Smyrna High School Culinary Arts Students to Display Skills on Friday

Smyrna High School culinary arts students will have their award-winning skills on display Friday at the Business Education Partnership Foundation’s  and  presenting sponsor Nissan North America’s “Arts for Education: An Elegant Evening”, scheduled for Friday, February 24th from 6-9 pm at the Rutherford County Chamber of Commerce, located at 3050 Medical Center Parkway in Murfreesboro. 

Smyrna High School Culinary Arts Instructor Tammy Sandlin has prepared her students well for the event.  “The advanced culinary arts class at Smyrna High School is excited about the upcoming BEP fundraiser dinner this Friday night at the Chamber.  Months have gone into planning the menu and the presentation of the buffets. Our program strives for the food to be excellent as well as the presentation and professionalism of our students. The class has experimented on many recipes.  This type of event for my students allows us the opportunity to showcase what our program is about.  The guests are sure to see a variety of dishes from different eras of time,” she said.  

The main buffet will feature Italian food, including ratatouille with risotto, green beans Provencal and chicken roulade.  Additionally, the students will feature a salad “tini” bar and a carving station with Montreal roast beef.  Guests can complete their meals by visiting a “chocolate river” full of fresh fruits and pastries as well as chocolate cups, mini truffle cups and dessert bars.  

Caryn Douglas, a senior event manager, said, "It has been an exciting and challenging time to plan this event for such a distinguished group of people; it is a great experience for me and my classmates. I plan to attend culinary arts school in Louisville in the fall; an event such as this is great for my portfolio. We hope to see everyone Friday night."

“An Elegant Evening” will feature entertainment by The Tennessee Valley Winds as well as jazz by singer Kristen Hubbard and guitarist Sam Frazee in addition to hip hop dance performances from The Cat Cru of CAT Choreography.  A silent auction will feature art, specialty services, and travel packages.  Additionally, raffle tickets for a chance to win a $5000 cash prize will be sold both at and prior to the event; presence at the event is not necessary to win the raffle.  For information on the raffle or to purchase raffle tickets, please call Jesse FitzGerald at (615) 278-2012.  Only 300 raffle tickets will be sold. 

Proceeds from “Arts for Education: An Elegant Evening” will provide funding for BEP programming such as teacher mini-grants and professional development training for teachers in curriculum/work relevance to help bring the real world into the classroom.  Sponsors who are helping the Business Education Partnership make “An Elegant Evening” possible are, of course, presenting sponsor Nissan North America, Middle Tennessee Medical Center, Stones River Total Beverage, Yates Services, Textile Fabric Consultants, Inc., Quality Industries, Ascend Federal Credit Union, Pinnacle Financial Partners, and WWL Vehicle Services Americas, Inc.

Additional information on the Business Education Partnership can be found online at www.rutherfordbep.org. For tickets and sponsorships, contact Gabi Brockelsby at (615) 556-1949, or email her at gabibrockelsby@yahoo.com.  For information on the raffle, please call Jesse FitzGerald at (615) 278-2012.

Sponsors who are helping the Business Education Partnership make “An Elegant Evening” possible are, of course, presenting sponsor Nissan North America, Middle Tennessee Medical Center, Stones River Total Beverage, Yates Services, Textile Fabric Consultants, Inc., Quality Industries, Ascend Federal Credit Union, Pinnacle Financial Partners, and WWL Vehicle Services Americas, Inc.