The New England Culinary Institute (NECI) is a career-oriented culinary college located in Montpelier, Vermont, founded on June 15, 1980, by Fran Voigt and John Dranow. The first NECI class, conducted by Chef Michel LeBorgne, had seven students. The enrollment was 500 in 2015. A second campus was operated in Essex, Vermont, from August 1989 through August 2009.