By Whitney Baxter
From growing up cooking dinners for her family to leading unique culinary workshops for the Iowa State community, Jenn Behnke has shown innovation and growth during her time on campus.
A graduating senior in culinary food science from Terre Haute, Indiana, Behnke will represent the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences as student marshal during the Iowa State University Commencement on May 11 at 9 a.m. in Hilton Coliseum.
For Behnke, the plan was to come to Iowa State, take classes and leave. That all changed when she got to know Erica Beirman, teaching professor in food science and human nutrition, and became Beirman’s culinary food science program student intern.
“Erica has changed my perspective on college, and she has got me so much more involved,” Behnke said.
One of Behnke’s biggest tasks has been planning and putting on various culinary workshops that are open to the public and hosted by the Culinary Science Club. These workshops have taught participants how to make a variety of culinary creations – pasta, coffee, scones, sushi – but Behnke’s absolute favorite workshop is the one about how to make charcuterie trays.
“I can be so creative and essentially take an idea and turn it into a full-on workshop, coming up with themes and what participants will do,” Behnke said. “Leading these workshops has definitely increased my confidence.”
Beirman said Behnke has made tremendous impacts as a leader in the Culinary Science Club and in developing programs to recruit students to the culinary food science major.
“Jenn really is a gem, and I am going to miss her so much,” Beirman said. “But she leaves a legacy behind as she has built the club membership from roughly 25 attending to standing room only in a room that holds 42 people. She makes sure all students feel welcome and comfortable in the space and challenges all of them to get involved and not to stand on the sidelines.”
Behnke also has participated in a couple of food-related challenges at the Student Innovation Center and the Grain Processing Corporation Challenge organized by the Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition.
The creativity and innovation Behnke has shown through her involvement on campus led to her receiving the C.S. Liew Innovation Impact Award from the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences.
In addition to her culinary food science courses, Behnke added minors in microbiology, sustainability and journalism, allowing her to build a solid foundation in food microbiology, how to sustainably manage food and the art of writing recipes. She also has taken classes at Des Moines Area Community College to expand her culinary arts background.
“If you have an opportunity to do something, go and do it while you can,” Behnke offered as advice to fellow students.
For Behnke, that included completing an internship as a culinary scientist for Ajinomoto Health and Nutrition North America. Based on her experience working in the company’s kitchen and lab, they created an assistant culinary scientist position that she will begin following graduation in May.
The internship and job would not have been possible if Behnke hadn’t gone up and talked to the Ajinomoto chef, who was a guest speaker at one of the Culinary Science Club’s meetings.
“Don’t be scared to talk to people in the industry,” Behnke said. “It’s such a tight-knit community, and everyone is willing to help you out.”