A decade of world-class culinary training

MANILA, Philippines — Global Academy has celebrated many a milestone, yet the world-class culinary school will continue to make culinary arts more accessible to Filipinos. Ten years ago, culinary arts was a fad reserved for the affluent. There were only a few culinary schools in Manila, and tuition in these schools was prohibitive.

“We had a realization that professional kitchen jobs required professional training,” according to Benny Ledesma, founder, president and chief executive officer of Global Academy. “We felt that many Filipinos could potentially turn their lives around through the culinary arts. Filipinos are known the world over for their talent and perseverance. We thought that if we could somehow make world-class culinary training more accessible to more Filipinos by bringing down its cost, it could open up opportunities for them to improve their own lives. And, of course, by being productive, they also contribute to lifting the country up.”

 Ledesma surely knows what he’s talking about. A Restaurant Management graduate, he also studied Culinary Arts at Le Cordon Bleu in Australia, and experienced working in Westin, Hilton and Rushcutters Bay Hotels in Australia.

World-class culinary training is being served to students in Global Academy’s four branches. It opened its doors to its first batch of enrollees in 2007, initially in Pasig. Within four years, three other branches (Makati, Alabang and Quezon City) were opened to accommodate the increasing demand.

These days, the school is run like a close-knit family with three heads. Benny oversees the business aspect while chef Mike Yap serves as vice president and chief operating officer who is in charge of the school’s strategic academic directions. Anna Ledesma, Benny’s wife, leads the marketing initiatives to ensure that Global Academy’s message reaches the most number of potential students.

“You come to work and it always feels like this is a family affair,” Anna said. “We went through a lot of growing pains in the past 10 years. I think these experiences have brought us closer together, and truer to our vision of changing as many lives as we can.”

The best thing about challenges is that they make the victories taste even sweeter. Benny said, “Every win, every first, every achievement great or small is celebrated. This is because every single thing is a product of collective hard work.”

History of firsts

Global Academy’s 10-year history is also mostly a history of firsts. In 2012, Global Academy became the first culinary school to be conferred the World Association of Chefs Societies (WACS) Recognition of Quality Culinary Education. WACS, which was founded in 1928, is a global network of over 100 chefs associations worldwide.

“The WACS recognition meant that our culinary programs met the global WACS standards.

More important, this gave our graduates an edge in the global arena, because their Global Academy diploma was recognized worldwide,” chef Mike said.

In the local scene, Global Academy also holds the record of being the Philippine Culinary Cup’s (PCC) first and only back-to-back champion in 2013 and 2014, and the first and only three-time champion in 2017. Philippine Culinary Cup is the country’s most prestigious WACS-accredited annual culinary competition. It draws competitors from local and international culinary schools, hotels and restaurants.

At the core of these many firsts is the organization’s drive to innovate. “It’s a tendency to look at something – a process, a product, a setup – from different perspectives, and see how we can make it better,” Benny said.

Global Academy’s course offerings illustrate this propensity for innovation. “Our courses are designed in a ladderized manner. The modules are compact so graduates can focus and learn, making them employable is as short as eight months. There are entry-level courses based on the interest of the student, so they can either learn how to bake or cook professionally. They can also decide to do both, and later progress to add modern cooking or international cuisines – or both for advanced cooking skills,”  Benny said.

A decade done, more to come

Asked what they consider is Global Academy’s greatest contribution to the culinary scene, all three said it is undoubtedly the thousands of hardworking, talented culinary professionals who passed through Global Academy’s kitchens and are now setting the standards of professionalism wherever they are. The programs are designed to instill discipline and adherence to high standards, so students learn how to work under pressure and deliver consistent results under any circumstances.

“That’s the good thing about starting something with a noble cause. When you look back, it’s easy to see if you’ve been successful or not,” Benny said. “When we look at our graduates, what they have achieved, how their lives have changed, our hearts swell with pride. And then we are reassured that we’re doing something right.”

What’s in store for Global Academy in the years to come? Benny said, “our first 10 years have also made us more confident of our strong position in the culinary education scene. For the next decade, we’re ready to shake things up in the industry. We are excited about growing more than we have in the past. We are looking forward to consistently raising the bar in terms of quality culinary education. We want to see more Global Academy graduates rocking the kitchens of the world.”