Food Service Lead

Food Service Lead

The Department of Corrections, Division of Institutions, is recruiting for a Food Service Lead positions at the Wildwood Correctional Center (WCC) located in Kenai, Alaska.

What You Will Be Doing:

• Lead prisoner kitchen teams in preparing and producing meals for approximately 500 individuals per meal at Wildwood Correctional Complex (WCC), including both the main and satellite kitchens.
• Maintain security and control of prisoners while ensuring all safety protocols and institutional policies are followed
• Ensure all special diets are accurately prepared for each meal, including vegetarian, diabetic, allergy-sensitive, religious, and medically prescribed diets.
• Oversee the production and preparation of all bakery items served at WCC.
• Verify that food items pulled match planned menu and supervise the reparation and serving process.

Our Mission, Values, and Culture:

The mission of Wildwood Correctional Center is to provide a secure environment for staff and offenders that promotes public safety and provides an opportunity for staff development, and reformative offender programming to ensure safety and efficient resources management. At Wildwood we strive to provide a positive environment for all staff and offenders leading to a cohesive and productive place to work.

Benefits of Joining Our Team:

• An opportunity to make a difference in people's lives
• Career development and training
• Excellent benefits
• Being part of a team consisting of a rewarding group of professionals

The Working Environment You Can Expect:

Wildwood Correctional Center is a state adult correctional institution housing inmate of all custody levels. This position works in the kitchens and will interact with inmates daily.

Who We Are Looking For:

We are interested in candidates who possess some or all of the following position specific competencies:

• Accountability: Holds self and others accountable for measurable high-quality, timely, and cost-effective results. Determines objectives, sets priorities, and delegates work. Accepts responsibility for own actions and decisions. Complies with established control systems and rules.
• Food Service: Knowledge of preparing and serving food for consumption.
• Adaptability: Adjusts planned work by gathering relevant information and applying critical thinking to address multiple demands and competing priorities in a changing environment.

Minimum Qualifications:

Any combination of training and/or progressively responsible experience that provides the applicant with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to successfully perform journey-level work in planning, preparing, and serving food and drink as well as directing and reviewing the tasks assigned to lower-level food service staff.

Essential Core Competencies:

Knowledge of food terminology, measuring devices, kitchen equipment, and serving information; and personal hygiene, general sanitation, and safe work standards to safely use and clean kitchen, food service equipment, and dining area.

Applicable skill in weighing, measuring, and assembling ingredients to prepare beverages and foods for cooking or serving; and serving beverages and foods in the proper portions, manner and sequence, and with proper table setting techniques.

The ability to communicate effectively with staff and customers, which may include the requirement to read, speak, write, and understand English; keep records and complete forms following procedures; recognize produce and food products which do or do not meet quality standards; meet quality/quantity control, safety, and sanitation standards; perform tasks in logical sequence; select guidelines, standards, or procedures appropriate to the task; do simple arithmetic calculations and record appropriately; assist in preparing foodstuffs which meet the standards of taste, temperature, appearance, texture, and diet requirements, if applicable to the work assignment; demonstrate a customer service orientation, and display sensitivity and interest in customer concerns, needs, and limitations; and adapt to changing conditions, schedules, or meal requirements on short notice.

Position-Specific Competencies:

The lead worker will be required to assign, monitor, train, and evaluate daily tasks; make decisions and set and balance priorities; coordinate tasks of others and work efficiently; ensure adherence to work schedules, quality standards, safety and security rules; give clear instructions; recommend appropriate solutions to difficult situations; and motivate others.

Additionally:

Applicable skill in preparing and modifying menus and recipes according to volume and dietary needs, or special requirements of emergency crews; and researching recipes and preparing complex foods and yeast pastries such baking and decorating layer cakes and preparing ethnic specialties for special occasions.

Ability to assign, monitor, train, and/or evaluate daily tasks of kitchen help which may include institutional residents and inmates or emergency fire fighter crew.