Dear Selection Committee, February, 2018

It is with great excitement that I am submitting my personal statement for consideration of

acceptance into the Doctor of Education (EdD) in Leadership and Innovation at Arizona State

University’s Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College. After researching the online information on the

website, watching Dr. Mertler’s video, and speaking with a current student about her perspective,

I believe this program will give me the experience, knowledge and network to transform the

School of Hotel and Restaurant Management at Northern Arizona University.

MLFTC EdD Admission Requirements Academic and Professional Experience

Master’s Degree MEd from NAU May 2018

3.00 Cumulative GPA 4.00 GPA

Practicing Educator-Leader Chef Lecturer at NAU: curriculum

committee, COFS committee, strategic

planning committee, Coordinator of

International Programs and School

Partnerships

Make a difference Innovative classroom and course design,

study abroad teaching experience

Strengthen the cohort 20+ years working as a kitchen leader

mentoring strong, passionate people

Commitment to Continuous Improvement Lifelong cumulative learner, husband, father,

teacher, mentor, community member

With over 20 years of professional cooking experience with the Four Seasons and Ritz-Carlton

hotel companies and teaching and administrative experience with the New England Culinary

Institute I am familiar with overcoming stressful experiences and extreme time management. I

am highly motivated to work hard and complete my doctoral degree at ASU so that I will

continue to grow as an NAU faculty member and influence innovative improvements to our

program as described in the local problem below.

A local challenge at the School of Hotel and Restaurant Management is program content

and curriculum currency. The school has over thirty years of success as evidenced by the

national rankings and the positions that the graduates have attained. With over 30% of the

faculty retiring in the next five years and lack of a deep program review, I believe this our most

important work over the next five years. With so many changes to curriculum design, college

student populations, and industry technology, an overhaul is necessary to keep our school

thriving. I believe this program will help me better define the challenges we face, collaborate

with the students, staff, and faculty, and industry partners to make a program re-vision, and

continuously communicate our key performance indicators and share our successes for the

benefit of our internal and external guests. A major side effect of lacking in content and

curriculum currency is a 15% decrease in enrollment since 2014. Several other factors lead to

this outcome but one of the root causes is our slip on staying innovative and current within our

field and within curriculum and instructional design. I realize this problem’s subject is large and

has many moving parts so another reason why this EdD is important to me is to help me narrow

my focus so my efforts are effective and lasting. One of the sayings I tell my students when

teaching a new multi-step cooking technique is how do you eat an elephant…one bite at a time.

My decision to take on the challenges of this program are fueled by my passion and
professionalism to move our program forward. My hope is that by successfully taking on this

challenge I will learn how to hone my vision, sharpen my communication and expand my

network for the purpose of affecting positive change in my school.

For the reasons I stated above about how why I am choosing this program there are more

specific reasons I feel this is the right school for me. A tight cohort model, close faulty

relationship, and action research based practice are the main reasons why I feel this program is

designed for me. As I was researching programs it became clear to me that I required a program

that was 100% online, would give me flexibility in how I could apply content, and allowed me to

practice what I was learning. This program meets all three of my needs. I am excited to begin

this next step in my learning, my career, and my life with ASU.

Finally, I wish to thank the selection committee for considering me as a viable and

enthusiastic candidate that will contribute a wealth of work and teaching experience as well as a

passion to inspire and learn from others.

Thoughtfully,

Mark Molinaro, CEC