Organization: Silver Fork
Title: Culinary Arts Director
Nominated by: Joli Robinson, Chief Executive Officer
Urban became the Director of Culinary at the Center on Halsted in the Fall of 2022. They consistently demonstrate commitment to the success, growth, and well-being of students and the broader Chicago Social Service community, in a variety of positions including Chef Instructor, Nutrition and Health Manager, and Director of Culinary. Urban believes that it is necessary for individuals to be seen, in person and print. The challenges that the LGBTQ+ community face in the workforce development world are unique. One example is a trans person not having the legal documentation that matches their name and gender, an issue that sometimes may prevent trans people from filling out paperwork that would ultimately ‘out’ them in the workplace. Urban formed a partnership with BMO bank for financial literacy, their ‘true name’ debit card, alleviates this issue. Urban collected data and feedback from the students to create a LGBTQ+ specific resource guide for the Chicago hospitality world. These resources includes name changing services, LGBTQ+ therapy, financial assistance for individuals with HIV and AIDS, housing opportunities for seniors and paid opportunities to participate in studies within our queer community.
Beyond the classroom, Urban actively engages with the Chicago community, volunteering for soup kitchens, food rescue and youth culinary competitions. Their ability to bridge the mission of ending hunger with the surrounding community has been instrumental in creating a support for individuals that have been economically impacted by lack of food or education.
Upon hire in 2022, they were tasked with relaunching the free 7-week training program. Urban’s strategic re-envisioning the program focused on meeting the changing needs of the hospitality workforce, post covid pandemic nationwide shutdowns, and during a time of transition that restricted funding and resources for programming. Urban took advantage of the timing to adjust the content and outcomes of the curriculum, focusing on cooking methods, and the rudiments of culinary. This shift in teaching allowed the students to focus their training to skills that are transferrable to any service style, cuisine and position in the kitchen.
Urban utilizes their connections in the hospitality industry for the students to build a network of chefs and mentors, ultimately leading to 100 hours of volunteer labor for each 7 -week cohort. The list of guests is thoughtfully procured to include chefs that have lived a shared life experience with our marginalized community of primarily LGBTQ + POC students, sharing their personal stories of challenges and success in the industry. This diverse list of chefs are naturally baked into the program to offer support, mentorship and job coaching to our students and alumni.
With the support of the of Center on Halsted leadership, this year Urban launched the first Social Enterprise for the organization. Through a series of pilot programs, Urban is collecting the data and feedback from the public to strategically forecast the demand of the services with the capacity of the kitchen and students. In its first quarter, Urban has hired multiple graduates of the program to work in the Social Enterprise both FOH and BOH. Catalyst Kitchens has been instrumental in the development of the Silver Fork Social Enterprise. Silver Fork has benefitted from the Catalyst library of shared materials and topics associated with food cost, menu development, and resources for staff morale and burnout. Many of the growing pains for a new business are similar in the for profit world, with resources more accessible than ever before. However, the growing pains that a nonprofit, workforce development business experiences are quite specific and unique. Having a network of thought partners across the country, experiencing similar hardships and collectively creating solutions has been priceless.
SPECIAL ALERT!
Thanks to a generous donation from a founding Catalyst Kitchens board member and friend of David Carleton, the Catalyst Kitchen’s Founder’s Fund has an opportunity to raise matching funds up to $5,000 during this year’s Catalyst for Change Award Season!
This is a time-limited opportunity to get your gift matched! Donate now by clicking the button below, before the window closes to double your generosity and impact!
Here are the 2024 Catalyst for Change. As you read their stories, consider supporting the work of Catalyst Kitchens and our members, enabling the amazing impact of frontline staff like our nominees.
