Registration Open for Free Daytime Line-cook Training at HCC
HOLYOKE — For the first time, Holyoke Community College (HCC) will run its free, 10-week line-cook certification training course during daytime hours at the HCC MGM Culinary Arts Institute.
The course, taught by HCC culinary arts instructor and professional chef Tracy Carter, begins Monday, March 28, but prospective students can sign up and start anytime until Monday, April 4.
The line-cook training course runs four days a week, Monday through Thursday, from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. until June 2 at HCC’s culinary-arts facility on Race Street in downtown Holyoke.
The program is designed for those already in the restaurant industry who want to upgrade their skills as well as unemployed or underemployed individuals interested in starting a new career in the restaurant industry. This is the first time HCC has offered its free line-cook training program during daytime hours.
“There was a demand for it,” said Maureen McGuinness, assistant project coordinator. “Some people can’t take classes at night because they work at night in restaurants, and that’s what we’re responding to. It’s kind of exciting. In the future, we will be alternating day and nighttime programs. It’s also a perfect option for anyone who loves cooking and wants to improve their kitchen skills.”
The program is being taught both online and in person at the HCC MGM Culinary Arts Institute. Participants will learn all the essential competencies they need to become successful line cooks: knife skills; how to prepare stocks, soups, sauces, desserts, poultry, fish, and meat; culinary math and measurements; moist/dry heat cooking methods; as well as workplace soft skills, such as building a résumé and searching for jobs.
Offered as part of HCC’s Business & Workforce Development division, the line-cook course is free to qualifying applicants. For more information or to register, call (413) 552-2500 or e-mail [email protected].
