester every year.  Are you going through what I have been through this past month and perhaps the reason Halloween is a fitting end to an always scary month that is October?  It seems as though the semester gets off to a slow start in August, then kind of gathers speed in September and then ALL HELL BREAKS LOOSE in October!  Students have more problems in this month, there are more meetings in this month, there are recruiters coming to campus to get December grads, we are doing community service projects through class and our dozens of student associations, and guest lecturers, and grad students trying to decide upon a research project (I remember that nightmare long ago), and on and on and on..........

Don't get me wrong, I love the heat of the battle but it seems as though there is no rest for the wicked right through to Halloween despite my best efforts to do so.  But this October it was different.  I took a train ride this morning from Grand Central Station to Poughkeepsie which runs on the east side of the Hudson fall on a sunny day during peak fall colors!  It was gorgeous train ride and my troubles soon melted away on my way to making my first visit to the Hyde Park campus of the Culinary Institute of America.  And after spending a day at the CIA in sessions, touring the campus, talking with faculty and adminstrators, and observing students I understand now why they call it Hogwarts on the Hudson  -- I was sure I was going to run into Chef Potter carrying a magic whisk around the next corner!

I am hoping FELC members and blog followers will get a clean break from the craziness that seems to happen in October because the end now draws near.  Most will now start looking forward to Thanksgiving, which means there are but 3 weeks left after that holiday; the meetings will be fewer and farther between, the students will see the finish line and catch a second wind to carry them the rest of the way, and more!  So grab a pumpkin donut and pour yourself your favorite cider recipe and welcome the end of the month and ultimately another end to a productive fall semester.

Teaching Journals

I know that many of us are like a pinball going from direction to another as we move through our day to educate our students because it is never a simple matter of showing up to teach our assigned classes.  There is much, much more to it when you consider those who directly or indirectly support what we are tying to do in the classroom, kitchen, or field with the students.  To assist you in that process it is worth taking some time to read research on teaching for learning.  There are hundreds and hundreds of journals out there that you can peruse to get ideas to teach a new class, solve an ongoing problem in the classroom on student performance, and more.

To get you started, Virginia Tech's Center for Instructional Development and Education Research has a website you can go to and access all kinds of education journals; many of which have nothing to do with culinary arts and education but EVERYTHING to do with teaching for learning. I am an advocate of looking outside our discipline to get fresh ideas and perhaps you are doing the same.  To see the list of journals and catch up on what others are doing to provide quality education to their students check out: http://www.cideronline.org/jihe/view1.cfm.  You may not be able to view all of them but if you have a library the librarian should be able to get you articles from those who may subscribe.

Have a great week!

Guest Speaker via Skype

Some time ago I clued you in to a book by Will Tuttle, entitled, "The World Peace Diet: Eating for Spritual Health and Social Harmony."  I am using the book for a first year honors class in our new college of Health and Human Sciences.  The book is provocative and an eye opening read about how our dominat meat-based diets are seriously ruining our health -- which is a fact that few want to wrap their mind around and do anything about because it requires one to become enlightened, which is just too much work.

Anyways, the kids get pretty agitated and enthusiastic about the book when we are discussing it in class.  With questions such as "What was he thinking?" or "Why would he think that?" and so forth.  So one day I told them, "Hey let us ask the author what he thinks and why he thinks it and adress some of our criticisms and concerns?"  They said, "We can do that?"  Yikes, kids, of course we can so  I contacted the author -- who lives in an RV and travels the country giving lectures about the subject matter in his book and his life as a vegan and he was more than happy to guest lecture.  By the way, he has a very reasonable fee structure and encourage you to have him speak at your campus like I am arranging for him to do to our college.

Well today was the day.  The author spoke to the class via skype that was set up by our IT kids who know more about this technology than I ever will.  Will talked about chapter 7 -- The Dominationof the Feminine -- and what he meant by what he wrote. He then answered questions that we had submitted in writing ahead of time.

The class was an awesome experience for all concerned because we could see and hear the person who wrote the book we have been discussing in class.  It turns out that the person that students pictured or heard in their head while reading the chapers was not some crazy nutcase and in truth a healthy looking, vibrant, intellient man who wants to share his perspective on Veganism with the students.  A total eye opener for the kids.  We will be sending him a package of goodies to say thank you.

So I guess the message for today is think outside the box and try to integrate the marvels of technology in your classroom even if you -- like me -- have no clue how it works; somebody knows how to work it or it would not be in existence.  The two IT staffers know about this stuff and made my honors class today a very special experience with our author talking to our class and seeing the students from his RV outside of St. Louis, MO.

Passing of a Student

Yesterday morning I was reading the local paper and learned of a Purdue student who had a horrible motorcylce accident and passed away on a bridge near campus.  It was sad to read.  Then last night one of my TA's e-mailed me to inform me that the student who died was a student in our department.  That was when the motorcylce accident I had read about in the morning instantly became an even greater tragedy.

Ethan Donohue was a student of mine.  He was a Teaching Assistant in my Human Resource class last spring.  He was a Teaching Assistant this fall in my large intrroductory class of 200 kids.  Not many students get to be a Teaching Assistant for me which means Ethan was a GREAT KID. 

He had a quiet confidence about him that made him a special and talented kid.  We often had conversations abuot his role as TA and life in general.  He wanted to be the best he could be and respected him for that.  Which is why he was a TA.

He was to be in his other classes today.  His chair will be empty.  He probably had plans to meet with others to study for class, grade papers for my class, have a meal with friends, and so much more.  Those plans will have to be changed, too.  The Dean of Students will offer grief counselling for students who had class with Ethan or knew him personally.  The counselling will not bring him back to us.  Tomorrow in the large lecture one of the other TA's has requested time at the end of class to have a moment of silence for Ethan to reflect on his loss and count our blessings.  We will attend his funeral so the family knows we thought well of Ethan.

Perhaps you or others you know have enountered the serious illness or passing of a student.  When all is said and done, was that student treated in a fair and just manner so there are no regrets that something more could have been done?  I was pretty tough on Ethan as a TA on some occasions -- like I am on all those who TA for me as they are held to a pretty high standard given the important role they are playing in the education of their peers in support of what I am trying to accomplish in class -- and would not have gone back to change that even though he has met with an untimely passing at the tender age of 20.  I would not go back because it was the right thing to do at the time.

So in memory of Ethan Donhue, a great kid who passed away while out riding motorcyles with friends on a beautiful Midwestern fall day, do right by your students.  You just never know what lies ahead for them -- or YOU.

Not Far From the Tree

You may or may not know it but I am a huge proponent of Service Learning whether the emphasis be placed on the service component (community service), service-learning component (connecting classroom to a community projects) or learning component (internships).  That is why I wanted to share an opportunity educators could seize upon to do service to the community through an organization called, "Not Far From the Tree."

As the website indicates under the About tab, the "core of our programming is our residential fruit-picking program, where we pick fruit from trees that would otherwise go to waste. We help fruit tree owners make use of the abundance of fruit that their trees offer by dispatching teams of volunteers to harvest it for them. One third goes to the fruit tree owners, another third goes to the volunteers for their labour, and the final third is distributed (by bicycle or cart) to community organizations in the neighbourhood who can make good use of the fresh fruit.

You can check it out for yourself at: http://www.notfarfromthetree.org/about.  If you have some familiarity with this organization or would consider volunteering let me know and I will share with our learning community on the blog.  In the meantime find more ways for foodservice faculty and students to "Sign Up, Show Up, and Serve!"

Crop Mob Concept to Help Local Farmers

Being old -- and wise -- has its advantages.  One advantage was the recent heads up through my recent AARP newsletter about an idea that started in 2008 in North Carolina when some farmers met and decided to support one another on each other's farms.  Most provided their time, talents, and expertise to help out a farmer in exhange for a hearty lunch.  The idea has since sprouted through today's social networks and there are apparently some 40 "crop mobs"  across the country.  The intent and purpose of the crop mobs appears to depend on the needs of the farmer.  Check it out at: http://www.cropmob.org/

The site has a "blogroll" which I found quite interesting and a gallery of photos of those who have volunteered in the past.  There is also a tab labelled "past mobs" that you can click on and check out but have to have a Facebook account to get the information.  I even found a great recipe for cricket bread!

This could be an excellent way for foodservice educators to get students out to a local farm to see where their fruit and vegetables come from and play a small part in production.  Who knows, perhaps your program could adopt a farm and send kids out on service learning or community service projects on a regular basis. 

Wall Street Journal Resource for Educators

If not a CHRIE member you missed this information piece from Margarita Martin who sent a message of concern that those in the Department of Hotel & Restaurant Management in our universities are unaware of the Journal-In-Education program. It's not just for the College of Business anymore! Nor is The Wall Street Journal just for those looking for careers in finance and business.

There is indeed a link for Hotel/Restaurant/Travel Management Weekly Review. This review, written by professors through out the country, gives you three articles that appeared in The Wall Street Journal that week, specific to the Hospitality Industry. Included in these e-mails is a summary for each of the three articles, links to the articles and class discussion questions are all part of the weekly e-mail.

Of course, there is a student rate for the journal itself, which I used to have my students subscribe to and read when teaching the Management class here in my department.  Sign up is possible by clicking on:: http://www.profesorjournal.com/

In the meantime check out the link to Weekly Review.  It is a good free online source for you to keep up with news in our industry or assign to students at:

http://www.profjournal.com/mail/wrkfiles/Hotel%20Restaurant%20Travel%20Management201039.html

If interested in learning more about how the Wall Street Journal (a devoted daily reader myself for years) please contact Margarita Martin, Educational Sales Consultant, margarita.rodriguez-martin@dowjones.com or call  813-334-4627

You Can Do It!

Due to the questions I have been getting via e-mail, I will accept proposals for FELC Summit into this weekend.  I know many of you are busy so if need an extra day or two we can accommodate the extension. If for some reason you need extra time beyone that please e-mail me directly at mlalopa@fooded.org especially non-refereed submissions because those do not need to be sent out for a blind review so more flexibility on acceptance.  We have had a variety of proposals submitted up to this point to make for a very educational second day of the Summit and looking forward to more.  So find the time to prepare and submit your proposal.  You can do it!

Visualization Toolkit for Educators

I have glanced at today's online resource a couple of times.  I looked at it today for the third time and finally got it.  I kept seeing periodic table and not really comprehended the excellence of this resource.  There is plenty of evidence that many students will not see the picture you are trying to paint with words so best to show them the picture you are explaining to increase the probability of all students in class comprehending the lesson of the day.  In fact, there are students who do not get a visual image in their head because they do not have that abillity according to a teaching workshop I once attended.

So check out this source below.  It has tons of different ways in which educators can formulate a graphic depiction of an abstract concept students need to learn, especially for those concrete learners we seem to have plenty of in our classrooms and laboratories.  Click around on the table and some pretty cool visuals will pop up that my may be able to use in your teaching:
 http://www.visual-literacy.org/periodic_table/periodic_table.html#

Sustainability Report Card

My apologies for not posting until today.  We are in the midst of our annual career fair and we handle it ourselves through a student association.  Our students have a board with officers responsible for all aspects of the event.  They produced the promotional materials, send them out to recruiters and every other detail that is required to have a senior and recruiter student reception on Monday and a keynote, luncheon and career fair on Tuesday. Faculty and staff support their efforts by finding classes for the recruiters, managers, or staff or visiting companies to speak in while they are on campus. There is quite alot of buzz right now so kind of energizing, especially when our alums are coming back to recruit current students making it a little like homecoming.

But that is not what I wanted to turn you on to today.  Have you seen the sustainability report card?  Perhaps your school is filling out the annual survey on your sustainability efforts and worth looking at how you performed or even compare to competitors that are also doing the survey.

In the about us tab, the effort is described as:
"GreenReportCard.org is the first interactive website to provide in-depth sustainability profiles for hundreds of colleges in all 50 U.S. states and in Canada. Information is based on extensive research conducted for the College Sustainability Report Card."

I was pleased to learn that Purdue earned a B- against the criteria.  So if interested in the results of your school or wanting to learn more about the criteria check out the following website as it is most informative:
http://www.greenreportcard.org/

Let Them Shine

I may have shared in other blog posts that I use undergraduate upperclass men and women as TA's in all my classes.  I currently have 18 students helping me administer three classes, one of which has 200 kids.  The students chosen to be TA have all done an exceptional job in the class they are to TA or not considered for this important job.

In my HR class I have worksheets that I developed for each of the 16 chapters in the book.  Today we covered the recruitment chapter.  I had a class prior to my HR class which was going to make me late so asked the TA's to do what I do on worksheet days which is go from student to student and listen to the answer given for each of the questions to validate if right or wrong. 

I indeed was late and showed up at about the halfway point in worksheet review and instead of take over, I sat in the back of the room to observe my TA's handling this assignment.  Guess what, they did a great job making sure the answers matched my key and cleared up any confusion during the review and grading process.  When they were done I went to the front of the room and had the class clap in appreciation for the fine job the TA's did as they were collecting the worksheets because they shined when called upon to do so.  I then elaborated on some of the questions on the worksheet, especially those that I know are going to be on the first exam -- and told them so cuz I do not play "hot and cold" or "hide and seek" when it comes to being honest with students as to what is going to be on the exam. 

So the message today is, let them shine.  I find that when I have high expectations of students and give them a chance to deliver they usally do -- and when they do not -- they learn the most from me about their ability as a student and future leader in our industry.

Internships

Like many of you, our department requires 400 hours of internship as part of the degree process.  We have clear expectations of those who take our students in as interns including a living wage, job rotation, and periodic review.  Those who cannot meet that basic test do not get our students.

The one thing we require our students to do -- on top of representing themselves, our department and university in a professional manner -- is to write a detailed report on the mechanics of the internship and reflect on their internship experience from beginning to end.  We then set up debrief sesssions with groups of students and a faculty member at the beginning of the fall semester to discuss the experience after we have read their 20+ page internship report.  Reading the reports and engaging in the debrief session is enlightening indeed.

Here is one of the key things I learn from reading the reports based on the perspective of students doing  summer interns.  There are far too many people who have zero clue as to how to manage a hospitality business and we wonder why our industry gets looked down upon as a joke alternative to a "real job!"

And I am talking independent and major chains.  The stories we hear based on clueless apathetic recruiters who are unclear as to  when and where to start the internship, the utter lack of training, bad training, no job descriptions, working with those who hate their jobs, abandonment and not empowerment, sexual harassment and on and on are all things that student interns face.  It makes me wonder what the _____ these managers can be thinking?  First of all, treating interns like shit means they are going to work for a competitor.  Second of all, treating interns like shit means they will shop with a competitor.  Duh!!!!!

But far too many are oblivious to this reality and wonder why their business continues to struggle in good times and bad.  The students cannot wait to share these stories with others when they get back to campus and those companies wonder why they do not get the best recruits.  Duh!!!!

To be fair, there are those independents and major chains that do a stellar job treating interns with respect and dignity and providing an educational experience working for them for a summer.  Those are the companies that the students talk about when they get back to campus to share the good news spreading positive WOM and I am happy to share, too.

So for all those companies out there that treat interns like shit, you shall reap what you sow, and deservedly so because you are a poor representative of an honorable, noble, and exciting profession and should suffer the consequences.  You can also bet your bottom dollar that I will not speak bad about you to students but when they ask what I think of hotel company A, or contract foodservice company B, or restaurant chain C that I know has treated interns like shit my response will be "have you ever thought of working for hotel D?" knowing that they have treated our interns very well indeed.

Organic Consumers Association

It is website Monday.  I wanted to share the link to the Organic Consumers Association (OCA) that is an online grassroots organization campaigning for health, justice, and sustainability, and focusing on the crucial issues of food safety, industrial agriculture and sustainability and  the crucial issues of food safety, industrial agriculture, genetic engineering, children's health, corporate accountability, fair-trade, environmental sustainability, and other key topics.

It is the only organization in the Unitesd States focused exclusively on promoting the views and interests of the nation's estimated fifty million organic and socially responsive consumers, and represents the intesests of more than 850,000 members, subscribers, and volunteers, including several thousand businesses in natural foods and organic marketplace.

The website has an extensive amount of information and a great resource for your personal knowledge or that of students working on local food projects in your classes.  There is a a great video on engineered crops on the home page that is worth the 3 minute run time:
http://www.organicconsumers.org/

Smart Seafood Guide

Due to Labor Day and the new realities of being a part-time administrator as Associate Department Head in my department, I find that I owe everyone a website of interest.  The website I would like to offer up may be helpful on a purchasing class or a food module on principles class, etc.

Food & Water Watch (http://www.foodandwaterwatch.org/) analyzed over 100 different fish and shellfish to create the only guide assessing not only the human health and environmental impacts of eating certain seafood, but also the socio-economic impacts on coastal and fishing communities.  They then created this purchasing pocket guide for free to help consumers make wise food purchases when it comes to seafood.  Just download and carry with or put online for students (save paper) by visiting: http://documents.foodandwaterwatch.org/SeafoodCard2010.pdf

I reviewed the document and found it to be a most useful guide for seafood purchasing.  Hope you agree!  In case interested, the image above is a shout out to our seafood producers and those who teach it along the gulf.  Show your love and purchase some for yourself or your lab!

Pet Peeve

We are now into our third week of the semester at Purdue.  All my classes are up on running to establish the learning culture that is different in each class.  The HR class is a pretty routine class with video case studies, worksheets, exams, and project.  The sales class is completely different with students taking ownership of the hands-on sales requirement that is a big part of the class.

Then there is the introductory class that meets once a week for the semester and the reason for today's pet peeve rant.

I had two students show up today wanting to get into the class on the third week!  It makes me crazy!  Even though the class has 200 kids in it there is alot we do to get that class off the ground because it is much more than a lecture format.  For instance, there are 12 upperclassmen who serve as TA's for that class to mentor: a) incoming freshmen, b)those who are doing a change of degree from one program across campus to ours, and c)  those who want to check out the major to see if want to change later.  It takes a great deal of work to break the class up into smaller sections that are then assigned TA's.  We also orient students as to what is expected of them in the class and how to succeed, and form the partnership between them and TA's.  We also had an assignment today to prepare kids to succeed in their careers and future assigments. And so much more...

And then two kids meet me at the start of class and want to be signed in oblivious to what has transpired in the first two classes -- regardless of the policy that makes it clear that students can join in the first two weeks at the latest or wait til next year.  I think what angers me most is that students are reducing the classes they have to take to boxes that have to be ticked like some damn scavenger hunt on the way to get a degree.  And that they are imposing a great inconvenience on those professors they are now lobbying to let them into class late.  It makes me crazy!

Am I wrong?  Anyone out there thinking I should kindler and gentler and let kids enter at this point in time?  Or do you concur?

My New Animal Welfare Hero -- Temple Grandin

Yikes, how come I never heard of Temple Grandin whose documentary just won an Emmy.  I was listening to an interview with her this morning on NPR and while she was talking she was explaining the fears that animals have and how better treatment can produce a more humane, less stressful march to slaughter.  And how such humane treatment will produce cost savings for slaughterhouses/packers.  She talked at length of her fight since the 70's to educate producers, packers, and consumers on this subject and cannot wait to purchase and view her documentary.

Over the years she has developed a scorecard that can be used to indicate how well animals are being managed prior to slaughter.  I was really intrigued by this scoring system and found it on the American Meat Institute's website.  Please check it out or share with students because it may be a great way to teach humane treatment of the animals we ultimately serve in our restaurants. 

Check out her "Animal Welfare Audits for Cattle, Pigs, and Chickens that use the HACCP Principles of Critical Control Points with Animal Based Outcome Measures" at the following URL:
http://www.grandin.com/welfare.audit.using.haccp.html

Also check out Animal Meat Institute at: http://www.meatami.com/

Sustainable Agriculture and Education

Today is website Monday.  I wanted to share the website for Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) since so many of us are moving in the direction of teaching local, sustainable, seasonal, flavorful, thoughtful food sourcing and ultimately serving in foodservice outlets, no matter if they are a street cart or resort hotel.

To meet this new reality we have partnered with the Agriculture department to create a student garden at Purdue. They will teach us how to grow the greatest food and we will teach them how to turn that harvest into the greatest meals.  We have a student callout today now that we have cleared the land Purdue gave us and planted some tomatoes, peppers, beans, and eggplant to get the ball rolling.
One of the resources available to us and others is the Sustainable Agiculture and Education website establihed in 1988 to help advance farming systems that are profitable, environmentally sound, and good for communities through a nationwide research and education grants program.  I found the tabs for project reports and events very useful.  For example, I simply typed in the word "tomato" to search in the project reports tab and a bunch of great reports on that fruit came up to read and review.  Spend some time clicking around or share with students by visiting: http://www.sare.org/

Desire to Teach

The following question was posted on the POD listserv, ""I am interested in a tool to assess a person's "desire to teach." I am looking for a tool to give pharmacy preceptors to assess their desire to teach and precept students/residents."

The following response came from Rebecca Clemente, Department of Education, Director, Center for Teaching and Learning, at North Central College, Naperville, IL.

In teacher education we interpret the "desire to teach" as having the appropriate dispositions to teach. In teacher education we are required to evaluate these and find ways to develop these in our students.

Here are some resources (in and out of teacher education) that may allow the faculty member to think through what is valued in your university's cultural context and specifically to teaching the pharmacy curriculum.

When we hire in teacher education part of the day is set aside so that the candidate teaches a lesson that can be observed by department faculty and students (we use a rubric to capture our impressions of this teaching).

Rebecca, then including the following links.  I reviewed them and they are a great read.  So see what you think and let me know your thoughts if you like.

Determining Dispositions to Teach: A Hiring Strategy
http://www.naesp.org/resources/2/Principal/2006/S-Op51.pdf

National Network for the Study of Educator Dispositions
http://coehs.nku.edu/educatordispositions/resources.php

Academics' Educational Beliefs and Teaching Practices
http://www4.gu.edu.au:8080/adt-root/public/adt-QGU20030228.152452/

Validating teaching competencies for faculty members in higher education: A national study using the Delphi method
http://www.springerlink.com/content/k63p61p545547527/

Day 3 of New Semester

Today is the third day of the new semester.  I am tired and I do not know why.  Perhaps it was the energy I expended in my small honors class or case study we did in human resource management.  Perhaps it is the let down from the adrenaline rush of starting the new semester and now getting into the swing of things.  Whatever the reason, I am tired.

It is also sobering to find out where the students are at in their life?  I asked in my honors class who has read The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, which I read (and loved) during vacation.  I got back blank stares.  Not only had they not read it they did not know what the hell I was talking about.  I told them the story of the three novels and how popular they are and the sad passing of the author before the books hit it big.  That did not move the needle on the "I am now more interested in perhaps reading that book" meter.  Pressing them a bit further, it turns out that they do not really read books....or magazines....or newspapers.  Indeed the two books they will read and then write reflection papers in my honors class might be the only two books they will read -- not including text books -- this year!

What am I trying to say?  The world I live in at 55 years old is not even remotely close to the one that the 18, 19, 20, or 21 year-old kid is living in.  I love to read books and read lots of them.  They do not since information has always been at the finger tips to type away on the keyboard and not turn a page.  It means I am always going to have to do all I can to reach each new class of students so I can connect the students to the learning.  No doubt the basic things we are teaching them in culinary arts and hospitality will not change all that much but the way in which I perform teaching for learning has to constantly change and the reason we need our learning community to help each other make the transition.

I hope your new semester or term is going well.  If it is or is not please share by responding to this post or sending me a short story that I can post in response to today's blog post.

Do You Teach the Spirit of Hospitality?!

How many of you out there feel like a pinball?  I am teaching 5 classes this fall on top of being the associate department head and the first week always feels like getting the spruce goose off the ground, if there are those of you old enough to remember that event of long ago.  Make no mistake, however, as I am not complaining.  I love it!  I love teaching and I love the students!  They are my raison d'etre!

The one thing I have learned is that first impressions mean alot in teaching.  There is research that I read long ago that indicated the impresssion student's form of a professor in the first 10 minutes of the first class will be a lasting one and not likely to change.  So I enter each first class with high energy, enthusiasm and a profound interest in what I am going to be teaching the students and commitment to their learning.

Take today for example.  One of the ways I do energize students on the first day is in my introductory class with 200 students.  I teach them the words to the fight song by singing it.  I think school spirit and the spirit of hospitality are in the same family so I take on the demeanor of a southern Baptist preacher and get kids to stand up in class and sing the fight song like there is no tomorrow!  I start by yelling, "Do I feel school spirit moving in the room this morning?!  Some tentatively say back, "Yes!"  I then yell louder, "I said, do I feel school spirit moving in the classroom this bright sunny morning!"  The majority of students are now on board, yelling back "Yes, you do!"  I then ask for an "Amen!"  The kids yell back, "Amen!"  Then we put the words to the fight song on the screen and start singing.  You should see those 200 kids yelling out the fight song at that time.  The energy and the enthusiasm is awesome!  And that is how they leave the first day of my introductory hospitality and tourism class with 200 kids in it.  Think they are excited about our next class as a result? 

So talk to me, my brothers and sisters!  What are you doing to get your students jacked up to learn?!  Let me know, or send a video clip, to share with those in our learning community.

Now, let me have an Amen!!!!

Teaching Journals of Interest

As promised, Monday's blog post will be dedicated to websites of interest.  Because our cohort faculty learning community has to do with enhancing our teaching for learning toolkit I wanted to call your attention to a list of teaching journal that have been made available through the Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning at Kennesaw State University.  Check the links out at: http://www.kennesaw.edu/cetl/resources/journals.html

Some of the journals are available for free, some may be in your library, and some have articles that can be acquired through inter-library loans, etc.  Hopefully some of the tools and techniques being used by others to be better teachers may inspire FELC members to see whether or not they work in our discipline.  Then those efforts can be shared at the annual summit.

What a Week!

It is Friday night at 10:30.  This is the first free moment I have had this week to post a message to the blog.  Why is that?  Lazy?  Nothing to Say?  Hardly.  It is the week prior to the first week of classes for the fall semester and kinda like being in Hell's Kitchen.  Like me, I am sure many of you are in the same situation with the endless meetings, tweaking syllabi, getting set to teach a new course, registering students, orienting new faculty and staff, getting your own kids off to secondary or post secondary classes, and maybe even finding time to get a bite to eat or sleep.  Fortunately, once the classes are under way life is good again as into the swing of things.

Perhaps not having the time to post to the blog this week is not so bad afterall because many of you do not have the time to read it anyway.  I do promise to get back on track next week and continue posting from Monday thru Friday, with Monday dedicated to a website of interest to educators or administrators. 

I am also happy to report that we will be launching the new look of our website to be more user friendly and also help us attend to the needs of our members, especially when it comes to handling memberships, in the very near future.  We also will be announcing some major news concerning our online certification and the launch of educator workshops within and outside of the U.S.  We could not be more excited about the partnerships we are forming and cannot wait to share the good news.

So, try to get some rest this weekend even though many of you will be greeting your new crop of students this coming week or following Labor Day.  I wish you all nothing but the best of terms or semesters and will support your efforts all I can through the blog and other services we are and will soon be providing to culinary arts and hospitality educators!