Since 1886, National Louis University has stood for high-quality education in Chicagoland and beyond. Follow our blog to get useful information, meet our students and faculty, and learn about NLU.
888.NLU.TODAY (658.8632)
Subscribe
Get Email Notifications
College presidents and student veteran leaders from 27 universities across the Chicago area visited National Louis University April 17 to attend an event titled “Student Veterans: Good Mission, Good Business.””
The event focused on how higher education serves veterans and their families, helping them transition to civilian life, preparing them for careers and connecting them to employment. Continue reading
Illinois will close out the school year with a shortage of 1,000 teachers, and the state legislature and the recently-appointed state schools superintendent, Carmen Ayala, are considering how to remedy the shortage, wrote reporter Yana Kunichoff in Chalkbeat.
She quoted Robert D. Muller, dean of National Louis University’s National College of Education, commenting on the fact that teacher educators have been wrestling for years with factors which have led to the shortage.
The article discusses various proposals which have been made, from mandating a minimum salary for teachers statewide to providing payment for student teachers. Muller observed that legislators, who tend to be focused on what’s good for their districts, can reframe their perspectives for what’s good for the entire state, education-wise.
Kunichoff wrote:
“As the new state board takes an in-depth look at the crisis and as legislative proposals continue to wind their way through Springfield, Muller muses about what he would tell anyone considering a career in the classroom.
“If you want to give back to your community and make a substantive contribution, what better way than teaching?” he said. “Seasoned educators who are passionate about what they do have the ability to change lives.”
A culinary student at Kendall College at National Louis University recently kept her cool despite the intense pressure of designing a menu, cooking and serving in a culinary competition sponsored by France’s oldest food and wine society, the Chaine des Rotisseurs.
The Chaine was founded in 1248 as King Louis IX’s guild for goose roasters and lives on as a modern global association dedicated to cooking, chefs and the restaurant, hospitality and beverage industries.
Pierre-Andre Checchi, a chef-instructor at Kendall College of Culinary Arts and Hospitality Management at National Louis University, has an enviable track record in coaching Kendall students in participating in the highly intense contest. In the past, four of his students have won the Midwest regional competition, though none have yet conquered the national or international competition.
Checchi and this year’s student contestant, Alyssa Sato, from the Chaine’s Chicago chapter, attended the regional competition of the Chaine’s Young Chefs culinary contest in Indianapolis recently. Sato had to face off against chefs from Illinois, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Kansas, Indiana, Michigan and Iowa, who must be younger than 27 to participate.
Competitors have to produce a 3-course meal for four people in 4.20 hours. That breaks down to 30 minutes to design and write their menus, 3.5 hours to cook them and 20 minutes to serve them.
Each contestant receives a mystery box of ingredients and is required to use at least 50 percent of these ingredients. They are judged on their kitchen skills as well as taste, originality and presentation.
Here’s what was in the mystery box for Sato and the others: New York strip loin from a local farm, rainbow trout, parsnips, granny smith apple, smoked pork jowl and smoked hickory syrup.
Exercising her knowledge and skills, here is what Sato created.
Crudo of trout with sea salt and lemon with a baby bok choy salad, fried lotus root and pickled daikon radish.
NY strip loin involtini with Japanese eggplant, parsnip puree and smoked jowl lardons, grilled loin and red wine tarragon sauce.
Smoked hickory syrup pannacotta with fresh berry and green apple salpicon, minted meringue.
After Sato finished the marathon cooking session, she finished in second place out of the group and received a bronze medal. The gold medal is reserved for the Young Chef who wins the national competition in May.
“For a first-time professional competition. Alyssa did a fantastic job and her skills were spectacular under pressure,” Checchi said. Congratulations!
Learn more about Kendall College at National Louis University’s Culinary Arts program
Throughout the month of April, National Louis University students, faculty and staff are welcome to join in community-wide events with exciting activities to grow your allyship, understand each other and be empowered by the experiences of others.
Gender Empowerment Month will bring speakers, workshops, and documentaries to campus. Throughout the month, the NLU community will be challenged to grow, engage in enriching discussions and help us celebrate our opportunity to be empowered. Events will take place in Chicago, Wheeling, Goose Island and Lisle. We will also be streaming several events online to allow everyone in our community to participate. Continue reading
Jean-Luc Laramie serves as Hotel Chicago West Loop’s general manager.
Hotel Chicago West Loop, which is known for its art gallery and its streetscape art in guest rooms, has named an alum of Kendall College of Culinary Arts and Hospitality Management as its general manager.
Jean-Luc Laramie earned his B.A. in hospitality management in 2012. He enrolled at Kendall after taking a hotel management training program in Amman, Jordan, then worked as a bell boy while taking classes at Kendall. Continue reading
Gina Nunez posed before the Rock n’Roll half marathon in July 2018.
“What do you do when you’re stressed?” Some people like to color, some people meditate, and some like to just keep to themselves. I like to run.
Running has become my stress relief. I serve as the Conduct Officer and Title IX Investigator for the University, so I see some pretty heavy issues in my daily work. Leaving work at work isn’t always easy, especially when people trust you with their very personal experiences. When I’m definitely feeling under pressure, I run (not away from my problem) to gain clarity and when I’m done, I feel prepared to tackle the issue with renewed energy and a fresh perspective. Continue reading
When five Kendall College at National Louis University students started brainstorming how to create a tablescape/landscape display for the Chicago Flower and Garden Show, the magic started early in the process and kept on going.
Their “Mary Poppins”-themed display won first place in the Flower Show’s Text to Vote competition, becoming the crowd favorite of the 40,000 attendees. It beat 11 other contestants–including 10 professional companies which design weddings and corporate events. It also enchanted Chicago writer Megy Karedes, who included it in her Forbes magazine column about the creativity of the tablescapes. Continue reading
Judah Viola, Ph.D., dean of National Louis University’s College of Professional Studies and Advancement, was published in the Chicago Tribune newspaper March 22 writing about how Chicago neighborhoods can heal from poverty and violence. Continue reading
Greta Kringle, a National Louis University alum, accepts the Golden Apple award.
Golden Apple, a nonprofit organization that recognizes excellence in education, visited National Louis University alum Greta Kringle ’13 in her Chicago classroom Wednesday with a very special surprise: one of the 10 prestigious, highly-coveted Golden Apple Awards for Excellence in Teaching in 2019.
Golden Apple representatives visit each winner in their classroom and present the award with great fanfare in front of the winner’s school leadership, family and students. In this case they arrived at Eric Solorio Academy High School in Chicago’s Southwest-side Gage Park neighborhood, where Kringle teaches 10th-12th-grade science. Continue reading
Ashley Boling Molyneaux earned her Ed.S. degree from National Louis University in 2012.
National Louis University alum Ashley Boling Molyneaux grew up in Elkhart, Indiana and lived in Chicago for many years while earning two master’s degrees and working as a teacher and administrator in Chicago-area schools.
She received her second graduate degree, an Ed.S. in Administration and Supervision, from National Louis University in 2012. Continue reading