The DOC's Culinary Arts Program Director Todd Lewis took his chef's toque on the road in late 2018 to pitch food industry employers about the benefits of hiring program graduates.
Working in an informal partnership with the Pennsylvania Restaurant and Lodging Association (PRLA), Chef Lewis made presentations at chapters in Lancaster, York and Harrisburg. He said attendance ranged from about 15 to 50 people and employers expressed interest in learning more about the program and its graduates.
"They said we are forgiving places, willing to give people a second chance," said Lewis, who shared his contact information with a number of attendees.
He said employers were interested in what kind of skills the inmates learned in the program and about their criminal backgrounds.
The nine-week program provides training in basic cooking skills and all participants graduate having completed the ServSafe certificate requirements for food handling safety.
The ServSafe certificate alone is worth its weight in gold, said Lewis, noting that one graduate was just hired by a major supermarket chain in Philadelphia as a result of having the certificate in hand.
The DOC's culinary arts programs operate at three institutions. The primary program is located at the Training Academy in Elizabethtown, a second program for men is held at SCI Waymart and the first formal program for female inmates started at SCI Muncy last year. Since the first program started in 2003, hundreds of inmates have mastered basic food service skills that prepare them for future jobs.
Lewis, who is now a member of Lancaster chapter of the PRLA, said he looks forward to conducting more presentations to potential employers in 2019. Representatives of the PRLA will be attending an upcoming program graduation luncheon, too.