As Indianapolis prepares for the World Food Championships competition this weekend at the Indiana State Fairgrounds, students studying food and beverage operations showcased their talent by creating charcuterie boards in the IU Indianapolis School of Health & Human Sciences’ (SHHS) new 1,000-square-foot state-of-the-art teaching kitchen.
Designed as a resource for both the campus and the Indianapolis community, the kitchen’s inaugural activity allowed 20-plus students to develop their food preparation skills.
“[The kitchen] allowed my classmates and me to gain experience in an area relevant to our future careers,” noted Sara Steurer, a senior double majoring in tourism, conventions and event management and communication studies. “Even if food preparation isn’t directly connected to our jobs in the tourism and hospitality industry, having a basic knowledge of it is important.”
St. John Jefferson, a senior in the TESM program, echoed Steurer’s sentiments, adding that the immersive charcuterie experience provided a unique perspective on his future career. “I learned so much today about building a charcuterie board and pairing different foods,” Jefferson said, “which will help me in my future job.”
Both students found that the course offered unexpected benefits in community building.
“Going to the teaching kitchen today was great because we were able to interact with each other,” Jefferson said, “and be amazed at each other’s creativity.”
Michael Sprinkle, M.S., a lecturer in the tourism, event and sport management (TESM) department, was excited to be the first faculty member to bring his class to the facility. He collaborated with Cheryl Armstrong, Ph.D., R.D.N., to introduce the course and students to the kitchen. “I think this is a hidden gem on our campus,” Sprinkle said. “If you want to do something different and innovative while providing your students with hands-on experience, working with Dr. Armstrong and utilizing the teaching kitchen is a must.”
Armstrong, a member of the Teaching Kitchen Collaborative—an international organization dedicated to advancing applied approaches to nutrition education—envisions the kitchen as a hub for shared research on campus and a platform for advocating nutrition as part of a holistic health-care approach.
The kitchen features six teaching bays, each equipped with a sink, oven, blender, microwave, KitchenAid mixer and all necessary supplies for food preparation. One bay is fully accessible, and event facilitators can utilize a fully functional instructional station with video streaming capabilities. Cold storage, freezers, a commercial ice maker and a dishwasher complete the space.
Sprinkle already has plans to return next semester, incorporating business operations components. “My plan for next semester is to create a budget assignment for the charcuterie boards, where students will work in groups to price out the cost of the boards they want to create,” Sprinkle shared. “Then, when it comes time for the actual charcuterie lab, the students will build their boards. This is an idea that Dr. Armstrong and I have been developing. Hopefully, we can price out various charcuterie boards and offer classes to the community based on the pricing the students create.”
Steurer hopes other faculty will follow Sprinkle’s lead and utilize the kitchen. “If I had the opportunity, I would love to use that area again. It was so organized and clean,” she said.
As the kitchen’s campus champion, Armstrong aims to foster partnerships beyond experiential learning, focusing on research and integrative nutrition initiatives. Campus and community entities can submit proposals to use the kitchen at go.iu.edu/teachingkitchen.