HISTORY
A Taste for Teaching and Culinary Arts
Lippert
two children and needed a job. “A new
restaurant, The Embers, opened in Mt.
Pleasant in 1958,” Lippert says. “I was hired
as the pots-and-pans boy, but soon worked
my way up the ladder through various
kitchen positions. In two years, I was second
in charge of the kitchen.”
students today, he says. “Read, watch how
others handle their positions and store
this knowledge. Do not be afraid to ask
questions, keep an open mind and analyze
what goes on around you. Stay focused, set
goals and do not be afraid to adjust them.
Remember, you are changing every day.”
Nowhere has that been as apparent as in
Lippert’s dealings with students. A retired
culinary educator, he feels fortunate to have
satisfied his two loves—teaching and culinary
arts—over a long and satisfying career. “I
have always had two passions: the hospitality
industry and teaching. I was fortunate to be
involved with both,” Lippert says.
“So, when in 1969, Mt. Pleasant [Mich.] Public
Schools started a Vocational Technical Center
that was to include a culinary-arts program, I
said, ‘What a great opportunity.’” The idea was
to make the culinary-arts program the best
in Michigan, and use it to showcase classes
at the Vocational Technical Center. They had
hired the right man for the job. “We soon
became known statewide,” Lippert says. The
program was also showcased at the National
Restaurant Association Expo in Chicago and
the National American Vocational Association
convention in Atlanta. Lippert was twice
named culinary/vocational instructor for the
state of Michigan.
When Lippert graduated, he told Clarence
Tuma, the owner, that he wanted to work for
him. Tuma said if Lippert would give teaching
a year and still wanted to come back, he
would rehire him. “It was only a matter of six
weeks, and I was back working part-time,”
Lippert says. “It was enjoyable, working with
the students and being able to continue
working with food. During the school year, I
worked part-time, and in the summer, I filled
in for key people taking vacations. It allowed
me to expand my knowledge of food and
the total restaurant operation.”
Lippert joined ACF Capital Professional
Chefs & Cooks Association of Greater
Lansing Michigan in 1979. He wanted to
become certified and network with others
in the field. Among the many honors he has
received are the inaugural 1990 Central
Region Chef Professionalism Award and the
2005 Central Region Rene Roncari Senior
Humanitarian Award.
He had landed in a career at which he
excelled, and he began on a quest to
become the most effective culinary educator
possible. “There were several things that
were important to my staff and me. The first
was to know the students by name, and use
their names respectfully. Then, we would
instruct with the theory that if a student
couldn’t do a project, we had failed, not the
student, because part of the job was to
motivate and inspire students.
He was inducted into the American
Academy of Chefs in January 1988. “The
Academy allowed me to further develop
my leadership skills and become a stronger
professional,” he says. “When you associate
with the best, you automatically improve your
standards.” Lippert is also a member of the
Honorable Order of the Golden Toque and
Les Amis d’Escoffier Society of Chicago.
Lippert came to foodservice early—and
honestly. He grew up during the Great
Depression, when money was scarce and
many families, including his, raised most of
their food. “I remember my mother canning
almost continuously to feed our family of
five boys. I always enjoyed working with her
in the kitchen. She was one great cook, and
taught me a lot of the food basics.”
“We decided that our program would be run
like a hospitality business. The business,
then, would be no better than its weakest
link, and to improve, we all had to reach
down and pull the weak link up. Everyone
had to help the poorest students in the
program. Expectations were high, but never
out of their realm or unrealistic. I would
expect more of them than they thought
they could accomplish.”
Now retired, and still living in Mt. Pleasant,
Lippert stays involved with his chapter, and
he’s still an advocate for students. “Who
wouldn’t want to teach, to be able to see
young adults’ eyes light up because they
understood or have developed a new skill?
To watch young minds start to discover a
portion of their potential they never knew
existed. As an instructor, you never know
what you might have said or done that
left a lasting impression on your students.
You are rewarded when they return, and
say, ‘If it hadn’t been for you, I would have
been nothing.’
His first real taste of working in foodservice
came in college. He was married, had
Lippert was also free with advice for
his students—advice that holds true for
“I always felt that I was a teacher who cared
about his students. Students deserve a
caring instructor.”
