In May 2015, Durham College, (DC) was awarded a contract from Colleges and Institutes Canada (CICan) to partner with the Centro Experimental de Formación Profesional (CEFOP), a technical and vocational college in Trujillo, Peru. Funded by the Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development (DFATD), the contract sees DC working with CEFOP to share the college’s experiences and expertise in the areas of culinary arts and gastronomy, while helping to update and enhance their current curriculum.

A team from DC consisting of Katie Boone, Project Coordinator with the college’s international office, and David Hawey, Chair of DC’s Centre for Food (CFF), Durham Region’s first-ever post-secondary presence focused on the field-to-fork concept, and Adriana Reyes, an employee of the international office and a student with DC’s Team Experience, recently returned from Peru where they began work with the CEFOP to ensure its graduates are learning and developing the skills they need to meet the demands of the labour market.

“This is a very exciting partnership for all the institutions involved,” said Boone. “We have been working closely with a team in Trujillo with the goal of developing programs that, while innovative, also have a realistic implementation strategy that be sustainable well beyond the lifespan of the project, which concludes in March 2017.”

Current project highlights include establishing strong links with the rapidly growing culinary, hotel and tourism industry in Trujillo and reviewing and updating CEFOP’s current curriculum to help its students graduate with a relevant and well-rounded skills base; a skill base that combines technical knowledge and innovative and creative culinary practices that are characteristics of graduates from DC’s CFF.

Also included in the partnership is a teacher-training and professional development plan that match the demands of the new curriculum. CEFOP and DC will compare management experiences so that both colleges can learn from the practices that help both institutions excel nationally and internationally.

DC is acting as the Canadian project lead for all work done in Trujillo and Centennial College is a supporting partner.

For more information about DC’s CFF please visit http://www.durhamcollege.ca/academic-schools/centre-for-food.