My ServSafe Experience with Chatham’s CRAFT program

This March, I had the opportunity to take a ServSafe certification class offered by The Center for Regional Agriculture, Food, and Transformation (CRAFT) in collaboration with the Center for Women’s Entrepreneurship. ServSafe is a food safety course on all things foodborne illness, cross-contamination, and food service management approved by the National Restaurant Association.

Before this course, I had limited food safety training and felt daunted by a course that would cover a lot of information I wasn’t familiar with. However, I quickly realized this course would teach me a lot about food in my own kitchen. After two 8-hour certification classes on Shadyside Campus and an online exam, I am successfully ServSafe certified! The certification lasts for up to 5 years, and I’m grateful to CRAFT for providing me with the opportunity to take the course at Chatham. 

I was one of a few Chatham students who attended this session of ServSafe. Faculty members of the Falk School of Sustainability and Environment suggested I take the course to further develop knowledge about food and kitchens. I’m fortunate that I was able to take this course, because it will be a helpful certification for me as I navigate my own interests in community food distribution and kitchen management.

 Everyone in the class was there for different reasons, and this created a quirky and friendly group of people who bonded over entrepreneurship, community outreach, and building skills around food service. Some of my classmates were members of their community looking to work in a food pantry, business owners hoping to open a restaurant, or food service workers taking the course as part of manager training. The classroom had lots of information on ServSafe, including a textbook for each student to borrow. There was also informal presentations from our instructor and CRAFT staff members from other CRAFT programs offered in the area. 

 I’m fortunate that I was able to take this course, because it will be a helpful certification for me as I navigate my own interests in community food distribution, and kitchen management. Since many of my ServSafe classmates came to the course for different reasons and from different communities, this made the class a colorful learning environment. Our instructor went through slide decks, short video clips, and creative interactive activities to help us learn the material through multiple modalities. We played games and worked in small groups to really understand food safety and took plenty of breaks throughout the sessions. 

I highly recommend taking any of CRAFT’s courses and getting involved in their offerings based on my experience with the ServSafe course. CRAFT has many courses to further education of food systems in Western Pennsylvania. The Market Readiness Course is a pay-what-you-can 12-week course on food consulting, safety, development, and brand marketing. You can learn more about creating products and taking them to market for your own business, community or employer.

In the same vein, the Cottage Food course assists students in learning to create products using home kitchens or farms and navigating food safety in those home environments. All these courses are open to Chatham students and anyone in the greater Pittsburgh area. For the ServSafe course that I took this year, CRAFT also offers a select number of partial scholarships to reduce the cost for Women and BIPOC-owned businesses located in Allegheny County.  

 My experience in the CRAFT ServSafe course was new to me, but I’m glad that I decided to follow through and as a result, received my certification. I was especially grateful to my instructor who taught the course, and the professors who encouraged me to take a class that gave me a valuable credential. I have already found myself applying what I learned to my food preparedness skills and considering food certifications alongside my food studies education at Chatham. 

 If you are interested in any courses offered by The Center for Regional, Agriculture, Food and Transformation you can find more information here. 

Lirit Gilmore is a Creative Writing and Food Studies student. Lirit’s academic focus is centered in food writing and how it intersects with social location and identity. She is from the DMV and the Midwest, and enjoys baking in her free time. See all her work on Pulse@ChathamU here.