Parents and staff cook up meals in support of arts education

Historically, when times are tough, arts programs are the first offerings in school districts to be cut, says Jennifer McPheeters, president of Southside School Foundation for the Arts.

That's why, she says, the foundation's purpose is to make sure that regardless of what is taking place in the outside world, arts education at Southside Elementary School continues. 

To meet that goal, the foundation invited the community for the fourth annual Cooking for the Arts event, held April 24 at Michael's On East. 

Led by local celebrity chefs Phil Mancini and Jamil Pineda, attendees cooked and enjoyed their own gourmet meals. 

The organization supports the arts in ways that include paying the salary of the school's dance instructor; covering production costs for three plays, three ballet performances and various jazz performances throughout the year; and recently, a new keyboard for music education. 

Last year's event raised over $100,000 for the foundation.

"There are all sorts of statistics about children that are exposed to the arts, learn better, behave better, succeed more," McPheeters said. "There's a very clear correlation between arts education and future success, and we want all of our kids to have that."