AUSTIN, Texas — A free culinary program is being offered at the Central Texas Food Bank.
It not only teaches the students how to cook but also gives people life lessons with the goal of getting them into the workforce.
The Culinary Training program is an 11-week winter program paid through a $10,000 grant from the Jacques Pépin Foundation.
This is a rigorous program where the students meet daily. Mark Jackson is the chief development officer with Central Texas Food Bank.
“The program is really designed to try and get those that that are unemployed or underemployed and looking for a new start, a new career, and one that has been high demand in central Texas,” said Jackson.
According to the Jacques Pépin Foundation, 75% of the students at the Central Texas Food Bank found a job immediately upon graduation and stayed in the workforce for six months afterward.