Lloyd George graduates from Culinary Institute of America
Lloyd George with completion certificate. At right is the certificate.
By OLIVIA YOKOYAMA
Sho-Ban News
FORT HALL — On April 11, Lloyd George, a Shoshone-Bannock Tribal member, graduated from the Culinary Institute of America & Hormel Foods Class of 2024.
The Culinary Enrichment and Enrichment Program was created for commercial and non-commercial chefs. The CIA program is offered to chefs that want to develop into a more advanced training in the Culinary Arts Study. George is one of 18 skilled chefs and the only Native American that graduated from the CIA Program and is an employee at the Shoshone-Bannock Hotel and Casino as a certified chef who administers the banquet and bingo concessions.
He felt the need, growing up on the reservation, to show other younger children that if you continue to work towards your goal your journey will be successful.
His purpose was to have that name of the CIA attached to his background and resume he used to his advantage and motivated himself to excel in the Culinary Arts field.
When he first started he chose to attend Le Cordon Bleu in Seattle 2011 and then after transferred to the Le Cordon Bleu in Las Vegas and later graduated in 2016.
One of his motivations that helped him accomplish and graduate are his children. Being a single father and moving off the reservation with his children he made it work. Having that motivation and determination to attend school and have child care at hand, it was accomplished.
While in New York during the CIA program he observed different operations the Met Life stadium, Google, the Lincoln Center, and Red Rooster Restaurant in Harlem where Marcus Samuelson cooked for President Obama in 2011. Throughout the program he said he met other great culinary teams and practiced cooking productions that showed all other students culinary arts skills.
He chose culinary arts because being on the dishline and observing the line cooks, he felt that he can also learn the skills. Now that he has graduated and has checked that off his bucket list, he hopes to encourage other Native American children, continue his career in the culinary arts field to share his experiences and knowledge to help them develop those skills.
“The CIA Program allowed me to continue my education and grow, work towards another goal which was to be part of that group of chefs and continue on because there are other opportunities that I want to continue to do in my culinary career.” George said.
Now his next goal is to continue his career as a certified chef and oversee the buffet and bingo concession. He hopes to share his cooking techniques and show other chefs the fundamentals of professional cooking.
