Steve DeShazo
Contact: Cesar Canizales
214-378-1859;
ccanizales@dcccd.edu
For immediate release — Sept. 26, 2016
(DALLAS) — Steve DeShazo’s favorite part of his job, as director of the Food and Hospitality Institute at El Centro College, is his interaction with students, and for him, it’s also the most rewarding.
This dedication to the students, in addition to his work with the local community, earned DeShazo the 2016 Chef Educator of the Year, which he received from the Dallas chapter of the Texas Chef Association.
According the American Culinary Federation, the recognition is awarded to educators whose knowledge, skills and expertise enhance the image of professional chefs, and whose leadership and guidance help students develop their careers to become successful chefs.
“There’s no bigger honor than being recognized by your peers,” DeShazo said. “That makes this award very meaningful to me personally because these folks who are members of the Texas Chef Association are my friends, too.”
“The Chef Educator of Year award is a recognition of the work I’ve done in the last year, as well as for the whole body of work that I’ve done in 14 years as an educator,” DeShazo added.
For DeShazo, it’s all about the students. “That’s what I’m here for. I’m fortunate to have a career that is wrapped around the things that I love personally,” he said.
Other people who know DeShazo said his interest in students and professionalism set him apart.
“For Steve, it’s all about the students,” said Patrick Mitchell, executive chef and culinary advisor at Ben E. Keith Foods. “It is very fitting for him to win the award. Steve is a great educator, and he’s been doing it for years. He’s always on an even keel and is always looking out for the best interests of his students. He is the perfect person for El Centro to have at its FHI.”
Mitchell, who has known DeShazo for more than a decade, added, “He’s just a really steady icon for education for the Dallas chapter and on the state level as well.”
“I think it’s well-deserved, and I think it’s fantastic! If someone should get it, it should be him,” said Jean-Claude Plihon, executive chef at the Grand Hyatt DFW, who has known DeShazo for years.
Plihon said DeShazo’s actions in the aftermath of the July 7 shootings in downtown Dallas, when DeShazo fired up the kitchens at El Centro’s FHI to serve meals for the officers who were investigating the shooting, demonstrated DeShazo’s contributions to the community.
“It’s a perfect example of his involvement,” Plihon stated.
Plihon said he can see the changes at El Centro since DeShazo became director at the college’s FHI. “He has made some fantastic changes, such as his support and leadership of the apprenticeship program at El Centro.”
Jackie Preston, adjunct instructor at the college’s FHI, agreed: “I see the difference that he’s made since he’s been here.”
Preston said that DeShazo’s relationships with local high schools have helped with recruiting in the region.
“The award speaks volumes about the type of person and the type of instructor he is,” Preston added.
Under DeShazo’s leadership, El Centro’s FHI was named one of America’s top culinary schools in 2016 by FSR magazine, a restaurant industry publication. It was the second time in three years that the magazine ranked the school among the best.
“The work of the [Food and Hospitality Institute] program over the past 40 years is the reason why it’s positioned so well to accomplish the task that it’s intended to accomplish: workforce development,” DeShazo said. “That means helping both the industry and members of the community by training them so they can have meaningful careers and make a living for themselves.”
Although he’s been teaching for 14 years, DeShazo’s job as director of El Centro’s FHI means he doesn’t get to teach as much — and he misses that aspect of his job.
“The student relationship is the most rewarding part of teaching. I miss being in the classroom and having that interaction,” DeShazo said. “My student-centered activity is my favorite part of the job; building those relationships – that’s the hospitality spirit.”
To contact Steve DeShazo, email him at
sdeshazo@dcccd.edu. For more information about El Centro’s FHI, please visit
elcentrocollege.edu/food.
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