The Birth of The Bread Project
There was widespread unemployment when the economy went into recession in 2000. Susan Phillips and Lucie Buchbinder, specialists in subsidized housing, were approached during this recession by their low-income tenants to start a job training program. Recognizing the urgent need for such programs, the two women conducted some research to ascertain what types of programs might be needed. Their findings showed that baking was a trade with a growing demand and a practical career path. Baking also appealed to their clients, who typically had few academic qualifications and limited English skills.
Susan and Lucie then discovered that many of their clients were comfortable with baking because it was a familiar task. In addition, they learned from interviewing people in the food industry that baking could be taught in a short time, which would be valued by their clients because they needed to find work quickly to sustain themselves and their families.
Determined to help low-income people improve their lives, Susan and Lucie organized a board of directors and incorporated The Bread Project in 2000 as a 501(c)(3) public benefit corporation. From the start, The Bread Project's mission has been to promote economic self-sufficiency by providing bakery training and job assistance to people with low income.
The Bread Project's Evolution
Susan and Lucie soon learned about the San Francisco Baking Institute in South San Francisco. They met with the owner who gladly agreed to help them by providing the kitchen and office space and an instructor at cost. The Bread Project then started its first class in 2001 with Lucie as the volunteer executive director and Susan as the board chair. The program attracted agencies such as Youth Employment Partnership, Oakland Private Industry Council, and San Mateo County Human Services, all of whom paid for the training of their clients.
In 2003, a board member approached the principal of the Berkeley Adult School to start a similar program in the East Bay. The Adult School principal was impressed by the program’s early success in South San Francisco and agreed to provide kitchen, classroom, and office space as well as the salaries of the culinary instructors. The Bread Project also added a part-time outreach coordinator to increase program enrollment.
In the spring of 2004, when the Berkeley partnership with public education was so cost effective, the Board of Directors decided to fully transfer the program to the East Bay. Soon, the Oakland Adult School and Society of St. Vincent de Paul were also eager to partner with The Bread Project, and the program expanded into Oakland in the fall of 2004.
After overcoming some logistical problems, The Bread Project reopened its Oakland program in November 2006 at a venue provided by the Oakland Unified School District’s Programs for Exceptional Children.
With the economic downturn, the need for job training increased, and workforce development organizations were pressed to meet the demand. To respond to this need, The Bread Project expanded into an 8,000 sqaure feet bakery facility in Emeryvilile in early 2010, thanks in large part to the generous support of Semifreddi's Bakery and Chevron Corp. The Oakland training was transfer to the larger Emeryville site, and the program was restructured to focus on specific sectors in the food industry that showed potential for growth: food service and food manufacturing. In addition, The Bread Project increased efforts to build its social enterprises as a means to strengthen its fiscal and social sustainability.