SE culinary arts instructor and pastry chef Alison Hodges won second place in the American Culinary Federation National Educator of the Year competition this past summer.
Hodges was selected to represent one of the five regions that compete after submitting recipes, lesson plans and letters of recommendation from peers in the industry. She whipped up her pierogi recipe for a live audience in July at the Devos Place Convention Center in Grand Rapids, Michigan. A panel of three judges and 10 students from other culinary schools asked questions to evaluate her teaching skills.
She said the judges were looking for someone with a dynamic personality who could connect well with the students.
“I try to be as funny as possible because if you’re not, they’re gonna fall asleep on you,” Hodges said.
The ACF competition recognizes active culinary educators who demonstrate the ability to help students define and develop their careers by using their skills and abilities to provide a strong foundation for their future success.
Hodges spent roughly 15 years in the industry before beginning her work as an educator 26 years ago. She’s spent the last two decades preparing TCC students for their professional careers in the culinary arts.
Former TCC culinary student Yael Iglesias has served crowds of over 100,000 at AT&T stadium and is now a sous chef at Docent, a Dallas steakhouse set to open Oct. 1. Even though it’s been a decade since she’s been in Hodges’ classroom or worked with her as an adjunct instructor, she still chuckles as she recalls her lessons.
“She’s a hoot,” Iglesias said. “She makes teaching enjoyable, she makes the classes enjoyable, and she makes you feel relaxed. It’s awesome just having her as a teacher. She’s got a lot of knowledge, and even if she doesn’t know something, she’ll look for it.”
Iglesias still calls her mentor when she needs help or advice, and she lovingly calls Hodges “mom.”
“She will help you out as long as you want the help and as long as you want to improve and get better,” Iglesias said. “She will extend that hand and give you everything you can absorb.”
SE student Jennifer Day is nearing the end of the program, and she said she’s sad to be taking her last class with Hodges. Day said her teaching style is very hands-on and straightforward yet relaxed.
Because baking is such a science, she said, anything can ruin your dish, and you won’t know until after the fact. Hodges encourages questions and won’t hesitate to step in if a student is struggling.
“Whether you think that it’s a dumb question or not, she will tell you, ‘Ask. That’s why you’re in school. That’s why I’m here. So you know what you’re doing and you’re ready to be `out in the real world and be able to use your skills,’” Day said.
When she started her culinary journey, Day planned to focus solely on savory foods, but the program requires classes in the fundamentals of baking. She said she had no interest in baking or pastry, but after taking her first class with Hodges, she fell in love with breadmaking and decided to pursue her baking and pastry certificate.
Day is working toward owning her own catering business and storefront that would specialize in Mexican cuisine but also offer a variety of dishes, both savory and pastry.
“We’re sending our students out there in the world with the skills they know — not to get an entry level job,” Hodges said. “They’re going to be hired as sous chefs and on up.”
Hodges has also earned the Dallas Chapter Educator of the year and the State Educator of the year from the Texas Chefs Association in 2024. That same year, fellow instructional chef Katrina Warner won the ACF Educator of the Year award.
Hodges said they’ve known each other since 2006 and are best friends. They are always pushing each other to do better and keep raising the bar. She said they have performed on the celebrity chef stage at the state fair, and people would come up and tell them how funny they were – even comparing them to Ethel and Lucy from “I Love Lucy.”
“Alison, Katrina, [Sherry] Sipho – that team of educators are so in-sync, and they care for their students,” Iglesias said. “They go above and beyond, and I still can look back to my days at TCC and remember pretty much every time that I was in the kitchen with one of them.”
Day said she feels for the students who won’t get to have a class with Hodges after she retires at the end of this school year.
“They are going to be missing out on an amazing chef – an amazing person,” Day said. “I just want to thank her for everything she taught me … and for always believing that her students can do everything that they set their minds to.”
