CYP Food Service Worker

About the role

The Child and Youth Program (CYP) Cook performs food preparation and service tasks in a Child Development Center (CDC) and may assist with the School Age Care (SAC) Program.

Responsibilities

• Food Preparation and Service
  • Prepare meats, poultry, seafood, vegetables, fruits, sauces, and gravies according to menus.
  • Cook, season, and portion food for all meals using standardized recipes; plan, regulate, and schedule cooking to ensure food is ready at the correct temperature and time.
  • Plan and prepare entire meals; use special or difficult recipes requiring multiple interrelated steps, many ingredients, and lengthy preparation.
  • Use complex preparation methods such as cooling or chilling.
  • Monitor temperatures and steam pressures; evaluate food condition during cooking; turn and baste meat to enhance flavor and prevent uneven cooking or drying.
  • Modify recipes for ingredient quantities, servings, and equipment capacity.
• Kitchen Maintenance
  • Clean serving carts, food preparation areas, cupboards, drawers, and dishwashing areas.
  • Set up and operate mechanical dishwashers; scrape, soak, scour, and scrub heavy cooking utensils.
  • Perform heavy-duty cleaning including ceilings, exhaust hoods, spaces under and behind equipment, floors, and walls using powered equipment.
  • Clean walk-in refrigerators and freezers; sanitize garbage rooms.
  • Maintain a clean and orderly work area in accordance with NAVMED P5010 and local policies.
• Food Storage
  • Label and date items in refrigerators and freezers; store leftovers per sanitation and health standards.
  • Store canned, boxed, and frozen items in designated food storage areas.
  • May unload food and supplies from delivery trucks.
• Additional Responsibilities
  • Comply with security, fire, and sanitation rules, policies, and regulations.
  • Ensure compliance with U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) standards and all related regulations.
  • Serve as a mandatory reporter for suspected child abuse or neglect to Family Advocacy and Child Protective Services per local policy.
  • Perform other duties as assigned.

Requirements

• Conditions of Employment
  • Obtain and maintain a valid food handlers’ card.
  • Pass E-Verify employment verification; resolve any discrepancies as a condition of employment.
  • Pass a pre-employment physical; provide immunization records; be free of communicable diseases; obtain required immunizations.
  • Complete required training certificates and maintain certifications required by Federal, State, and/or national accreditation bodies for DoD Child and Youth Programs.
  • Satisfactorily complete background checks including National Agency Check with Written Inquiries (NACI).
  • Enroll in Direct Deposit/Electronic Fund Transfer within 30 days of hire.
• Qualifications
  • Knowledge of food handling techniques, personal hygiene standards, and safe work procedures.
  • Thorough knowledge of food preparation principles, including techniques for developing or revising recipes and cooking food in large quantities.
  • Working knowledge of sanitation standards to prevent contamination, including cleaning equipment between raw and cooked food uses and proper sanitizing procedures.
  • Skill in performing multiple procedures to prepare and cook food in large quantities.
  • Skill in solving practical production problems, evaluating final food products, and initiating corrective action when quality standards are not met.
  • Skill in developing standardized recipes for quantity cooking; ability to expand and modify recipes based on equipment capacity and serving adjustments.
  • Skill in managing multiple cooking processes to serve food at peak quality with safe temperature and time controls.
  • Ability to coordinate complex food preparation activities involving simultaneous cooking of varied items with different timing, ingredients, and interrelated steps.
  • Ability to communicate effectively in English, both orally and in writing, with strong interpersonal skills.
• Education
  • High School Diploma or equivalent; provide copy of diploma, GED, or college transcripts (showing degree awarded). If degree not yet awarded, also provide high school diploma or equivalent.

Additional information

This position is subject to Department of Defense drug-free workplace requirements. Use of illegal drugs is prohibited and may result in removal from Federal service. Marijuana use is illegal under Federal law regardless of state laws and will result in withdrawal of a tentative job offer and ineligibility to apply for DoD positions for six months.

All individuals providing child care services on a DON installation or in a DON-sanctioned program must complete the Installation Records Check (IRC), including checks of Substance Abuse Rehabilitation Program (SARP) records, Family Advocacy Program (FAP) records, and installation security/base checks.

Per DoDI 1402.05, incumbents are automatically disqualified for convictions (including non-judicial punishment) for sexual offenses, criminal offenses involving a child victim, or felony drug offenses. Automatic disqualification also applies if found negligent in a civil or administrative proceeding involving the death or serious injury of a child or dependent person in their care.