Several hundred turned out for the celebration showcasing TCL’s newest campus
A crowd that included roughly several hundred people from the community turned out for a grand opening and ribbon cutting celebration held for the Culinary Institute of the South at Technical College of the Lowcountry on Thursday, Nov. 18.
The opening of the institute effectively makes the new school TCL’s fourth campus in its network of Lowcountry-based campuses and marked the culmination of several years of planning for the large-scale project.
“There was a concept, then there was a vision and then there was a lot of hard work,” said TCL Area Commission Chair Randy Dolyniuk as he congratulated the team behind the project.
Dolyniuk, who also chairs TCL’s Foundation Board of Directors, pointed to the many local and state entities that played a role in helping to bring the project to fruition as well.
The $15.3 million project was funded with $11.2 million from Beaufort County, Beaufort County School District and the Town of Bluffton; $3.5 million from the state of South Carolina and $625,000 raised from private sources and donors.
The school and its programs received widespread praise by those who attended the event – many enjoyed getting their first look inside the 30,000+ square foot facility and sampling small bites provided by sponsors and industry partners.
Those included Montage Palmetto Bluff, Sea Pines Resort, SERG Restaurant Group, U.S. Foods, Corner Perk, Omni Hilton Head Ocean Front Resort, The Sonesta Resort Hilton Head, Southern Barrel Brewing Company and Bluffton Tea Company.
Dr. Richard Gough, president of the Technical College of the Lowcountry also pointed to the importance of the community’s role in helping to launch the project.
“This is your community college,” he said during the event’s opening remarks. “And every one of you has helped in making this happen, and it’s going to make a difference in the lives for generations to come.”
Other speakers at the event included: Dr. Tim Hardee, President of the South Carolina Technical College System; Sen. Tom Davis, R-Beaufort; and Chef Miles Huff, Dean of the Culinary Institute of the South.
Enroll Now
Onsite classes start in January and include associate degrees and certificates in culinary arts, baking and pastry and hospitality. Enroll now at www.tcl.edu/culinary.
About the Culinary Institute of the South at Technical College of the Lowcountry
The Culinary Institute is a 30,000+ square-foot training facility featuring six academic classrooms, two teaching kitchens, a show kitchen, baking lab, lecture theater, café and teaching restaurant. A FOODseum, an interactive museum which will tell the story of Southern food, is set to open on the campus in 2022. For more information visit www.tcl.edu/culinary-institute.
About TCL
The Technical College of the Lowcountry is the region’s primary provider of higher education and workforce training. The public, two-year, multi-campus community college serves approximately 5,000 students annually. TCL has campuses in Beaufort, Bluffton and Hampton and serves Beaufort, Colleton, Hampton and Jasper Counties. For more information visit www.tcl.edu.
