School Cook / Chef

Preschool Cook / Chef Job Description

Position Summary The Preschool Cook/Chef is responsible for preparing and serving safe, nutritious, and appealing meals and snacks for children and staff while maintaining a clean, sanitary, organized, and properly stocked kitchen. Because the kitchen serves young children, food safety, allergy awareness, sanitation, portion control, and following the school menu are essential responsibilities of this position. The Cook/Chef is also a member of the entire school team and is expected to assist with reasonable school-related responsibilities when kitchen duties are completed.

Qualifications

• High school diploma or GED preferred.
• Previous cooking, food-service, childcare, school, or commercial kitchen experience preferred.
• Must meet all state childcare licensing and food-handling requirements.
• Food Handler certification required or must be obtained within the required timeframe.
• Must successfully complete required background checks and school training.
• Must understand basic food safety, sanitation, cross-contamination prevention, and proper food storage.
• Must be able to follow menus, recipes, portion requirements, and allergy restrictions.
• Must be dependable, punctual, organized, flexible, and professional.

Food Preparation & Meal Service The Cook/Chef is responsible for:

• Preparing breakfast, lunch, and snacks according to the school's approved menu and schedule.
• Following established recipes, serving sizes, and portion requirements.
• Preparing food appropriate for the ages of the children being served.
• Ensuring meals and snacks are prepared and delivered to classrooms on time.
• Preparing classroom food containers, serving utensils, milk/water, and other meal supplies as required.
• Properly portioning food to minimize unnecessary waste.
• Following approved menu substitutions when an item is unavailable.
• Not making significant menu changes without administrative approval.
• Ensuring food is properly cooked, cooled, reheated, and held at safe temperatures.
• Maintaining required food-temperature records and other kitchen documentation.
• Returning unused food to proper storage when appropriate and safely disposing of food that cannot be reused.

Food Allergies & Dietary Restrictions Food allergies must be taken extremely seriously. The Cook/Chef must:

• Know and follow the school's allergy and dietary restriction procedures.
• Review current allergy information and understand which children require substitutions or special meal preparation.
• Prevent cross-contact between allergens and other foods.
• Use separate utensils, preparation surfaces, containers, or other precautions when required.
• Clearly identify special meals before they are delivered to classrooms.
• Never make assumptions regarding whether a child can have a particular food.
• Immediately ask administration when there is uncertainty regarding an allergy, dietary restriction, or food substitution.
• Immediately report any food-allergy error or possible exposure to administration.

Kitchen Cleanliness & Sanitation The Cook/Chef is responsible for maintaining a clean and sanitary kitchen throughout the entire day, including:

• Washing and sanitizing dishes, utensils, pots, pans, trays, and food-preparation equipment.
• Cleaning and sanitizing countertops and food-preparation surfaces.
• Sweeping and mopping kitchen floors as needed.
• Cleaning sinks, refrigerators, freezers, cabinets, shelves, appliances, and food-storage areas.
• Properly removing kitchen trash.
• Following proper handwashing procedures.
• Wearing gloves when required and changing gloves whenever they become contaminated or when changing tasks.
• Preventing cross-contamination between raw and ready-to-eat foods.
• Properly labeling and dating opened and prepared foods.
• Following appropriate food-storage and expiration procedures.
• Maintaining refrigerators and freezers at required temperatures.
• Keeping chemicals and cleaning products properly labeled and stored away from food.

The kitchen should be kept inspection-ready at all times Inventory & Food Deliveries The Cook/Chef is responsible for helping maintain appropriate kitchen inventory and supplies. Responsibilities include:

• Checking food deliveries for accuracy and quality.
• Opening delivered food boxes and promptly putting refrigerated, frozen, and dry goods in their proper locations.
• Rotating inventory using a first-in, first-out (FIFO) system.
• Monitoring expiration and use-by dates.
• Informing administration before essential food or kitchen supplies run out.
• Keeping refrigerators, freezers, pantry areas, and storage shelves clean and organized.
• Minimizing unnecessary food waste.
• Informing administration of damaged products, shortages, delivery errors, or quality concerns.

Classroom Meal Delivery When delivering meals and snacks:

• Deliver food according to the school's established schedule.
• Be mindful that classrooms may be conducting lessons, activities, or nap routines.
• Enter classrooms quietly and professionally.
• Avoid unnecessarily interrupting teachers or disrupting children.
• Ensure special dietary meals are delivered to the correct classroom and clearly identified.
• Communicate important meal or allergy information directly to the appropriate staff member when necessary.

School-Wide Team Responsibilities The Cook/Chef is an important member of the school staff, not solely the kitchen staff. When kitchen responsibilities are completed, the employee may be expected to assist with reasonable school needs, including:

• Providing staff bathroom breaks when qualified and directed by administration.
• Helping with school parties, celebrations, and special events.
• Assisting with setup and cleanup for school activities.
• Helping maintain common areas.
• Assisting with other reasonable school-related duties as assigned by administration.
• Attending required staff meetings, professional development, training, and school events.

When kitchen responsibilities are completed, the Cook/Chef should check with the front office or administration to determine where additional assistance may be needed.

Professional Conduct The Cook/Chef is expected to:

• Maintain professional and respectful communication with coworkers, administrators, children, and families.
• Follow directions from school administration.
• Work cooperatively with teachers and other school employees.
• Handle disagreements and frustrations professionally.
• Maintain appropriate behavior and language while on school property.
• Accept constructive feedback professionally.
• Avoid unnecessary conflict with coworkers.
• Maintain confidentiality regarding children, families, and employees.

Angry, aggressive, threatening, disrespectful, or otherwise unprofessional behavior toward staff members, children, families, vendors, or administrators is unacceptable and may result in corrective action according to school policy. Personal Phone & Entertainment Use Personal phone use should be limited according to school policy and should never interfere with food preparation, sanitation, safety, or other job responsibilities. Watching television programs, movies, videos, or other personal entertainment while working in the kitchen is not permitted. If kitchen duties are completed, the employee should check with administration for additional responsibilities rather than using work time for personal entertainment. Safety The Cook/Chef must:

• Follow all food safety and sanitation requirements.
• Immediately clean spills and address slip or fall hazards.
• Safely operate kitchen equipment.
• Keep knives and other potentially dangerous kitchen equipment secured and inaccessible to children.
• Keep cleaning chemicals and other hazardous materials properly stored.
• Immediately report broken equipment, unsafe conditions, pest concerns, or other kitchen safety issues to administration.
• Follow all school emergency procedures.

Physical Requirements The employee must be able to:

• Stand and walk for extended periods.
• Bend, reach, lift, carry, and move food and kitchen supplies.
• Safely lift and carry reasonable quantities of food, milk, kitchen supplies, pots, pans, and equipment.
• Work around ovens, stovetops, refrigerators, freezers, and other commercial kitchen equipment.
• Perform repetitive food-preparation and cleaning tasks.

Attendance & Dependability Because meals and snacks must be prepared and served at specific times each day, dependable attendance and punctuality are essential functions of this position. The Cook/Chef is expected to arrive on