STC Chef Vendeville presents paper at Lincoln College, University of Oxford

SAVANNAH – Chef Jean Yves Vendeville, department head and instructor of Culinary Arts at Savannah Technical College, recently presented a paper on remedying childhood obesity at the prestigious Oxford Round Table at Lincoln College, University of Oxford in England. Vendeville was one of thirty-five people invited worldwide to attend and was the only chef among the twenty-five presenters.

His paper, A reflective essay that describes the root case and solution to remedying childhood obesity, will be submitted for June publication by the Oxford Round Table. Vendeville points to a lack of leadership among adults as the root cause of childhood obesity when he writes,

“Lack of leadership as parents, adults and responsible adult community members is the core of the problem; taking back and wearing the mantle of leadership in all aspects of an active lifestyle and modeling healthy and responsible eating behaviors by adults is the solution. When we abdicate this responsibility, we deprive our children of the tools necessary for them to understand the true decision-making process and what is at stake. When we accept the challenge of leadership, we will pass on a legacy that will reduce childhood obesity dramatically.”

Chef Vendeville has been with Savannah Technical College since December 2008 and has led student teams to two consecutive American Culinary Federation (ACF) Southeast Regional Championships – in 2010 in the Hot Food Team competition and in 2011 in the Knowledge Bowl competition. Vendeville recently achieved his ACF Lifetime Certification as an Executive Pastry Chef. He also holds a Lifetime Certification as an Executive Chef from the Chef Association of America.

Savannah Technical College offers ACF-accredited diploma and degree programs in culinary arts through the Culinary Institute of Savannah. The college currently enrolls 200 students in culinary arts programs. For information, visit www.savannahtech.edu or call 912.443.5792.