I am honored to be able to share my 40+ years of culinary experience with these wonderful students! My passion for food is only surpassed by my passion for teaching. As a new first time instructor, I think I learn as much from them as they learn from me.

I have had my ServSafe certification for nearly 30 years, and am now a certified instructor and proctor. I have certificates in both Holistic Nutrition and Allergen Safety. I have specialized in allergen cooking since being diagnosed as Celiac 15 years ago. I spent 3 seasons at Dollywood prior to coming to ACS as a Park Chef, and was often called upon to advise guests on safe options at the 57 food locations under my purview. (Patty Thomas, the CTE Director, likes to say that she stole me away from Dolly!) I did not go to culinary school, but I have learned from some great chefs during my career journey. I have experience with butchering meats and fish, smoking and curing meats, and had intensive training in pastry and bread baking.

I have been teaching a class of developmentally disabled adults for years, starting shortly after moving to Tennessee from New Jersey. It was a program I developed with Earth Fare Turkey Creek in 2011. It transitioned to a private program when they went out of business.

In these first two semesters, we have cooked food from all over the world, including a week of celebrating the Lunar New Year with food from all over Asia. We learned the symbolism of each dish and how it fits into the region's celebration. We worked with yeast for a week, learning both sweet and savory recipes. During the winter holidays, we paired up with the CDC class at AMS to decorate sugar cookies and make holiday treats. The air was filled with joy and laughter, and edible glitter. This opportunity will hopefully be expanded to the classes combining at least once a month starting next school year.

We are presently working on a garden to grow food for the class while we explore sustainability in the food chain. I think it's important for them to understand the origins of their food and what it takes to get it to the grocery store. We will be expanding this program more in the months ahead.

Thank you for letting me teach your children. I feel like this is the best thing I have ever done with my career.

Lexan O'Reilly

Alcoa City Schools

Culinary/CTE Instructor

(865) 984-0531 X6428

[email protected]

"Cooking is like love. It should be entered into with abandon, or not at all."
~Julia Child