Outstanding Alumni Award

The Brennan School of Business Outstanding Alumni Award is awarded to an alumna/us whose personal, professional and civic accomplishments demonstrate successful integration of the values of a Dominican University education into all aspects of his/her life. 

2011 Outstanding Alumni Award Recipient

Christopher Koetke

christopher_koetke "As an MBA student, Chris consistently impressed his professors with both the quality and quantity of his work. As one of those professors, I can personally attest to the joy and challenge of having Chris in your class. He always brought his “A game” to class – and demanded nothing less of his professors. As an alumnus, Chris is a living example of the Brennan School’s mission of educating the next generation of leaders to have impact with integrity." - Dean Arvid Johnson

Christopher Koetke, executive director of Kendall College School of Culinary Arts and the vice president of Laureate International Universities Center of Excellence in Culinary Arts, received his MBA degree from Dominican in 2007.

Koetke joined the Kendall College School of Culinary Arts in 1998, where he served as a culinary instructor, associate dean and dean of the School before becoming executive director in 2011.  Under his leadership, the School was awarded the 2008 Academy of the Culinary Arts Cordon d’O r Gold Ribbon Cooking School of the Year.  Also under his leadership, the School launched a sustainability initiative which, in 2007, was awarded the Green Award from Food Service Consultants International.  In 2008, Kendall became the only culinary school in the country to receive Certified Green Restaurant status for both its dining room and cafeteria from the Green Restaurant Association.  In 2009, Kendall was named an official partner of the National Restaurant Association Conserve: Solutions for Sustainability initiative. 

Koetke began cooking professionally in 1982 and has worked in some of the finest kitchens in the world.  The host of the Emmy-nominated cooking show “Let’s Dish,” Koetke is the author of the award-winning The Culinary Professional (Goodheart-Wilcox Publishers, 2010), a comprehensive introductory high school culinary arts textbook.  In 2009, he was named the Cooking Teacher of the Year by the International Association of Culinary Professionals and in 2010 the Foodservice Educators Network International honored him with its inaugural Award for Excellence in Culinary Education. 

Koetke is a member of the board of the American Culinary Federation Foundation Accrediting Commission, the Illinois Restaurant Association Educational Foundation, the International Food Editorial Council and the National Restaurant Association.

Read more about Koetke in the Dominican Magazine Alumnae/i Spotlight.