Today, The Culinary Institute of America (CIA) is widely recognized as the world’s premier culinary college. Its industry-wide reputation for excellence is evidenced by our outstanding faculty, passionate students, and more than 50,000 accomplished alumni across more than seven decades. Such a distinguished legacy, however, would not have been possible without extraordinary achievement, talented people, and amazing stories that date back to 1946, when two women shared a daring vision. 946: The Start of Something Big

Connecticut-based attorney Frances Roth may have never worked in a restaurant, but she was one of the most influential pioneers in culinary education. From her perspective on the industry, she was determined to establish a school that would become “the culinary center of the nation.” With support from co-founder Katharine Angell, who was married to then-Yale University President James Rowland Angell, Mrs. Roth turned her passion into a new vision for educating chefs.

On May 22, 1946, the New Haven Restaurant Institute opened its doors in downtown New Haven, CT as the first and only school of its kind in the United States. Specifically created to train returning World War II veterans in the culinary arts, the Institute enrolled 50 students and employed a faculty consisting of a chef, a baker, and a dietitian.