Vanessa Gardner

Trudy's Kitchen makes homemade style Idaho food with good portions and many menu items. The job required memorizing more than 20 recipes, creating 1 new soup per day and curating specials when requested. My job entailed cooking, cleaning, opening and closing. I helped with prep at least 10 times and other areas in the kitchen as well as learned new cooking skills.

• Prepared food items in compliance with recipes and portioning control guidelines.
• Communicated closely with servers to fully understand special orders for customers.
• Instructed new staff in proper food preparation, storage, use of kitchen equipment and sanitation.
• Maintained well-stocked stations with supplies and spices for maximum productivity.

Thai express is a fast food franchise that uses fresh produce and products to make fast and simple Thai food. My duties included cleaning, prepping meat, veggies and sauces. I had the responsibility of opening, closing occasionally, filling in shifts, catering and delivering/serving food for cater. I also took on a managerial role and took care of logistics, inventory, health inspectors and sending people to their breaks. I learned important skills including knife sharpening, all vegetable cuts, making curry/ all sauces, portioning food, weighing food, processing raw meats, and many cleaning tasks, inventory, sales, communication skills and managing people.

• Maintain high standards of sanitization and cleanliness
• Put away daily deliveries of food ingredients
• Replenish garnishes, raw foods, and other ingredients for serving lines
• Help prepare and cook 200 entrees per night
• Communicated with front-of-house staff to ensure a steady supply of clean dishes
• Cleaned dishware for up to 200 meals per night

Working at Target has given me the best experience of all my occupations. Being a team member means learning how to treat guests, work with coworkers to finish tasks, take initiative to teach others and grow constantly. My job was pushing freight onto the sales floor and maintaining my section of the store. This job challenged me to always learn something new. I got the opportunity to cross-train at Starbucks as well as multiple other areas of the store which has enhanced my knowledge on coffee and people while giving me much needed life skills.

• Created side caps and displays that improved sales by bringing more eyes to the section. Made at least 5-10 side caps and product islands.
• Won Employee of the month in July (6/1/23) for excellent work, exceeding tasks and becoming a barista as well as a team member!
• Coordinate with cross-functional teams to identify process gaps and develop solutions, resulting in high sales in the personal care, pharmacy and multiple surrounding areas.

My role as an assistant teacher had me working with children in daily learning activities, teaching curriculum, feeding the children, changing diapers, starting naptime and cleaning. I assist the head teacher with whatever needs done in the classroom, and help the center director outside the classroom. I also fill in as lead when my head teacher is unavailable and when other classes are short staffed. I communicate with parents and other teachers to help them understand curriculum and resolve issues. This job required me to have my CPR certifications and know basic first aid.

• Identified curriculum improvement opportunities to enhance operational effectiveness and attention span for 20+ children.
• Coordinate with cross-functional classrooms to create expressive projects and activities for the children.

At Pizza Hut I was a prep cook on Saturdays and on weekdays I was the closing cook. My tasks included making pizza, cutting and boxing, and deep frying wings or sides. I got used to working fast and multitasking while making great food. It taught me a lot about teamwork and determination. This job also helped me understand what to do when customers are upset or angry. I was trained on serving, answering calls, dishes and administering breaks.

• Prepare and cook menu items according to set recipes and food safety standards
• Help prepare and cook 75-300 meals daily
• Put away monthly deliveries of food ingredients
• Cleaned dishware for up to 150 meals per day.
• Kept station clean and sanitized at all points
• Organized daily prep stations
• Help prepare various menu items for 100 + customers per day.

My main task at Sarsaparilla Ice Cream parlor was making coffees and scooping ice cream, but many other responsibilities came with the job. I had to reserve and clean hotel rooms, make lunches, stock supplies and chocolates, clean and close/open the shop. Many days I had useful interactions with customers regarding our services that helped me grow in communication and customer service. I kept my station cleaned and sanitized at all times, memorized regular's orders, and memorized the full menu by two months. I was also responsible for making waffle cones and bowls.

• Coordinate with cross-functional teams to identify process gaps and develop solutions, resulting in high functioning work environment and positive workplace.
• Made 100s of waffle cones and waffle bowls
• Checked in 5-10 people into hotel at young age
• Made delicious lunch for 50+ people

Through online college classes at Lane Community College, I was able to take classes on childhood development, childhood education, education (teaching) and business.

My senior year I spent at Hermiston High school where I really bloomed in the quality education they offered there. I was able to take AP classes, a healthcare class, calculus and a physcology class I really embraced. Part of this schooling was online and the other part was in person. I graduated with high honors and a 3.5 GPA. 

At Idaho City High School and Elementary I spent my childhiid going above and beyond. I always had honors, great grades and involved myself in many activities in the community. My GPA was 3.5-4.0 and I was invited to high honor luncheons every year they were hosted. In Highschool I was president of my class from freshman year to junior year until I left Idaho City.

During High School I was able to take dual credit classes online to give me early college credit.

During High School I was able to take a dual credit Anatomy and Phisiology class.

At BSU I was able to take classes in highschool as dual credit classes to earn college credit.