Beyond Business: Perry doubles as academic advisor, chef
Tuesday, March 4, 2025
Media Contact: Hallie Hart | Communications Coordinator | 405-744-1050 | hallie.hart@okstate.edu
Darian Perry arrived at the office on a Monday morning with a lemon turmeric cake and two sheet pans full of other homemade treats.
One pan contained desserts that belong in a whimsical bakery display: blueberry cornmeal tarts, rosemary lemon shortbread and turnovers with apple compote. The other pan, fit for a dinner party, held neatly arranged Parker House rolls, seasoned crackers and flavorful Chex mix.
If that list makes you hungry, it might be time to visit the Chesapeake Energy Business Student Success Center.
Perry, who holds a graduate certificate in entrepreneurship from Oklahoma State University, works as an academic advisor in the Spears School of Business. Between obtaining his undergraduate degree in communication from North Carolina State University and earning his master’s degree in journalism and media studies from the University of Nevada-Las Vegas, he added a different credential: a culinary arts certificate from Fayetteville Technical Community College in his home state of North Carolina.
Instead of using his demi-chef certification to launch a gourmet restaurant career, Perry prefers to keep cooking and baking as his greatest hobbies. With more than 200 cookbooks, he tries new recipes and perfects old favorites, from pizza crust to pastries. His pro tip for finding fresh inspiration? Try borrowing a cookbook from Edmon Low Library’s collection, a hidden gem in the iconic building.
Perry said he loves connecting with people, so sharing his culinary creations brings joy to him and to others, including his Spears Business coworkers.
Q: How did you become interested in being a chef?
Perry: My junior year in high school, I stumbled upon Food Network on TV. My mom cooked every day, and I was going to go to college – so I was like, “Well, I won’t get home cooking anymore, so I may as well learn for myself.” My weird obsession is food media and cookbooks.
What is the first dish you remember making?
Lemon pasta with chicken. I saw it on TV, and then I actually did it. Since then, it’s gone, I guess, to bigger and better things. It was really simple because it’s not that many ingredients.
Do you make more sweet or savory dishes?
Both. I bake and cook 50/50, but it’s easier to bring baked goods into the office. These are safer to bring in, and they’re easier to transport, also.
At home, I’ve been on a pizza kick. I made the lemon ricotta white pizza (from "Giada's Italy: My Recipes for La Dolce Vita" by Giada De Laurentiis) and then the standard pepperoni with spicy marinara (from “The Pizza Bible” by Tony Gemignani).
How often do you bring homemade food to the office?
(Laughs) Too often. I try to limit it because it’s maybe slightly indulgent. I try to do it on days that most people are here, and this semester, it’s Friday – but really, it’s, just any day, kind of when the muses hit. I also stress bake if I’ve had a really hard day.
More than 200 cookbooks is quite a collection.
It was more when I was at my parents’ house in North Carolina, but all of those didn’t go with me. Moving to Vegas, I learned about moving expenses. Cookbooks are fine individually, but collectively, they’re kind of heavy. I kept any that I could get with me on the plane, and then I rebuilt my collection. Then I moved to Oklahoma, so I kind of restarted again.
Do you follow the recipes word for word or put your own spin on them?
It’s a combo thing. I learned in class, you follow the recipe as best you can the first time you make it. After that, you can do whatever you want. If the recipe is written well enough, you can follow it to a T and it should come out fine. Intuition comes into play, also. But usually, I try to follow – and I try to tell people, too – just follow the recipe, as best you can because you’re not really making the dish if you don’t follow it.
After studying communications and culinary arts, what inspired you to get into academic advising?
I loved my advising experience in undergrad with Mrs. Sandy Stallings, who was my academic advisor at NC State. I want to pay that forward or hopefully give someone an experience like I had, because this role is critical in shaping your college career. We’re not the sole factor, but it’s one of the pieces of the puzzle.
I started at OSU in Undergraduate Admissions in 2019. Then I transitioned over to Spears last August. I was looking for the next challenge and the next way to help. Essentially, I helped people get into OSU, and now I am helping them through college.
Does your career path influence the way you advise students since you can draw on different experiences and degrees?
As you build life experiences, they all influence how you move forward. It affects you in different ways. You don’t know what you bring to the table until it’s called upon.
Do you know a Spears Business staff member with a story to highlight? Share your ideas with Communications Coordinator Hallie Hart at hallie.hart@okstate.edu.