The Hidden College in the Hudson Valley and How They Plan to Stay on Top
By Jack Griffith
The acronym “CIA” is commonly associated with the American government and secretive operations throughout most of the country. However, in New York’s Hudson Valley the “CIA” is instead known for delicious food and curious students. The “CIA”, or Culinary Institute of America, has been located in Hyde Park, New York since 1972 and has been a staple in the community and the food scene ever since. Visitors come each year to visit and experience one of the six award-winning restaurants placed throughout their sprawling campus. The experience is a unique one as they are seated and served by students attending the Culinary Institute. In fact, the restaurants are completely run by students, from preparation of the dishes to the cleaning of them. However, before a student can serve a visitor they must go through a rigorous journey covering all aspects of food and its journey from farm to table.
The Culinary has been innovative from its inception, becoming the first culinary college to offer an associate’s degree in Occupational Studies in 1971. Since then the college has continued to be at the top of its field, becoming the first school to offer the American Culinary Federation’s exam for Master Chefs, the highest professional certification in the country. As a result, thousands have flocked to Dutchess County to hone their cooking skills and knowledge. Senior advancement officer Brad Whitmore remarked on how valuable a degree from the CIA is, “our 50,000 alumni all across the globe show the impact of a degree from the CIA.” The names of alumni certainly back up this claim, with world famous chefs Annie Burrell, Michael Symon, and the late Anthony Bourdain all having graduated from the Culinary Institute. In all, The Culinary Institute offers a two-year associate’s degree, a traditional bachelor’s degree and even master’s programs in both food business and wine study. The main focus is the associate degree program which focuses on the kitchen aspect of food, with a focus on either bakery or culinary arts.
For junior Sarina Schindler, coming to The Culinary Institute right out of high school was a challenge and she remarked how her associate’s degree was fast-paced and intense, “The first two semesters were dominated by baking classes in the evening, while culinary arts had cooking classes in the morning.”
When Sarina began, the Culinary was on a three-week graduation schedule that was unique to any college in the country. The three-week model was, “focused on building skills three weeks at a time, building from the most basic fundamentals to eventual graduation, two years down the line,” according to Brad Whitmore. Therefore, every three weeks there is a group of students who graduate. This routine placed an emphasis on a timely graduation as well as building skills independently of each other. For Sarina, her workload reached its peak after a summer externship in Houston and a sophomore year filled with more baking classes while also working the bakery on campus. “In my last two semesters the morning classes would even extend until 3 p.m. and after that we would work in the restaurants.” She also described the unfairness she felt as the stress of a busy semester and tuition costs began to build up, “Being forced to do work in the various restaurants is obviously a scam since we are paying tuition and working for them for free.”
Yet, Sarina still expressed an overall gratitude for the institute as a whole, even enrolling in the bachelor’s program after she was awarded her associates degree. Brad Whitmore understands the frustration some students may feel about essentially working for free in the restaurants but sees it mostly as an opportunity to put them in a real-world situation, “For six weeks they get a chance to work behind the counter jobs and six weeks in front of the counter jobs and really experience what it is like to run a restaurant on a day-to-day basis.” More importantly, Brad Whitmore also emphasized that the CIA is constantly looking to evolve and improve the student experience.
When the Culinary Institute opens its doors in September 2020 all students will be on a trimester schedule as opposed to the “three-weeks” schedule that has been previously used since the institute opened in 1972. Whitmore admits this allows for a more spread out curriculum for the students and also emphasizes how this aligns the Hyde Park campus with the rest of their institutes throughout the world. “Our other campuses in Italy, Singapore, San Antonio and Napa Valley are all on a trimester schedule and this allows us to allow our students to make full use of each campus,” said Whitmore. Sarina, who decided to focus on applied food studies for her bachelor’s degree, agreed that a trimester schedule will allow for students to learn in a more cohesive way. “Applied food studies is an in-depth look at food activism and I think being able to learn about this at the same time as my initial baking class could be beneficial,” said Schindler.
Despite being open for 47 years and producing some of the most world-renowned chefs in the world the Culinary Institute is continuing to adapt how it teaches its students. A switch to trimesters allows students to completely integrate their full curriculum with their cooking lessons which allows for a more stress-free and learning friendly environment. Furthermore, it will allow the Institution to make use of their various campuses across the world and allows for more cross-training in specific types of cuisine. This change will look cement the Culinary Institute of America atop the top culinary schools in the world as they continue to enhance the student experience and provide delicious food to people of the Hudson Valley
