ServSafe
While Serving Time
Who’s in the Room
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Name
What you do
Why you came to the session
Please share a brief story of time when you
questioned food safety whether that be at home,
work or community potluck, or at home.
Workshop Description
With ever increasing unemployment at all socio-economic levels,
the need for post-secondary training for a livable-wage job is
extremely high. This need is amplified for those leaving
incarceration. This presentation highlights the pilot project
undertaken by Duluth ABE, AEOA ABE and the Northeast
Regional Corrections Center (NERCC), a member of AEOA’s
consortium. Through this project we provided a managed
enrollment course in the corrections facility to twelve residents
covering ServSafe, customer service, Math for Kitchens, Reading
for Kitchens and digital literacy, along with employment related
seminars. All twelve completed and were successful in gaining their
ServSafe certification.
Presentation Objectives
At the end of this session, participants will be able to:
• Identify steps to establish creative partnerships.
• Understand implementation of programming in an innovative
manner between several ABE partners.
• Identify strategies for implementing short-term certificates in
various facilities.
• Distinguish program success and areas for program
enhancements.
• Utilize and apply lessons learned from NERCC ServSafe pilot
to inform future individual consortium partnerships.
Case Study
Mike H.
The Program
Why – The Concept
Who – The Partnership
• Assist population at NERCC in
• AEOA Adult Education – part of
gaining needed skills for
employment.
• Meet the needs of the facility to
have skilled workers for kitchen
and customized meat processing.
• Gain additional hours for
NERCC Adult Education and
engage residents in learning.
a Community Action Agency.
Fiscal agent for NERCC and
Duluth for Transitions dollars.
• Duluth ABE – part of a school
district. Regional partner.
• Northeast Regional Corrections
Center – minimum security
correctional facility. NERCC is
also a “work farm” setting.
Subgrantee of AEOA.
Partner Roles - AEOA and Duluth
• Assist in development of program curriculum.
• Assist in teaching first pilot.
• Duluth brought their expertise in digital literacy
instruction.
• Northstar Digital Literacy.
• Sharing of participant hours for State reporting.
Partner Roles - NERCC
• Authorize attendance within facility guidelines.
• Provide facility and main teacher.
• Provide career counseling and opportunities to
engage with employers.
Pilot Structure
• The ServSafe pilot began on Oct. 27, 2014 with 12 participants identified
from the NERCC population.
• All potential participants were provided the TABE survey in reading and
math and the RIASEC model career assessment and interest inventory.
• The pilot included:
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Test preparation for the ServSafe exam (22 hours).
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Computer literacy training (Northstar Digital Literacy 6 hours).
Contextualized education in reading/writing and math for kitchens ( 4 hours and 16
hours respectively).
Money and credit management (1.5 hours).
Job Basics - job skills training (2.5 hours).
Curriculum Pieces
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Quizlet
Flashcards
Videos
Other
Results
• All 12 participants completed the pilot.
• All 12 passed the ServSafe exam.
• Seven students achieved one level gain; one student
achieved two level gains in math.
• Gained nearly 700 student contact hours.
• Components of ServSafe curriculum mandatory for
any resident working in the kitchen facilities.
What worked
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Team teaching for the pilot.
Reading and PowerPoints were helpful for the learners.
Classes were taught in 3- 3.5 hour blocks.
Study groups were facilitated.
Re-reading the ServSafe book in class really helped with
comprehension and problem-solving.
• Students enjoyed chapter quizzes and practice exams to gauge
personal progress.
• Cohort model helped students focus on educational and
employment goals, build relationships and gain interpersonal skills
for the future.
Challenges
• Fitting the education program within the facility
guidelines.
• Choosing which people are the right fit for the
program.
• No access to online tools for ServSafe or computer
training.
What Would We Do Different
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More outside class time to study is needed, but can’t mandate it.
Implement more group study sessions.
Add more open ended questions to the curriculum.
Online quizzes, games, etc. would be more engaging (if
allowed).
• More structure for the contextualized curriculum, allowing for
different levels of learning for those with different skill sets.
• More employer engagement. – ex. guest speakers.
Wins
• All 12 students passed the course and the ServSafe test.
• The math class generated a lot of interest from other
individuals in the facility who wanted to attend.
• Students who attended wanted to continue math after the
program and signed-up.
• Residents reported that the course was an opportunity to
gain a certificate that would help them gain employment
post release.
• Most importantly, residents reported that the class gave
them “hope” for their future and pride in their abilities.
Replication
• Would be difficult to replicate in a one-room schoolhouse
setting. With modifications can be done on an individual
basis.
• Three hours gets to be overwhelming, even with breaks,
but need to make it worth traveling to the site (if not in
corrections setting).
• Registering the agency for providing ServSafe to the public
was a convoluted process.
• How course is delivered – time, career pathways version or
extended NERCC vs community.
Questions?
Presenters
• Tracy Chase
tracy.chase@aeoa.org 218-259-4524
• Traci Laughlin
laughlint@stlouiscountymn.gov 218-729-3454
• Beth Peterson
beth.Peterson@aeoa.org 218-750-4885
• Patricia Fleege
patricia.fleege@isd709.org 218-********
Thank you for attending.