AAC® Board and Committees

American Academy of Chefs Chair

Americo “Rico” DiFronzo, CEC®, CCA®, AAC®
Executive Chef
Union Oyster House
41 Union Street
Boston, MA 02108-2494

American Academy of Chefs Vice Chair

Joe G. Aiello, CEC®, AAC®, HOF
Apropo Catering, Inc.
4318 River Rd.
Schiller Park, IL 60176

Ambassador

John A. Minniti, CCE®, AAC®, HBOT, HOF

Past Chair Council

Bert P. Cutino, CEC®, AAC®, HBOT, HOF
John A. Minniti, CCE®, AAC®, HBOT, HOF
Thomas J. Macrina, CEC®, CCA®, AAC®, HBOT, HOF
Mark G. Wright, CEC®, AAC®

Chair Honorary Board of Trustees

Bert P. Cutino, CEC®, AAC®, HBOT, HOF

Honorary Board of Trustees

John D. Folse, CEC®, AAC®, HOF, HBOT
Phillip Jones, Jones Dairy Farm, Chairman/President/CEO
Thomas J. Macrina, CEC®, CCA®, AAC®, HBOT, HOF
Ferdinand E. Metz, CMC®, AAC®, HOF, HBOT
John A. Minniti, CCE®, AAC®, HBOT, HOF
Harold S. Small, HAAC®, HBOT, JD
Dr. Michael J. Martello, HBOT, HAAC®, Emeritus

Chair Culinary Hall of Fame

Roland E. Schaeffer, CEC®, AAC®, HOF

Culinary Hall of Fame

Wolfgang D. Geckeler, CEC®, AAC®, HOF
John Kaufmann CEC®, AAC®, HOF
Walter W. Leible, CMC®, AAC®, HOF
John A. Minitti, CCE, AAC, HOF, HBOT

Regional Academy Directors

Central Region

Brian A. Hardy, CEC®, CCA®, AAC®
Patrick D. Mitchell, CEC®, AAC®

Northeast Region

David Leo Banks, CEC®, AAC®
Linda S. Musch, CCE®, AAC®

Southeast Region

Michael J. Rigberg, CEC®,CCE®, CCA®, AAC®
Alan L. Romano, CEC®, CCE®, AAC®

Western Region

Eric D. Ernest, CEC®, CCA®, AAC®
Jacqueline Hamilton, CEC®, AAC®
Frank Leake, CCC®, CCE®, AAC®

Military Regional Director

Rene J. Marquis, CEC®, CCE®, CCA®, AAC®

Sergeants-at-Arms

Kenneth B. Trout, CEC®, CCA®, AAC®

Committee Chairs

Public Relations and Marketing

Deborah Bando-Duit, CEC®, AAC®

Scholarship Committee

Rajeev Patgaonkar, CEC®, AAC®, Chair, Industry Member
Richard M. Hoffman, CEC®, CCA®, AAC®, Northeast Regional Member
Peter F. Vossenberg, CEC®, CCE®, CCA®, AAC®, Southeast Regional Member
Eloise Fernandez, CEC®, CCE®, AAC®, Western Regional Member

Senior Chefs Committee

Vincent Blancato, Southeast Region Member
Charles Duit, CEC®, AAC®, Central Region Member
Anthony Graffeo, CEC®, AAC®, HOF, Northeast Region Member
Denise Graffeo, CEC®, AAC®, HOF, Northeast Region Member

Fellowship Committee

Paul O’Toole, CEC®, AAC®

Nominations and Elections Committee and Special Projects

Frank Leake, CCC®, CCE®, AAC®, Chair
Kenneth B. Trout, CEC®, CCA®, AAC®

Lifetime Achievement Committee

Dale Miller, CMC®, AAC®
James G. Rhoads, CEC®, AAC®
Linda S. Musch, CCE®, AAC® - Advisor
Jim M. Tinkham, CEC®,CCA® AAC® - Advisor