In as little as three semesters, Oxnard College students can gain hands-on experience in the kitchen or learn how to manage a restaurant as part of the Culinary Arts programs offered at the college.
Working Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., students and instructors interact on an intimate day-to-day basis.
“We have great teachers,” said first-year student Tasha Theissen, 20. “Where else can you get such a good education at such a price, and so close to home?”
The Culinary Arts program and the Restaurant Management program are both designed to take about four semesters to complete, but recently the program has been adjusted for students to finish in a shorter amount of time. These programs allow students to gain the skills necessary to qualify for employment in luxury hotel restaurants, and to open their own businesses. The Wild Goose Restaurant in room OE11 on campus is the setting for each class session, where a sense of camaraderie between students and instructors allows for mistakes to be made and corrected immediately, with verbal encouragement and physical demonstration.
In the mornings, students go through their kitchen routine, preparing food that will later be served in the college cafeteria. Executive Chef Henri Pateey, a part-time instructor for the advanced courses, is strict about the time spent in his classroom.
“There should be absolutely no talking, and no gum-chewing in my class,” Pateey told his students at the beginning of a class session on March 24. “But you can go outside and let your hair down during the 15-minute break at 3 p.m.”
The Culinary Arts program at Oxnard College has been available for about 21 years, and there are currently 75 students enrolled in the program this semester. According to the program’s founder and full-time instructor, Chef Frank Hayward, the funding for the program is in transition. In the past, the program was affiliated with the food services at the college, but recent events will ensure that funding will soon be provided through general funds at the college.
Along with Hayward and Pateey, Chef Joe Carabajal works as the full-time lab technician. Students, however, make the program what it is.
“The students who come here do not work for me,” said Hayward. “They are here to work for themselves.”
