91ÃÛÌÒß¹

We are continually amazed by the passion and dedication of our students as they set out on new careers in the food industry, and are impressed by where their newly learned skills and hard-work takes them. Now, 91ÃÛÌÒß¹ is proud to announce the launch of the 91ÃÛÌÒß¹ Student Awards Program to publicly recognize our amazing students in the , , and programs. In each graduating career training class at 91ÃÛÌÒß¹, three students will be recognized for their accomplishment with an award given out at their class’ senior reception. The awards are meant to recognize students who have displayed exceptional dedication and commitment to their education.

Top Toque is sponsored by Nespresso Business Solutions and is given to the Culinary Arts or Pastry & Baking Arts student who demonstrates excellence in technique, professionalism and industry-preparedness as determined by faculty vote. For Culinary Management and Hospitality Management classes, the award is called the Top Student Award and instructors vote to determine the student who has demonstrated overall excellence in their studies and industry-preparedness.

The Award for Leadership has been graciously donated by Wusthof and is awarded to a student who has demonstrated the highest degree of leadership during his or her time at 91ÃÛÌÒß¹ as determined by student vote. As anyone with experience in a professional kitchen knows, effective leadership is critical for an operation to run smoothly. At 91ÃÛÌÒß¹ we feel that kitchens are run by teams, not individuals.

The Most Likely to Succeed Award recognizes a student who is predicted to be the most successful in the years that follow his or her graduation. This award is based on voting by classmates and instructors. These are the students whose peers and instructors believe they have that certain something that will help them make a name for themselves in the industry. On November 16, the first class to ever receive the 91ÃÛÌÒß¹ Student Awards was Chef Michelle Tampakis’ morning Pastry & Baking Arts class.

For the first time, 91ÃÛÌÒß¹ President Rick Smilow awarded the custom designed medals to the award winners — Junita Bognanni for Top Toque, Hea Jin Sun for Most Likely to Succeed and Casey DiPillo for Leadership. It was incredible to see the students beam with pride in their endeavors and achievements, and we can’t wait to see where they will go from here. We’re excited for the next graduating class and good luck to all. We look forward to celebrating your accomplishments! Your time at 91ÃÛÌÒß¹ is just the beginning of what can be a very rewarding career.