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K-State Today

July 5, 2017

Teaching platform at K-State Dining Center named after prestigious awards

Submitted by Erin Hildreth

The southwest corner of the newly built Kramer Dining Center features an area designed for teaching and cooking demonstrations by department and guest chefs.

The teaching platform was given the name "The Plate" to honor the seven alumni of K-State who received Gold and Silver Plate Awards from the International Facility Management Association over the past 30 years. The awards are displayed prominently in the teaching area for students to see. The Gold Plate Award is considered the Academy Award of the food service industry.

Food production education has been ongoing at K-State for 150 years, and the addition of "The Plate" will allow the tradition to continue. The teaching platform will be utilized in many ways: dietetics students will use the space to complete their assignments, such as planning and preparing special events; guest chefs will have state-of-the-art equipment with which to host culinary workshops; and residence hall staff my access it to networking and educational activities. The food prepared at the teaching platform by dietetics students is currently incorporated into the dining center's daily menu.

The space includes steamers, specialized ovens, tilting frying pans, a steam jacketed kettle and many more tools used for the teaching process. It also has cameras and two TV screens for audience members to see what's happening on the production stage, which allows for increased audience interaction.