Culinary Institute has been whipping up chefs since '46

The institute, at the time a vocational training school for World War II veterans, offered a 16-week program featuring instruction in 78 popular menus of the day. Members of the New Haven Restaurant Association sponsored the original school, whose founders, Frances Roth and Katharine Angell, served as its first director and chairman of the board, respectively.

In 1947, the institute moved to a 40-room mansion adjacent to Yale University. The college’s name was changed to the Restaurant Institute of Connecticut. In 1951, the college became the Culinary Institute of America, reflecting the diversity of its students. At that time, the educational program was expanded to two years, and continuing education courses for industry professionals were introduced.

By 1965, the college had increased its enrollment to 400 students. In 1969, double-class sessions were initiated to accommodate a backlog of applicants, but with more than 1,000 students, facilities were strained to the maximum. The CIA purchased St. Andrew-on-Hudson, a former Jesuit seminary on 80 acres overlooking the Hudson River in Hyde Park, for $1 million in 1970.

Two years and $4 million in renovations later, the new school opened, with its five-story, 150-room main building renamed Roth Hall. Three residence halls also were built to accommodate 880 students.

In 1972, the Board of Regents of the State of New York granted the CIA a charter to confer an associate’s degree in occupational studies.

Restaurants hone skills

The CIA established the Epicurean Room, a public restaurant that provided a realistic, hands-on setting for students, in 1973. The restaurant was later renamed The Escoffier Restaurant. Today, students also acquire experience in three other campus restaurants: The Caterina de Medici Dining Room, St. Andrew’s Cafe, and The American Bounty Restaurant.

In 1981, the CIA became the only location authorized to administer the American Culinary Federation’s master chef certification exam. The college employs the largest concentration of master chefs certified through the 10-day exam.

In 1984, the Continuing Education Center opened. A fourth residence hall with 350 beds was completed in 1986. The CIA built the General Foods Nutrition Center in 1988 and two years later opened the School of Baking and Pastry. The college purchased 70 additional acres along the Hudson in 1992.

The Conrad N. Hilton Library, housing the largest collection of culinary publications in the country, opened in 1993. The same year, the CIA was approved by the Board of Regents to offer two bachelor of professional studies degrees — one in culinary arts management, the other in baking and pastry arts management. The first class of 50 students was admitted in August 1994.

The CIA’s center for continuing education in California’s Napa Valley opened in 1995. The Culinary Institute of America at Greystone in St. Helena, Calif., offers courses for food and wine professionals.

In July 1998, the college opened a 52,000-square-foot Student Recreation Center, overlooking the river and featuring extensive athletic and recreational facilities.

The CIA enrolls 2,100 students in its bachelor and associate degree programs in culinary arts and baking and pastry arts, serves 6,000 students from around the world with its continuing education programs, and employs a teaching staff of more than 120 chefs and instructors representing 15 countries.

More changes are in store for the college in the new century. In 2000, the college will see the opening of a retail bakery/cafe staffed by students in the CIA’s baking and pastry degree programs, as well as the construction of a Center for Italian Food and Wine devoted to the study and promotion of authentic Italian cuisine, wine and culture. The building will be the new home of the Caterina de Medici Restaurant, teaching kitchens and multimedia classrooms.

Compiled by Jeff Levine, media relations coordinator at the Culinary Institute of America.