Executive Director - The Culinary Education Center

Background

The Culinary Education Center (CEC) in New York is looking for an Executive Director. Along with the Board of Directors, the Executive Director will be responsible for creating and guiding the organization by helping to develop its mission, strategic goals, and all operational structures. The Executive Director will also be responsible for developing programming and for stewarding external relationships.

The Culinary Education Center is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and labor‑management partnership between high‑wage food service employers and UNITE HERE Local 100, the union for food service and restaurant workers in the New York/New Jersey area. As a Taft‑Hartley Fund, this training center was created to train and upskill food service workers, enabling them to enter good union jobs in the industry and advance in their careers.

Our curriculum, designed in collaboration with employers, will support employer efforts to create career pathways, thereby contributing to worker retention. Most of the people we will serve are people of color/immigrants and members of marginalized communities. Our objective is 1.) train new workers and help place them in good union jobs with employer partners and 2.) provide ongoing training to incumbent workers to support their career advancement.

The Executive Director will collaborate with the Board of Directors to set the strategic vision for the growth and sustainability of this training center. They will oversee the implementation of this vision by managing the day‑to‑day operations of the organization. They will oversee the administration of culinary training programs for entry‑level and incumbent workers for the food‑service industry in New York/New Jersey.

The ideal candidate will thrive as they develop the CEC’s physical space, administrative capacity, and programmatic offerings while establishing it as a key organization within the regional workforce development landscape.

• Oversee and maintain full executive management responsibilities and leadership of the daily operations of the Culinary Education Center, including classroom training/work experience programs, operations, human resources management, financial management, public/community relations, employment/vocational training, and program/curriculum development.
• Direct the development and implementation of goals, objectives, policies, procedures and processes to support the mission of the organization and ensure continuous operations.
• Analyze operations to evaluate the performance of the organization and its staff in meeting the objectives and to determine areas of potential program improvement, cost reduction, and policy changes.
• Ensure regulatory compliance with the highest standards of health, sanitation, and cleanliness in the training programs for food and beverage staff.
• Provide administrative support and regular updates to the Board with respect to the status of training programs, operations, and finances.
• Make presentations to the Board with respect to recommendations on program operations and budgets. Collaborate with the Board to develop and execute short‑and‑long‑term goals.

• Serve as the chief spokesperson and ensure that the organization maintains and strengthens its reputation for excellence with the community and at the state and national levels.
• Ensure that the public, through the news media and effective public relations, is informed of the success and accomplishments of the Culinary Education Center in providing vocational and skills training to incumbent union members as well as unemployed and underemployed workers in the hospitality industry.
• Develop…