Institute of Culinary Education Celebrates Exceptional Growth in 2022

NEW YORK (January 23, 2023) – 2022 was a year of evolution and achievement for the Institute of Culinary Education (ICE) and its graduates. The school's East and West Coast campuses continued on their multi-year growth path with 9% more students graduating in 2022 compared with 2021, and more than double 2020. In 2022, ICE had students enrolled from 34 different states and 23 different countries. Looking ahead to 2023, the institution seeks to continue its evolution with the addition of new programs and more. 

In the past year, ICE's Culinary Arts & Food Operations online diploma program grew to include accreditation and approval in 16 states. In 2023, ICE plans to launch the program in additional states so the majority of the country will be able to receive a culinary education from the Institute of Culinary Education. The program takes 16 months to complete, requiring an average time commitment of 15 hours a week. In 2023, the school will also grow in the online space to add virtual diploma programs in Pastry & Baking Arts, Plant-Based Culinary Arts, Restaurant & Culinary Management and Hospitality & Hotel Management. 

Across both campuses, ICE seeks to provide its students with ongoing opportunities tailored to the evolution of the restaurant and food industries. To that end, this year, the Health-Supportive Culinary Arts program will change its name to Plant-Based Culinary Arts, which reflects the plant-forward nature of the curriculum. In the spring, poultry and fish will be removed from the program's ingredient list and for students living a vegan-lifestyle, the program will continue to offer dairy and egg alternatives.

ICE opened a second campus in Los Angeles in 2018, and in the past five years, the campus has continued to flourish. In 2022, the campus added Associate degree programs in Pastry & Baking Arts and Health-Supportive Culinary Arts (now named Plant-Based Culinary Arts). In early 2023, the campus has added two more courses in Intensive Sommelier Training and The Techniques of Artisan Bread Baking.

"In my more than 25 years as ICE's CEO, my goal has always been to prepare students for success in the broad and ever-evolving culinary and hospitality spheres," says Rick Smilow, ICE's chairman and CEO. "That means expanding our program offerings and providing new opportunities. We offer our students foundational skills and knowledge regarding the creative, business and operational aspects of professional cooking, baking and more. I'm proud of how ICE has grown and especially proud of the success our students and alumni have earned, in part due to the education they received here."

From Michelin stars to James Beard Awards, ICE's alumni also saw success in 2022, earning accolades from these organizations as well as top media outlets like the New York Times, Los Angeles Times and more. Most notable was the James Beard Foundation, who awarded 2001 ICE alum Mashama Bailey their "Outstanding Chef in America" award. Chef Bailey is the Chef and Co-Owner of The Grey in Savannah, Georgia, and is the first Black chef in America to receive this award, generally regarded as the highest singular honor for a chef in America.

ICE's students also continue to thrive, landing externship placements in some of the most prestigious restaurants across the country. Some highlights include positions in restaurants helmed by esteemed chefs like Daniel Boulud, Tom Colicchio, Daniel Humm, Missy Robbins, Thomas Keller, Grant Achatz, Massimo Bottura, Stephanie Izard, Jordan Kahn and Michael Cimarusti, to name a few. 

In seeking to provide unique opportunities for student growth, ICE hosted more than 30 demonstration, panel and training events for 2022, including chefs such as Daniel Boulud, Stefano Secchi, Scott Tacinelli and Angie Rito. The school's commencement ceremonies included addresses from chefs Jacques Pépin, Antonia Lofaso, Mary Attea and Shennari Freeman. Plus, the school trained actors Jeremy Allen White and Ayo Edebiri in preparation for their starring roles in the acclaimed television show "The Bear." 

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About the Institute of Culinary Education
The Institute of Culinary Education (ICE) is one of the largest and most diverse culinary schools in the world with campuses in New York and Los Angeles. Established in 1975, ICE offers award-winning six to 14-month career training programs in Culinary Arts, Pastry & Baking Arts, Health-Supportive Culinary Arts, Restaurant & Culinary Management, and Hospitality & Hotel Management, in addition to professional development in Artisan Bread Baking, The Art of Cake Decorating and Intensive Sommelier Training — with more than 15,000 alumni, many of whom are leaders in the industry. ICE also offers continuing education for culinary professionals, hosts 400 special events each year and is home to one of the world’s largest recreational cooking, baking and beverage programs with 26,000 students annually. ICE’s 74,000-square-foot, cutting-edge campus in New York City and its 38,000-square-foot Los Angeles campus were designed for inspiration, creativity and community. ICE continues to grow and evolve with the launch of its LA campus in 2018, the addition of the Health Supportive Culinary Arts program in 2019, an agreement with the International Culinary Center in 2020, the introduction of sommelier training and associate degrees in 2021 and the introduction of an Online Culinary Arts program in 2022. Visit us at ice.edu or join us on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube at @iceculinary to find your culinary voice™.

CONTACT:
Stephanie Fraiman
Public Relations Director
Institute of Culinary Education
(212) 847-0703
sfraiman@ice.edu