![\"Outside](\"https:\/\/news.utoledo.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Tajiana-Poellnitz-MAIN-3H1A9119.jpg\")
Now a junior, Tajiana Poellnitz returned to UToledo to earn a bachelor\u2019s degree in Asian Studies, and hopes to open a nonprofit culinary readiness program for less-fortunate communities.<\/p><\/div>\n
Now a junior pursuing a degree in Asian Studies, Poellnitz first joined UToledo in\u00a0fall\u00a02011 pursuing a\u00a0bachelor\u2019s degree in\u00a0early childhood education with a minor in English to be an international English teacher\u00a0before leaving for\u00a0nine\u00a0years later to raise her son.<\/p>\n
It was during this time away from the University that she pursued her passion for cooking.<\/p>\n
\u201cI became a self-taught private and traveling chef,\u201d she said. \u201cI\u2019ve had the joy of teaching kids how to cook. Clients and families trust in me to travel near and around the country, preparing meals for holiday staff parties at mental health facilities, sorority chapter dinners and high school class reunions.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her expertise has led her to being featured on various news programs in her hometown of Cincinnati and privately cooking for Cincinnati Bengal players such as Tee Higgins, Auden Tate, Trayveon Williams and Cam Taylor-Britt.<\/p>\n
\u201cI landed a spot in a program through the Freestore Food Bank called Cincinnati COOKS! in 2018,\u201d Poellnitz said. \u201cThrough that program I received my manager\u2019s ServeSafe certification and was able to display my skills with guiding the Cincinnati Red\u2019s family in making pasta from scratch, all the way to assisting as a vendor at the Taste of NFL. It was then I knew this is surely my newfound passion to not only help but service others.\u201d<\/p>\n
During the pandemic, Poellnitz wrote a cookbook for her son, which has a planned publication date in 2026.<\/p>\n
“After I decided to give the private traveling chef life a chance, I instantly considered my son and what business I could come up with for him. That\u2019s when I thought of a kid\u2019s cookbook: \u2018Mama Said Breakfast, Snack, Lunch, and the Naptime,\u2019 \u201d she said. \u201cThis kid-friendly as well as adult-informative cookbook covers the importance of educating children on various foods, encouraging parents to make grocery shopping fun and educational as well as teaching them other cooking skills.\u201d<\/p>\n
Poellnitz returned to UToledo in fall 2024 to pursue a degree in Asian Studies.<\/p>\n
“I have a deep, inner love for Japan and its culture,\u201d she said. \u201cI grew up taking Japanese from kindergarten through eighth grade, with a gap in structure throughout high school due to budget cuts, and\u00a0starting back\u00a0during my first go-round at UToledo from 2011 to 2015.\u201d<\/p>\n
It was her desire to help others that led her on a study abroad mission to Les Cayes, Haiti, with Dr. Sammy Spann, senior associate vice president and dean of students.<\/p>\n
Spann said Poellnitz had a true passion for working with others.<\/p>\n
\u201cI have had the privilege of watching Taj grow up here at The University of Toledo. I first met her when she enrolled in a service-learning course that included a week of service in Haiti,\u201d he said. \u201cFrom the start, Taj stood out. She pushed herself to build deep and meaningful connections with classmates she might not have otherwise met.<\/p>\n
\u201cTaj\u2019s path to her degree has not been easy, and she has faced challenges along the way. What I admire most about her is her determination and her unwavering commitment to her dreams. Whether she\u2019s writing children\u2019s books or building her catering business, I know Taj will continue to make a lasting impact on the world.\u201d<\/p>\n
Poellnitz said she hopes to one day open a nonprofit culinary readiness program for less-fortunate communities in rural and urban areas abroad.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe vision is to provide food education, resources and opportunities where they\u2019re scarce, helping people build sustainable futures in hopes they have the opportunity of running my chain of nonprofit restaurants directly from my training program to keep the cycle of giving back with great flavor alive,\u201d she said. \u201cI want to be remembered as someone who poured into others. A modern-day Mother Teresa in the culinary world, but with a global reach like never before.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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