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Faculty Member Tanya Heck recognized as a WorldChefs Certified Pastry Chef

Durham College’s (DC) own Tanya Heck has been awarded a prestigious Worldchefs Global Certification.

An experienced chef who has taught at DC for over a decade, Heck is now a WorldChefs Certified Pastry Chef. This internationally recognized designation acknowledges her extensive experience in the culinary industry as well as her commitment to improvement and excellence.

To become certified, she completed a rigorous process including professional competency testing, a review of her qualifications and career achievements, and more.

“Pursuing this certification was both a personal and professional goal. I believe strongly in lifelong learning, and I want to model that mindset for my students and peers,” Heck said.

Her accomplishment further adds to the value of DC’s Culinary Management and Culinary Skills programs, which are delivered by faculty members who are both highly trained and internationally recognized. Students learn their trade in the state-of-the-art W. Galen Weston Centre for Food and work in the award-winning Bistro ’67 teaching restaurant, receiving training that is both current and aligned with international industry expectations.

As Heck and her colleagues in the Faculty of Hospitality and Horticultural Science continue to provide students with the best in culinary education, she’ll proudly add this certification to her resume.

“It’s incredibly rewarding to have your work and growth recognized in this way,” she said. “It’s an honor to be recognized globally for the work I do every day in our classrooms, kitchens, and campus community — and it motivates me to keep pushing our program forward.”

Faculty Member Dave Hawey Earns Prestigious Worldchefs Global Certification

Chef Dave Hawey, Faculty Member in Durham College’s Faculty of Hospitality and Horticultural Science, has been awarded the prestigious Worldchefs Certified Chef de Cuisine certification, underscoring his expertise, commitment to sustainability, and dedication to culinary excellence.

To earn this globally recognized level of achievement, Hawey provided evidence of his years of experience, his job duties, and previously earned credentials. The process also involved responding to detailed questions covering topics such as food safety, customer service, and his philosophy on zero-waste food production. Additionally, he developed and presented three original, complex recipes as part of the evaluation.

“As a believer of both lifelong learning and professional certification, I’m proud to be certified by Worldchefs,” said Hawey. “Obtaining this certification shows my culinary management students that regardless of your age or level of experience, possibilities of personal and professional goal achievement are possible because of organizations such as Worldchefs.”

A Faculty Member in the Culinary Management program at DC for nearly 15 years, Hawey is passionate about hands-on learning and professional development.

“Teaching in the kitchens and classrooms, alongside my colleagues, is what I enjoy the most,” he said. “The Whitby campus has evolved tremendously over the years, and with our state-of-the-art facilities, we can offer a top-tier culinary education. The support from management and my fellow faculty has allowed me to engage in professional development activities that enhance our program, including charcuterie production, butchery, and cheese making. These elements differentiate us from other culinary programs and keep our curriculum dynamic and industry relevant.”

Kelly O’Brien, Associate Dean, Faculty of Hospitality and Horticulture Science, emphasized the impact of Hawey’s achievement on students and the program.

“Recognizing Dave for his Worldchefs Certified Chef de Cuisine global certification highlights his expertise, dedication, and commitment to sustainability within our programs,” she said. “His achievement not only reflects his pursuit of culinary excellence but also strengthens the program’s credibility and alignment with global industry standards.”

For students, this recognition offers direct value—learning from a chef with deep industry connections, a strong focus on sustainability, and an adaptive approach that ensures the curriculum evolves in response to industry demands, said O’Brien.

“Dave serves as a role model, exemplifying continuous learning, innovation, and professional excellence. His expertise enhances the student experience, equipping them with relevant, forward-thinking, and globally recognized skills.”

DC alumna Victoria Rinsma is Canadian finalist in S. Pellegrino Young Chef Academy competition

Young chef and Durham College (DC) Culinary Skills alumna Victoria Rinsma recalls first learning about the S. Pellegrino Young Chef Academy competition as a student from Raul Sojo, executive chef of DC’s teaching-inspired restaurant Bistro ’67. Today she’s the Canadian finalist, and headed for the world competition in Milan, Italy, next fall.

Rinsma’s winning dish was called “Across the Sea and Home Again,” a two-part meal that includes a chawanmushi (Japanese savory egg custard) made with smoked ham hock, and a main course of striped bass with nixtamalized butternut squash and preserved tomatoes.

Rinsma says her dish represents her culinary journey, with the first part an ode to her grandmother’s split pea soup and the second to her culinary development and especially the influence of her mentor Rafael Covarrubias, executive chef at the Michelin-star Hexagon Restaurant in Oakville, Ontario, where Rinsma has worked for the past six years and is now sous chef.

“I wanted the dish to convey my story, all the people I’ve met and the cultures I’ve practiced cooking,” said Rinsma.

S. Pellegrino Young Chef Academy Competition is now in its sixth edition and receives submissions from more than 1,000 young chefs from 15 countries worldwide. The Canadian final was held at George Brown College in October, where each chef had five hours to produce their signature dish before presenting it to a panel of top chef judges. Rinsma’s win was a culmination of months of training with her mentor (a previous Pellegrino competitor) who worked with her on timing, flavours and process.

Rinsma has known she wanted to be a chef from an early age, and recalls watching cooking shows with her grandmother, pretending to stir pots of water alongside the chefs. Calling her grandmother an excellent home cook and the inspiration for her own professional aspirations, Rinsma started cooking seriously herself in high school. Growing up in Pickering, Durham College was a natural choice for her training, and Rinsma threw herself into both the program and into the mentorship she found at Bistro ’67. 

“I can’t say enough good things about the program and my experience. I dove in and did as much as I could. I started working in the Bistro in my first year—I was really keen. When Chef Raul started, we worked really well together, and he even allowed me to be part of menu development,” said Rinsma, adding that she even first heard of her current restaurant Hexagon while at DC.

Now that she is focused on competing in Milan, Rinsma knows that she will have many more hours of training ahead as she refines her dish even further and steadies herself for the challenges of competition.

“I’ll have to prepare myself mentally for that, the first round was a lot, and the finals will be even more,” says Rinsma, noting that her mentor also went to Milan, so she plans to call on his expertise along with the rest of the advisors she is gathering around her, calling it a team effort.

“It was not just me that was in the competition, it was a huge group effort, and I’m lucky enough to be the face of it.”