Toast Partners with C-CAP to Enable Culinary Careers for Underserved Youth Across the U.S.

Toast.org commits $500,000 in a partnership with C-CAP to support the culinary training program and expand service offerings to program alumni.

Toast (NYSE: TOST), the all-in-one technology platform built for restaurants, today announced a partnership with Careers through Culinary Arts Program (C-CAP) through Toast.org, the company’s social impact arm, to support youth culinary training programs across the U.S. with a commitment of $500,000.

In following its mission to enrich the food experience for all and create a healthier, more sustainable, and equitable world, Toast.org will collaborate with C-CAP as part of a two-year commitment. C-CAP is a U.S.-based nonprofit organization providing culinary training and career readiness skills primarily to underserved middle and high school students, 90% of whom identify as people of color. 

In addition to providing support for C-CAP’s core programs, C-CAP will use Toast.org funding to create a new Alumni Engagement Program, with a comprehensive alumni database, and will hire an Alumni Program Manager to support ongoing programming. This new capability will allow the organization to better understand the career journeys of its alumni, facilitating valuable connections between trainees and alums and strengthening the employment pipeline. It will also allow them to introduce new programming and improve existing courses for students and alumni, while opening up new avenues for impact measurement and fundraising in the interest of long-term sustainability of the organization.

Marcus Samuelsson, internationally acclaimed chef, restaurateur, author, and longtime C-CAP Co-Chair, knows firsthand about the impact that C-CAP has on the lives and careers of participating students. C-CAP students and alums have successfully secured apprenticeships and jobs across his network of restaurants, including Hav & Mar (a Toast customer), Red Rooster Harlem, and the newly-opened Metropolis. 

“C-CAP helps develop skilled culinary talent and provides incredible opportunities to students from underserved communities, which in turn enriches the restaurant and hospitality industries,” said Samuelsson. “With Toast.org’s support we are able to help build a more diverse and inclusive restaurant community.”

Since its inception in 1990, C-CAP has served over 350,000 students, many of whom have pursued successful careers in the restaurant industry. Today, C-CAP supports student success through a number of programs including job training and internships, scholarships, apprenticeships, cooking competitions and more. Students have gone on to work at acclaimed restaurants like Daniel, Redbird, Tarbell’s, and Vaca (opened by a C-CAP alum, and a Toast customer).

“With this support from Toast.org, I’m excited to see how C-CAP will continue to meet the needs of our growing alumni community, supporting both the long-term sustainability of our organization while providing new opportunities for alums to plug into our programming,” said Tanya Steel, C-CAP Executive Director.

Toast also plans to donate Toast hardware and software for select C-CAP training programs, enabling students to gain hands-on experience with the industry-leading technology platform. Toast employees will also donate their time and expertise by supporting Toast POS learning and volunteering with C-CAP’s job readiness program by reviewing resumes and conducting mock interviews. 

“At Toast, we are always looking for ways to give back to the restaurant community, and continue to help build the future of this industry we love and work with every day,” said Jonathan Grimm, Co-Founder of Toast and CTO of Toast.org. “We’re thrilled to be partnering with C-CAP and to be bringing the best of the Toast community—including our people, our products, our partners and customers, and our philanthropy—to support the next generation of leaders in the restaurant industry.”

To learn more about the social impact arm of Toast, visit Toast.org. For additional information about C-CAP, please see ccapinc.org.