Head Cook

Head Cook About Texas Empowerment Academy

Texas Empowerment Academy (TXEA) was founded in 1998 to provide children with an innovative alternative for educational excellence in grades K-12. Currently serving almost 700 students, with plans to grow to 800, TXEA focuses on African-American students of all labels.

Job Summary

The Morning Head Cook demonstrates professional behavior and promotes positive relationships with students, parents, staff, and others to build customer support for school food services programs. The Head Cook is responsible for the on-site production, cooking all meals for breakfast & Lunch service in a timely manner, assist with serving on line when needed. Must follow all recipes. Keep kitchen area clean at all times. The Head Cook maintains a clean, safe work environment by following Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points (HACCP) and other sanitation principles in food handling and equipment use. The Head Cook practices proper food preparation, food holding and display/marketing techniques that assure high quality food products and customer satisfaction.

The Head Cook follows procedures to control food waste, control costs, and comply with Federal guidelines. The Head Cook promotes healthful eating for students and demonstrates a positive school food service image. All employees will be crossed-trained, in case of absence of the Cook or other Cafeteria positions. Follow all task assigned to he or she by Director or Manager.

Key Responsibilities

• Preparing breakfast meals and Lunch meals. Must have all Breakfast Meals completed by 7:00 a.m. Lunch Meals must be completed by 9:30 a.m. every day. Some days may be batch cooking. Head cook must check Menu every day and see what can be prepared for next day.
• Follows standard receiving procedures to assure quality and correct quantity of food received. Follow all USDA recipes. Documents time and temperature of items received. Reports problems immediately to Food Service Director.
• Follows HACCP date marking and labeling protocol.
• Uses the correct portion control techniques to meet United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) requirements.
• Presents food for service to the students in an aesthetic manner.
• Maintains high standards of food quality and appearance. Utilizes cooking methods to preserve nutrient content. Batch cooking is used to avoid long holding times for food prepared onsite. Arranges food attractively in serving containers.
• Follows standards of food safety in preparing, serving, and storing food. Head cook will need to assist on serving line when needed. Follows food Preparation directions and HACCP regarding time and temperature. Records food temperatures upon receipt of food as well as when prepared and served. Takes corrective action as necessary. Food are held either below 41 F or above 135 F. Follows Food Code And HACCP protocol.
• Maintains a clean and sanitary work station. Head Cook must assist with keep the floor area in Kitchen Area clean. Someone can easily slip and fall. Place WET FLOOR SIGN when needed. A head cook may be required to tend to the floor area periodically during his or her shift and when the work day has ended. Position also call for assisting with cleaning refrigerators, utensils, pots & pans other items used in the kitchen for food preparation. Position also call for assisting the kitchen staff where needed.
• Follows established work schedule and procedures for cleaning equipment, utensils, and work area. Follows procedures to maintain effective insect and rodent control. Utilizes work simplification techniques for effective use of time. Completes work assignments in a timely manner and all Tasks assigned by Food Service Director or Manager.
• Maintains high standards of personal hygiene. Follows hand washing protocol. Practices standards of dress codes, including shirts with sleeves, closed toe shoes, hair

Qualifications

• High school diploma or equivalent
• Basic mathematics, communication, and computer skills
• Food preparation experience or training
• Prior Serv-Safe Certification and/or current Food Manager Certification
• Ability to accurately count and record food items, inventory, and paper Food production records
• Ability to apply principles of quantity food production, including batch cooking, safe food handling, and HACCP

Physical Requirements

• Ability to lift up to 20 pounds, carry 25 pounds, and push/pull 35 pounds of force
• Ability to stand and walk on hard surfaces
• Ability to adapt to changes in room temperature
• Ability to work in the presence of loud background noise

Position Relationships

• Reports to: Food Service Director or Manager

Disclaimer

This job description is not intended to be an all-inclusive list of duties, responsibilities, or qualifications associated with the position. Duties, responsibilities, and activities may change or new ones may be assigned at any time with or without notice.

Federal/State Comp Ed Language

This position is funded in part or whole by state compensatory education funds. The duties and responsibilities outlined above are aligned with allowable activities and requirements under federal and/or state guidelines.

How to Apply

Interested candidates should complete the interest form and submit the following to hr@txea.org and to the Child Nutrition Director, Lucy Victorian at lvictorian@txea.org:

• Current resume
• Contact information for three professional references
• Application Deadline: Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis until the position is filled

STATEMENT OF NON-DISCRIMINATION

In keeping with our beliefs and goals, no employee or applicant will face discrimination/ harassment based on race, color, ancestry, national origin, religion, age, gender, marital/ domestic partner status, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability status, or veteran status. People of diverse backgrounds are strongly encouraged to apply.