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Kirk Bachmann smiling while standing in the professional classroom kitchen at the Escoffier Boulder, Colorado campus with his arms crossed

Our Latest Research

Where Is the Culinary Industry Growing Fastest? A State-by-State Breakdown

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Why Nearly Half of New Restaurants Fail, and How Proper Training Can Change Everything

15 min read

Canada’s Most Diverse Food Cities & Provinces: Ranking Culinary Diversity Across the Country

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*2026 Best Colleges for Culinary Arts in America, Niche.com

100 Chef Instructors
50 executive chefs
25 current or former business owners
11 worked in Michelin star restaurants
19 published authors

Here are just a few of our esteemed faculty and staff.

Kirk T. Bachmann

Boulder Campus President & Provost

Certified Executive Chef® (CEC®)
World Association of Chef Societies Certified Executive Chef
Culinary Salon medalist
Member of the American Academy of Chefs (AAC)
Member of Disciples d’Escoffier

Kathleen Ahearn

Vice President of Academic Affairs

Certified Executive Chef® (CEC®)
Certified Culinary Educator® (CCE®)
Court of Master Sommeliers, First Level Certification
Master’s Degree in Educational Leadership (M.Ed.)
2022 ACF Cutting Edge Award for Innovation

Albert Schmid

Lead Chef Instructor, Culinary Arts

Certified Executive Chef® (CEC®)
Certified Specialist of Wine® (CSW®)
Certified Specialist of Spirits® (CSS®)
Three Gourmand Awards for his cookbooks
IACP Award of Excellence for Sommelier of the Year

Stefanie Bishop-Schmidt

Chef Instructor, Baking & Pastry Arts

Worked as a Pastry Chef at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City
Worked as a Pastry Chef at the Art Institute of Chicago
Featured on MarthaStewart.com
Featured on TheKnot.com

Colleen Garcia

Director of Curriculum and Content Development

Certified Executive Chef® (CEC®)
Stagiaire experience in Michelin-starred restaurants in Italy
2016 Award Winner Best Creative Display, Taste of Wine and Art Festival
2014 Five Star Employee of the Year, Ritz Carlton, Denver

Luke Shaffer

Manager of Content Development

Executive Chef experience
Certified Bourbon Steward
BBQ expertise
Featured on TastingTable.com
2017 Chef’s Roll “Featured Instructor of the Month”

Adele Ledet

Chef Instructor, Culinary Arts

Owner & Executive Chef of Creole Vegan catering business
Featured on MarthaStewart.com
Plant-based & holistic nutrition and wellness expertise
Background in recipe development, research, product development

McKenzie Dokter “MJ”

Chef Instructor, Culinary Arts, Plant-Based Culinary Arts

Executive Chef experience
Plant-based & holistic nutrition and wellness expertise
Featured on MarthaStewart.com
Featured in HUFFPOST
Featured on TastingTable.com

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Escoffier News

Group of Chef Kristen Kish and students wearing chef coats and aprons, standing together in two settings — one inside a commercial kitchen with hanging pots and one outside a brick building — smiling and posing as a team

Press Releases • 3 min read

Escoffier Announces Expansion of Chef Kristen Kish’s Chef-in-Residence Role for 2026

SCHAUMBURG, Ill., Jan. 15, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Auguste Escoffier School of Culinary Arts has announced the expansion of its partnership with two-time Emmy-nominated Top…

January 16, 2026