Month: April 2018


NAPA, CA – California Center recently met with Culinary Institute of America (CIOA) President, Dr. Tim Ryan and Provost Mark Erickson at their Copia Campus for detailed discussions and planning concerning China opportunities.

SICHUAN/SHANGHAI, CHINA – California Center’s Program Director, Lei E recently accompanied CIOA’s Asia Admission Officer, Stephanie Hsu to Shanghai and Chengdu to introduce the school and recruit Chinese students. Sichuan Tourism University’s President Lu gifted a book he wrote on Sichuan cuisine in western kitchens.




Sichuan Tourism University is a leading culinary school in China. California Center, Culinary Institute of America, and SCTU are going into an agreement on students, staff, events, and program partnership and exchange.


HYDE PARK, NY –In recent weeks, California Center President/CEO Margaret Wong and Director of Food and Agriculture Programs, Lei E met with Culinary Institute of America (CIOA) Provost, Mark Erickson to sign a strategic partnership for collaboration and development of programs in China at the CIOA headquarters in Hyde Park, NY. The group along with CIOA’s Dean of the School of Business and Management Studies, Dr. Annette Graham, also toured their impressive New York campus site.

The MOU signals plans for the California Center to assist CIOA in establishing training, education, and innovation centers and eventually campuses in China to extend CIOA’s mission of widely providing the world’s best culinary education and leadership to industries, professionals, and consumers.

The California Center will work together with CIOA to collaborate on the vision of providing leadership in China to support advancement around key culinary/food issues, trends, and imperatives in the ever-changing food world by focusing on professional excellence and innovation, health and wellness, world cuisine and cultures, sustainability and food ethics.

“We are excited to assist the leading culinary school in the world to establish its footprint in China,” said Margaret Wong, President/CEO of California Center. “We look forward to getting to work and plan to start right away by creating an immediate presence for CIOA in Shanghai,” added Wong.

Only one college, the Culinary Institute of America, has advanced the food professions and the American diet for over 65 years. And the CIOA vigorously carries forward this legacy of leadership in its education programs, research, and service — and through the global impact of its 49,000-plus alumni!



Los Angeles, CA – Rapid advancement in the application of Artificial Intelligence has world leaders contemplating the role of human labor as automation shapes the future of work and impacts global trade and business. Chinese and California researchers have provided significant collaborations in this field, in part addressing a number of key questions and challenges: Where is the role for human capital in this evolving landscape? How can organizations and global partners collaborate to support a new educational pipeline that cultivates human oriented skills and growth? How can the United States and China meaningfully partner in this new area for mutual gain while mitigating some of its inevitable externalities?

On Thursday, May 3rd, California Center’s Senior Vice President, Gordon Hinkle will join with an expert panel of speakers from: Intel Corporation; University of California, Irvine; Oppticity; and the California Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development for this special discussion at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, in Beverly Hills, CA (2:20pm-3:20pm session). The panel will be moderated by Ralph Simon, Founder & Chief Executive, Mobilium Global Limited.

The panel is a special session of the California-China Business Summit, presented by China Week and the Milken Institute. Governor Jerry Brown to deliver the keynote. For more information, visit: China Week: California-China Business Summit