Nutrition Services Culinary Associate - Food Truck

Mesa County Valley School District 51 • Grand Junction, CO

5d • $18 - $20

About The Position

Operating under the general supervision of the school’s Culinary Manager, employee is a member of the school’s culinary team working to create and serve scratch produced meals to the District’s students. Performs Highly technical scratch food production duties utilizing all components of the Healthy Hunger Free Kids Act and Nourish Colorado Scratch School Meal Initiative. Employee is charged with providing well-balanced nutritious meals per approved USDA & Live Well recipe & production records. Serving high risk populations, school food service activities require the highest degree of customer service skills, production & food safety practices. This position is ideal for individuals with experience in food preparation or cooking who want to work in a school based culinary environment. Employees prepare scratch made meals similar to the work of a cook, including prepping ingredients, following recipes, and operating commercial kitchen equipment.

Requirements

• High school diploma or equivalent required ( Acceptable education will be at the sole discretion of the District)
• D51 student 16 or>working towards diploma
• Position requires conversational English language skills
• Criminal background check required for hire
• Current Mesa County Food Handlers Card required within 90 days of hire
• A variety of lift tests, including carrying liquids, of up to 50# is required at time of hire with recertification every three years
• Attend and successfully complete all staff development training as required by law or as directed by the Director of Nutrition Services.
• Basic written communication skills using English
• Ability to learn and comply with components of the Healthy Hunger Free Kids Act
• Ability and passion for culinary training in order to develop and grow their role with the District
• Ability to manage multiple priorities with frequent interruptions in a timely manner
• Ability to maintain confidentiality in all aspects of the job
• Ability to work collaboratively within a team setting
• Ability to follow and comply with the current Colorado Department of Education and District policies and guidelines regarding food preparation, delivery, and storage
• Ability to communicate, interact and work effectively and cooperatively with students and people from diverse ethnic and educational backgrounds
• Ability to recognize the importance of safety in the workplace, follow safety rules, practice safe work habits, utilize appropriate safety equipment and report unsafe conditions to the appropriate administrator.
• Operating knowledge of and experience with institutional food service equipment; ovens, warmers, mixers, steamers, kettles, meat slicers, food processors, sectionizers, and immersion blenders etc.
• Operating knowledge of and experience with mechanical dishwasher and three compartment sinks
• Operating knowledge of and experience with personal computers and peripherals
• Operating knowledge of and experience with typical office equipment, such as telephones, copier, fax machine, E-mail, etc.

Nice To Haves

• Previous experience as a cook, line cook. prep cook, or working in a commercial kitchen is helpful, but not required
• Oral bi-lingual skills English/Spanish are desirable

Responsibilities

• Using highly technical scratch meal production techniques, employees provide well-balanced, nutritious, and tasteful meals to students.
• Serving prepared meals as part of the school’s culinary team in a friendly, tactful, and professional manner, employee must adhere to the school’s established mealtime schedules and maintain compliance with correct portion size and correct USDA O ffer versus Serve regulations.
• Ensuring the health and safety of students and staff is paramount as scratch ingredients are used at each site, including raw proteins and produce products, employee must incorporate a high degree of food safety knowledge and procedures.
• Focusing on the highest hygiene and sanitation standards, employee performs cleaning tasks including, but not limited to; dishwashing, cleaning and sanitizing all food contact surfaces used for preparation, cleaning all non-food contact surfaces such as floors, shelving, walls, windows, kitchen restroom facilities, laundering of linens, and towels etc.
• Rotating and cross-training in all scratch meal production and serve stations within the kitchen employee is able to easily adjust and change assigned tasks to ensure food quality, safety, and customer service standards are met.
• Assisting the Culinary Manager, employee uses First-In, First-Out (FIFO) and the Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (IFAS) guidelines to rotate stock and manage inventory.
• Other duties as assigned

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level
• Education Level: High school or GED