In November, Smith joined a new but sea-
soned team of industry aces that is guiding
Centennial College into its next renaissance.
“I want to be a part of creating great pro-
grams in and around culinary that will get
students a good job in the community but
also a job that’s keeping up with the times,”
he says. In his newly created role, Smith will
focus on the academic leadership of the
culinary and baking programs, the academic
operations of a new Culinary Arts Centre
(see “Building Blocks,” p. 34) and oversee the
transition into the expanded facility in 2016.
Centennial’s hospitality programs have
previously been a relatively small part of
the college, but industry demand for more
robust education and more graduates with
culinary skills led to additional program-
ming and investments in new cooking and
bake labs approximately two years ago. The
results were tremendous and have spurred
further initiatives under the leadership of
Joe Baker, dean at the School of Hospitality,
Tourism & Culinary Arts, who assumed his
role in May. “Now that we’re into that culi-
nary world, we have aspirations to do new
program development and really expand
as we get a bigger facility,” he says. “My
mandate is to make sure industry recog-
nizes Centennial as a leader to recruit and
to hire workers, that we’re giving educa-
tional opportunities to students locally and
internationally and that we’re preparing the
workforce of the future.”
Of course, Baker cannot entirely under-
stand what the industry is going to look like
in the future, but he knows what’s impor-
tant. “A workforce that looks at things from
a different perspective is going to be essen-
tial,” he says. “Innovation and entrepreneur-
ialism are becoming the new essential skills,
almost as important as customer service
and food handling, so it’s focusing on those
skills and making sure they are embedded in
our curriculum.”
Before joining academia more than eight
years ago, Baker worked extensively in the
restaurant business at establishments such as
Richmond, B.C.-based The Keg Steakhouse
and Bar, and Toronto-based Oliver &
Bonacini Restaurants; he has assembled a
like-minded leadership team. Michelle Caine
also brings insider know-how to her role,
having worked in various hospitality and
FOODSERVICE AND HOSPITALITY JANUARY 2015 3332 FOODSERVICE AND HOSPITALITY JANUARY 2015 FOODSERVICEANDHOSPITALITY.COM FOODSERVICEANDHOSPITALITY.COM
LEADERSHIP
A dynamic new management team at Toronto’s Centennial College is shaking up the school’s culinary arts program
BY HELEN CATELLIER
STIRRING THE POT
Though he grew up in a dairy-farming and cheese-making community in rural Australia, James Smith had little zest for food outside his mainstay meat and potatoes. But after he travelled to Toronto at age 20, and tasted Vietnamese fish pho in the city’s vibrant Kensington Market, the chair of Culinary Programs and Operations at Toronto’s Centennial College fell in love with the idea of food. The exotic fla-vours and ingredients, opened up a new world to him and kick-started his 25-year journey as a chef, educator and school administrator.
management capacities at restaurant com-
panies, including Oakville, Ont.-based Tim
Hortons and Toronto-based Krispy Kreme
Doughnuts, before switching to educa-
tion. The chair of Centennial’s School of
Hospitality & Tourism is bringing relevancy,
connections within the industry and more
guest speakers to the curriculum to ensure
her students land great placements and
ultimately great careers upon graduation.
“Colleges are about getting people jobs and
careers and being very hands on,” she says.
Caine leads by example, seizing any
opportunity to get involved in the commu-
nity. She’ll encourage her students to par-
ticipate in industry events, conferences and
awards shows as the programs evolve. She’s
fostering connections with high schools
to promote Centennial as a great place
for hospitality training, and she’s working
with local MPPs to develop community
breakfast programs. In July, celebrity chef
Rob Rainford joined the school as culinary
ambassador to share his insights and do
cooking demonstrations at high schools and
community events. And, in September, 14
industry pros were welcomed to the team
to teach in the classrooms, giving students
crucial interaction with the trade.
Smith, too, values his professional net-
work and believes it’s essential to gain input
from other chefs, food manufacturers and
even grocery store chains to develop programs
and courses for his students.“[Collaboration
prepares] students to go out, be relevant and
be trained to do what the industry needs,”
he says.
In addition to its theory-based classes, the
Culinary Arts program will include more
multiple learning platforms through the new
Culinary Arts Centre. Students will operate
an expanded 70-seat casual-style restaurant
and a café, featuring breads and pastries (pre-
pared in the baking labs), sandwiches, salads
and gourmet coffee. “These operations were
TRIPLE THREAT Centennial College’s (left to right) James Smith, chair of Culinary Programs and Operations; Michelle Caine, chair, School of Hospitality & Tourism; and Joe Baker, dean, are leading the institution’s School of Hospitality, Tourism & Culinary Arts into the next era
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34 FOODSERVICE AND HOSPITALITY JANUARY 2015 FOODSERVICEANDHOSPITALITY.COM
designed with an academic perspective in
mind,” Baker says. “Experiential learning is a
hallmark of what we do at Centennial and is
a differentiating factor.”
A conference centre on the eighth floor of
the new facility — which will include small
meeting rooms, open event spaces and a
private dining room — will provide oppor-
tunities to cultivate skills at special events.
A catering kitchen and four hotel suites will
service those operations as well. In addition,
a quick-service, off-campus restaurant will
enhance experiential learning opportunities
while maintaining the safety net of a class-
room setting. “You’ve got to get students on
the ground, in the trenches so to speak and do
it while it’s still a safe learning environment,”
explains Smith.
Coming in at the grass-roots level is what
Smith looks forward to most. “Vision-wise
and philosophy-wise, this new position is
really where I see myself having the biggest
impact with students and the creation of new
programming,” he says. l
BUILDING BLOCKSThe future of Canada’s foodservice industry
is bright, and Toronto’s Centennial College
is doling out a hefty sum to prove it. In
October, construction began on its $85-mil-
lion Centennial Residence and Culinary
Arts Centre (rendering pictured).
“The $60-billion Canadian foodservice
industry is a significant part of the econo-
my,” says Joe Baker, dean at the college’s
School of Hospitality, Tourism & Culinary
Arts. “And Centennial College is really there
to support economic development. There
are people from industry calling, asking for
workers in culinary positions, baking posi-
tions, commercial baking facilities and large-
scale production, so that’s significant.”
The Culinary Arts Centre will double the school’s existing capacity and include three kitchen labs,
two bake labs, a beverage lab, eight classrooms, faculty offices, a restaurant and a grab-and-go café.
Technology will allow for interactive learning in the classrooms, plus live streaming of cooking dem-
onstrations throughout the building. The top floor conference and banquet facilities, operated by the
school, will provide flexible meeting space for up to 425 and will be available for community use.
In addition to the academic offerings, the eight-storey building will house a residence for 742 stu-
dents, a convenience store, a cinema, a yoga room, spaces to lounge, plus a courtyard. Occupancy is
slated for fall 2016, just before Centennial marks its milestone 50th anniversary.
LEADERSHIP
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