Last week, Delaware North’s Culinary & Hospitality Excellence for Future Success® (CHEFS) program introduced its latest educational milestone. Emerging culinarians and executive chef mentors now have the opportunity to pursue the prestigious ProChef®II certification through the CHEFS program.
The ProChef certification, developed by the Culinary Institute of America (CIA), is a three-tiered, comprehensive professional development and culinary proficiency program that provides chefs with hands-on skills validation, knowledge and credentials to advance their careers. The certification also measures core culinary, managerial and financial acumen to ensure chefs gain a deeper understanding of business operations and leadership in culinary roles.
To date, 10 emerging culinarians who have graduated from the 12-month CHEFS program and earned their ProChef I certifications are now pursuing ProChef II certifications.
“We want to keep our first graduating cohort of emerging culinarians engaged in the CHEFS program – and now we have the expanded curriculum to match their passion and enthusiasm for continuing education,” said Steve Eden, director of the Culinary & Hospitality Academy, who shared that nearly all members of the first graduating class are pursuing ProChef II and serving as peer mentors to new emerging culinarians.
Six executive chef mentors – who earned ProChef I certifications this summer at the CIA in Hyde Park, N.Y. – are joining the group of culinarians on the ProChef II journey.
“CHEFS has helped create a network of mentors and culinarians who have participated in ProChef I preparation and exams together, and they want to continue working as a group to challenge and better themselves,” Eden said.
Crystal Dion, a member of the inaugural CHEFS cohort in 2022 who earned her ProChef I certification upon graduating from the program in 2023, is pursuing the ProChef II certification while working full-time as sous chef II at The Edison, operated by Delaware North’s Patina Restaurant Group at Disney Springs.
“ProChef II is going to elevate my skillset further and provide more insight into the business side of managing a kitchen and front-of-house operations,” said Dion, who was also promoted shortly after graduating from CHEFS. “CHEFS provides a benchmark for all our culinarians in terms of knowledge, skills and standards, which instills a culture of promotion from within. I don’t see myself ever leaving Delaware North knowing the many opportunities for culinarians within the company.”
Michael Butler, another graduate of the inaugural CHEFS cohort, said working with new emerging culinarians and continuing the ProChef curriculum signifies a willingness to invest in himself while helping others.
“Delaware North is investing a lot of time and resources into culinary education and development, so it’s my job as a chef to keep learning and showing peers who come after me what’s possible,” said Butler, who joined Delaware North as a sous chef at MetLife Stadium, home of the New York Jets and the New York Giants, and has since been promoted to executive sous chef.
“I look up to so many of Delaware North’s culinary leaders, who have become mentors and who I never would have met without the CHEFS program,” Butler said. “I have formed relationships with people across the company and truly gained friends for life.”
Phillip Musch, executive chef for Delaware North at Skyland Resort at Shenandoah National Park, was among the group of mentors who earned their ProChef I certifications this summer to strengthen their ability to work with new emerging culinarians.
“I love to challenge myself and learn new techniques, and having the opportunity to do that alongside other executive chefs helps me learn even more ways to become a better leader in my unit,” Musch said.
Main caption: Crystal Dion (left), sous chef II at The Edison in Florida, and Mike Butler (right), executive sous chef at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, are among the first group of emerging culinarians in Delaware North’s CHEFS® program who will pursue prestigious ProChef® II certifications, marking a new milestone for the culinary development program.