|
Frontiers in Southeast CHRIE: Hospitality and Tourism Research Vol. 3, No. 2 Table of Contents Research Category 1
Learning to Do More with Less: | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
End of Semester Student Questionnaire |
Normative Group |
HRTA 364 Spring 1999 |
|
16 Questions regarding objective measures of teaching excellence and student opinions regarding volume of work |
4.05 |
4.33 |
|
5 questions regarding the student’s perception of their measure of learning in this class. |
4.28 |
4.50 |
The normative group for the first box representing the 16 questions regarding teaching excellence and volume of work reported on a Likert scale of 1 to 5, with 1 identifying courses that did not have good teaching and 5 as the best teaching. The college as a group reported as mean of almost 10% lower than the Conference and Meeting Planning Class. This percentage drops to 5 % for the student’s assessment of learning.
Exhibitors - Over the years evaluative questionnaires have been distributed to the companies exhibiting at the career fair. These anecdotal responses were then complied and distributed to the students in the following year’s class. On average, most exhibitors were pleased with the Career Fair. Various responses made prescriptive suggestions which some committees took under consideration. The final question has always asked if the exhibitor would like to participate the next year. Over time a full 82% of those exhibiting indicated that they would be pleased to return. Their remarks included comments such as they: " loved the student participation", "want to hire those students who planned the event," "would rather the fair was earlier in the semester", "liked the exhibit space" and other even more innocuous statements.
Conclusion
Conducting an officially sponsored College Career Fair has enabled the professor of Conference and Meeting Planning - HRTA 364 to offer a "real life" experience to the enrolled class members which they otherwise would not have had. This practical experience, when leveraged with a skillfully crafted syllabus and course design, provides an instructional platform. This platform is then used build educational and professional experiences designed to further the class members critical thinking and human relations skills utilizing the developmental learning theories of Perry and Kolb.
REFERENCES
Barr, R.B. & Tagg, J. (1995) . From teaching to learning: A new paradigm for undergraduate education. Change, November/ December: pp.13-25.
Davis, J.R. (1993) . Better teaching, more learning : Strategies for success in Post secondary settings. Phoenix, AZ: Oryx Press/American Council on Education.
Fuhrmann, B.S. & Grasha, A.F. (1991) . The past, present and future in college teaching: Where does your teaching fit? Teaching and Learning in the College Classroom.
Johnson, D.W. , Johnson,R.T. and Smith, K.A. (1991) . Cooperative learning: Increasing college faculty instructional productivity . ( ASHE-ERIC Higher Education Report No. 4) . Washington, DC : The George Washington University School of Education and Human Development .
Kloss, R. J. (September 1,1994) . A nudge is best…. College Teaching. 42,p.151.
Kolb, D. (1984) . Experiential Learning: Experience is the Source of Learning a Development. Englewood Cliffs, NJ : Prentice Hall .
Lewin, K. ( 1943). Forces behind food habits and methods of change, Bulletin of theNational Research Council, 108, pp. 35-65 .
Lott, C.E., Michaelmore, C.W., Sullivan-Cosetti, M. and Wister, J.A. (1997) . Learning through service, a faculty perspective. Liberal Education, Winter, pp. 40 - 45.
Marcus, G.B. , Howard, J.P.F. and King D.C. (1993) . Integrating community service and classroom instruction enhances learning: Results from an experiment. Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis , 15 (4), pp. 410-419.
Mettetal, G. and Bryant, D. (1996) . Service learning research projects. Empowerment in students, faculty and communities. College Teaching, 44 (1) , pp.24-33 .
McEwen, M.K. (1996) . Enhancing student learning and development through service learning. In B. Jacoby and Associates (Eds.) . Service Learning in Higher Education (pp.53-91). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-BassInc.
Perry, W.G. (1968) . Forms of intellectual and ethical development in the college years: A scheme. N.Y. : Holt, Rinehart and Winston.
Terenzini, P. , Pascarella, E., & Lorang., W. (1982) . An assessment of the academic and social influences on freshman year educational outcomes. Review of Higher Education, 5, pp.86-110 .
Volkwein, J, , King, M. , Terenzini, P. (1986) . Student-faculty relationships and intellectual growth among transfer students. Journal of Higher Education , 57, pp. 413-430.
University of Southern Mississippi
and
Suzanne K. Murrmann, Ph.D.
Virginia Polytechnic and State University
Introduction
Meetings as a strategy for adults to continue their professional development are a phenomenon that has emerged in the last half of this century. As the profession developed, practitioners focused on the logistical aspects of planning conventions and many of the systems used today were developed during the 70s, 80s and early 90s. A more recent trend has emerged, with meeting managers becoming specialists in the creation of "learning environments", the application of adult learning theories, and the design of multi-dimensional programs with combinations of interactions that support diverse attendee interests. Given this new focus, and the current lack of research in this area, this study investigated the activities that commonly occur at meetings, including networking, technical and professional education sessions, leadership and civic type activities. It also determined the importance of each to attendees. Included in the research was an identification of demographic variables that could be used by meeting managers to profile their membership and more scientifically design programs and activities that corresponded to their members’ preferences. The results of the study are described below. It is important to note that this is a first step into a new research area for the meeting and convention industry. We hope that it will encourage associations to participate in similar studies and that other researchers will add to this body of knowledge.
Methodology
Five associations participated in this study: The American College of Emergency Physicians, The American School Food Service Association, Critical Care Nurses, The Council on Exceptional Children and the Texas Society of Association Executive. The associations were selected for their diversity using the following criteria: 1) the education, i.e. training, licensing and certification, required of members to practice in the field, 2) the necessity for collaboration among members, 3) the degree to which adherence to professional standards is required, and 4) the professional benefits of industry recognition. Four thousand five hundred surveys were mailed to a sample of these associations' members who attend their annual meetings. A total of 700 association members return their surveys and were included in the study.
The survey included a 35-item scale measuring the importance of 4 categories of motivational factors for attending annual meetings. Respondents were asked to indicate the importance of each using a 5-point Lickert scale ranging from very unimportant to very important. This scale was developed by the authors and tested for validity and reliability in previous studies. In those studies, the reliability coefficients for the scale’s sub-dimensions reached or exceeded 70. The survey also included items used to collect information about the respondent’s meeting activities, demographics and preferred learning methods at annual meetings.
Confirmatory factor analysis was employed to verify the sub-dimensions or categories of motivational attendance factors previously reported in the literature. Subsequent to this, cluster analysis was performed on the data to identify clusters of members that shared preferences for certain categories of meeting attributes. Additional analysis, using member demographics, isolated unique differences in clusters such as age and gender.
Results
The study revealed that when evaluating the opportunities and activities that occur during a meeting, the association members tended to group them into five major categories; those having "Association-based" values, "People-based" values, "Competency-based" values, "Civic-based" values, and those with "Profession-based" values. Table 1 includes the 5 categories along with specific activities and opportunities that formed each group. The research confirms past work done on meeting attributes which showed that association members view education and training, in the form of profession-based and competency-based meeting activities as the most important activities available to them at their annual meetings. In addition to these, there are several other categories of meeting activities that fulfill the expectations of association members. These categories have been shown to differ in terms of importance for distinct groups of association members. They include activities that are association based such as participating in policy and goal development for the association, people-based, i.e. activities related to networking and the promotion of ideals for the good of the association, profession and society.
|
Table 1 Meeting Categories |
|
|
Association-based Mean = 3.17 SD = .99 |
Participating in policy development for the association Influencing the future direction of the association Serving on committees and supporting association goals Showing my commitment to support the association Encouraging members to serve on association committees/boards Getting to know the services of and opportunities within the association Participating in national and global policy development for the field |
|
People-based Mean = 3.18 SD = .87 |
Seeing people I know Knowing the types of people who will be attending the meeting Establishing a reputation in my profession Developing new business/professional relationships Participating in informal social and recreational activities Evaluating the competition Making contacts that increase my employment opportunities |
|
Competency-based Mean = 3.98 SD = .66 |
Learning how to better manage my job responsibilities Gaining practical "know-how" I can implement Learning more about the profession such as salaries, opportunities, ethics Learning new skills such as computer applications Exchanging ideas on work related problems Increasing my knowledge of the technical aspects of my job |
|
Civic-based Mean = 3.13 SD = .96 |
Setting standards for professional practice Presenting papers to colleagues Encouraging members to support projects of general value to society |
|
Profession-based Mean = 4.49 SD = .56 |
Hearing speakers who are practicing members of my profession Hearing speakers who are respected experts in fields related to mine Keeping up with changes in the profession/field |
Cluster analysis was performed on the data to identify clusters of association members that shared preferences for certain categories of meeting attributes. The attendees clustered into 5 relatively distinct groups that were labeled Loyalists, Learners, Idealists, Enthusiasts and Networkers. Though all five groups differ in terms of the importance they place on meeting activities, there are some commonalties that can be seen. As reported earlier, educational activities are seen to have critical importance to all groups, with programs impacting long-term career objectives of primary importance (see Table 2). A review of the mean importance placed on other meeting categories however, reveal significant differences among the clusters.
|
Table 2 Association Member Clusters |
|||||
|
Meeting Categories |
Clusters |
||||
|
Loyalists |
Learners |
Idealists |
Enthusiasts |
Networkers |
|
|
Association-based Values |
Medium |
Low |
Medium |
High |
Medium |
|
People-based Values |
Medium |
Low |
Medium |
High |
High |
|
Competency-based Values |
Medium |
High |
High |
Extremely High |
Extremely High |
|
Civic-based Values |
Medium |
Low |
High |
High |
Low |
|
Profession-based Values |
High |
Extremely High |
Extremely High |
Extremely High |
Extremely High |
Loyalists made up 12.6% of the study’s respondents. They have labeled them the Loyalists of associations because of their active attendance. Of this group, 78% attended their previous year's meeting. They value all aspects of meetings equally with what can be called moderate enthusiasm. Even though profession-based activities are of high importance to them, they are still the lowest scoring group on this measure. This is a highly educated group of individuals with 65% having post graduate degrees. You should expect slightly more males than females in this group. An association can probably expect to find more of their members in this group if their profession or industry attracts the "baby boomer generation", i.e. those individuals born between 1946 and 1964. Older individuals, those born prior to 1946, tend to be underrepresented in this group. When members of this group do not attend, the single most important reason given is a conflict with work requirements and responsibilities.
Eighteen percent of the respondents fell into the cluster labeled Learners. Approximately 60% of this group did not attend their most recent annual meeting. This group does not actively attend meetings, but when they do they place relatively high importance on competency-based and profession-based educational activities. When compared to the others, this group felt that association participation, networking (people-based) connections and ideals promotion were of very little value. Classic educational opportunities appear to be the only elements of meetings that draw this group. Its demographic profile is similar to the loyalist group in terms of education and gender, highly educated and slightly more male than female. Age does not appear to be a factor in the profile of this group. What keeps these people away? Cost, location and work responsibilities.
Baby boomers tended to be present in higher numbers in the third cluster, the Idealists. Similar to the Loyalist cluster, lower numbers of mature association members were present. This group is labeled the Idealists because of the relatively high value that they place on the opportunity to promote projects of value to associations and societies. Twenty percent of meeting attendees fall into this group. It is interestingly however, that only 50% of this group attended their last association meeting. The reasons given for non-attendance were cost of registration, the location, and family responsibilities, with the most important associated with work responsibilities. Again this group is highly educated with 68% indicating post doctorate degrees. There were slightly more females than males in this group.
The Enthusiasts, the largest cluster, made up 27% of meeting attendees. They are active attenders with 77% indicating presence at their last association meeting. It appears that enthusiasm is not dictated by education since this group spans all levels, however, age may play a role in membership in this group since those born before 1946, e.g. the mature age group, are more significantly represented here than baby boomers or those born after 1964. This group was given its name because they highly value all components of the meeting. The importance placed on meeting components is significantly higher than that for the Loyalists. This group may indeed be the most critical evaluator for an association's annual meeting since it indicates high levels of importance on all the aspects of an annual meeting. Moreover, it is the largest and tends to have attendance rates as high as those for Loyalists. There are more females than males in this group. While they indicate that cost and work responsibilities keep them away from meetings they do so significantly less frequently than other groups.
The final group, Networkers, made up 21% of meeting attendees. Sixty-seven percent attended their last annual meeting. This group had the fewest number of postgraduate degrees. The group tends to be younger, with a larger than expected number of "Generation X'ers", i.e. individuals born after 1964. Since they are just starting their careers (the group indicates a mean of 4.7 years in their profession as compared to those in the mature group who have been in their profession for approximately 23.1 years (mean of group) they place high importance on the personnel interactions that occur at meetings as their name implies. These are active attenders with 67% attending their last annual meeting. There were slightly more males than females in this group. There are a number of reasons that this group may not attend a meeting; cost and work responsibilities are the most often cited reasons however, location and family responsibilities are also noted.
Since skill and career based education have been shown to be most important to meeting attendees, respondents to our survey were asked for their experience with various forms of learning methods and the benefits of them. The findings of our study support classic theory developed on adult learning. Adults find that they benefit from different types of learning methods when compared to their younger counterparts. In general, they find self-paced and one-on-one learning methods to be of more use to them, and perceive higher benefits accruing from these types of methods, even though benefits can also be derived from traditional group learning experiences. The study reveals that the sharing of best practices, by "perceived" experts and fellow association members is without question the single most beneficial learning method for the group regardless of how they are presented. Respondents ranked non-traditional learning methods, i.e. those not often experienced by most members, such as one-on-one consultation with experts in their field, small group interactions with such experts and hands-on computer usage highest (see Table 3). These were followed by more traditional meeting activities, such as demonstrations, small group interaction, case studies and the like, that are experienced by more members but still allow for smaller groups and discussions. Though the traditional mediums such as lectures and panel discussion were viewed as beneficial, they were not ranked as high as the above mentioned small group approaches to learning.
|
Table 3. Learning Methods |
|||
|
Mean (SD) |
Number of Respondents with Experience |
Percentage indicating Beneficial to Very Beneficial |
|
|
Traditional Small Group Methods |
|||
|
Demonstrations |
3.35 (.61) |
493 |
93.5% |
|
Small Group Interaction |
3.33 (.67) |
494 |
89.8% |
|
Case Studies involving audience in analysis/decision making |
3.27 (.75) |
363 |
87.0% |
|
Case Study Presentation |
3.17 (.71) |
464 |
86.5% |
|
Non-Traditional Small Group Methods |
|||
|
One-on-one Consultation with Experts |
3.53 (.61) |
190 |
95.8% |
|
Expert in Residence (small group interaction with expert) |
3.48 (.60) |
336 |
95.6% |
|
Hands-on Computer Usage |
3.42 (.63) |
361 |
93.1% |
|
Study Groups for certification and licensing exams |
3.38 (.68) |
201 |
90.1% |
|
Simulations (workshops mirroring real-life situations) |
3.33 (.69) |
302 |
90.1% |
|
Traditional Large Group Methods |
|||
|
Panel Discussions |
3.12 (.65) |
510 |
85.7% |
|
Lecture Format for management & decision making skills |
3.09 (.59) |
508 |
88.2% |
|
Lecture Format for basic technical material |
3.03 (.66) |
544 |
88.2% |
Though not surprising, it is interesting to note that those association members indicating that they had never experienced certain learning methods, in every instance, rated such methods as less beneficial when compared to their counterparts who had engaged in those learning experiences. Moreover, those who had more experience with a variety of learning methods at their annual meetings attended more often. Demographics do not appear to play a significant role in terms of member perceptions of the benefits of these different types of learning methods. However, our findings do show that those belonging to Generation X do have slightly less experience with newer non-traditional learning methods, most likely because they have not attended as many of their annual meetings as the other age groups.
Cluster membership likewise does not appear to make a difference in learning method preference. All five groups indicated non-traditional learning methods to be of most benefit. The Enthusiast group, however, tends to rate all learning methods as more beneficial than the other groups, while the Loyalists and Learners tend to rate methods as a whole less beneficial than the remaining three groups. This finding would be of particular concern to an association that is composed of a significant number of Learners.
Discussion and Conclusions
The study’s importance lies in the creation of a benchmark for measuring the attributes attendees value when deciding to attend association meetings. Foremost is the quality of the educational program from both competency-based and profession-based perspectives. But there are additional factors, which differentiate attendees that were revealed in the cluster analysis.
While attempts were made to link generational theory to the study results, age did not significantly differentiate the attendees so that it could be a singular measure. In part, this may be due to the fact that the dominant age of meeting attendees falls within the baby boomer population group. Despite this, generational research does offer some characteristics common to age groups.
Associations with a larger mature population, a generation that likes to and can afford to travel, may expect to find a large number of enthusiasts. The generational literature suggest that this age group critically evaluates the credibility of associations and speakers when making attendance choices. Beyond the professional content, topics of importance are often of a self-help nature such as dealing with aging parents. At the same time they are likely to have grandchildren accompany them to the meeting. They have excellent personal communication skills and like to learn by interacting with others. This is an active vital generation who’s members often view themselves as being in their 40s rather than 60s.
In contrast, associations that have more young members (34 and younger), will find them streetwise, very practical, and seeking out information as opposed to hype. This generation is more heavily represented in the networking cluster. They do not respond to authority so inviting nationally recognized experts in a field will not be as important as providing opportunities for interacting with their professional colleagues. Celebrity testimonials are also not as effective as peer testimonials. As this group becomes the dominant population for attending meetings, associations may expect less loyalty to one association and they may not be as active in associations if they do not provide meaningful growth opportunities during meetings. This group values personal interactions; building "friendships" may be the link to loyalty to an association. They like to be challenged rather than spoon-fed. This generation is comfortable with interactive technology, will respond positively to local civic projects such as Professional Convention Management Association’s Feed the Needy program, and are quality concious.
Baby boomers, who fall across all clusters, have been described as inwardly focused, creating the image self indulgence and high self-esteem. They are creative, entrepreneurial and very independent. They are discriminating where quality is concerned and are not likely to tolerate programs that do not meet their high standards. Topics of interest to these attendees, beyond that directly related to their professional needs are investments and time management. They are busy and accustomed to "quick fix" learning demonstrated by the popularity of such books as The 60 Second Manager. For a group as large as the baby boomers, it is important to also consider where attendees fall along the generational timeline. The closer an association’s attendees are to the prior or post generation, the more their preferences will reflect the characteristics of that generational group.
While these generational descriptions provide guidance in both program planning and targeting markets, individuals are also influenced by many factors such as gender, race, education, and income. Based on the random selection of attendees for this survey, 76% of the respondents were female. This raises questions about the percentage of females who are attending meetings in relation to males and the gender influence in feedback to associations, such as meeting evaluations. Ninety-two percent of the respondents were white. As the population increases in ethnic diversity, associations may need to re-design programs to be more responsive to individual population groups found within their associations. This is an important area for future research. From an educational perspective, each association has a predominance of certain educational levels depending on the requirements of the profession and the scientific versus service nature of the field. Income is correlated to education in many professions. For this study, 64% of the respondents had salaries under $60,000. This raises questions about the budgets of the attendees’ employers and the rising costs of meeting attendance.
When looking at individual associations, in contrast to the total survey sample, professional affiliation was significant in determining cluster affiliation. For example, health care professionals fell heavily into the enthusiasts and net workers cluster. Nurses were enthusiasts and idealists. Physicians tended to fall less frequently into the enthusiasts cluster and more strongly into the learner cluster. Association executives highly value networking while the respondents affiliated with an association dealing with children were highly represented in the idealists cluster. Therefore it is incumbent upon each association to evaluate their own membership and avoid generalizations to the degree possible.
This study is a beginning effort to understand what individuals’ value about the meetings they attend. For too long the focus of meeting and convention research has been on the external aspects of a meeting such as the site, ease of air travel, cleanliness and safety. That research has been directed to hotels and convention bureaus in more effectively marketing their products. This study has taken a different approach in looking at the internal aspects of meetings--program content, delivery methods and activities to determine whether there are predictive variables that associations can use in planning for their unique memberships.
Statement of the Problem
Most research on alcohol consumption among college students has focused on under age drinking and substance abuse (Wechsler et al., 1994). Several schools in the nation have channeled alcohol education to students with the purpose of lessening the different social, physical and legal problems associated with alcohol abuse and under age drinking (RWJF, 1999; Anderson and Milgram, 1997; Wechsler et al., 2000; Aguire-Molina and Gorman, 1996; Sallis and Owen, 1996; Wechsler and Weitzman, 1996). However, college students’ awareness of comprehensive issues related to alcohol consumption and its various effects has not been well emphasized in awareness programs and the social sciences literature. Research on alcohol abuse has revealed that the average number of drinks consumed by college students per week has a direct effect on the GPA level; the higher the average number of drinks consumed per week, the lower their GPA (American College Health Association, 1996). In addition, many sexual assault incidents at universities were found to be alcohol-related; over two-thirds of men connected to sexual assaults at one university were consuming alcohol at the time of the incident and half of the female as well (American College Health Association, 1996).
The objective of this study is twofold; first, to measure college students’ awareness of alcohol-related issues in the following areas: 1. regulations, 2. recommendations, 3. physical impacts, and 4. legal responsibilities. Second, to explore the possibility of a relationship between students’ awareness level of the above listed alcohol-related issues and variables such as gender, age, and educational status (year in school). The conceptual framework is shown in Figure 1.
Each of the above listed areas plays a role in formulating and shaping a college student’s comprehensive awareness level; therefore, ignoring one of them would certainly lead to an incomplete evaluation and would consequently generate incomplete educational and training programs in regard to strengthening students’ alcohol awareness level. The regulation component measures subjects’ knowledge of issues related to the following: 1.blood alcohol concentration level (BAC) in the state at which a person is considered legally intoxicated according to the Mississippi Alcoholic Beverage Control Division (ABC); 2. the legal age in the state to possess, purchase or consume alcohol (according to ABC); 3. the illegality aspect in the U.S. to sell or give alcohol to minors and intoxicated people; 4. the possibility to purchase alcohol on voting days; and 5. the possibility of an injured party by an intoxicated driver to sue and win a case against the bar where the latter consumed alcohol (based on the Dram Shop Act) . The recommendation component measures subjects’ knowledge of the USDA/USDHHS guidelines on healthy consumption of alcoholic beverages (USDA & USDHHS, 1995). The physical impact component measures subjects’ awareness of alcohol’s impacts on the body such as: high-fat foods’ slowing effects of alcohol absorption by the body, the depressant nature of alcohol, and the causes of hangover by the amount of drink and not by the type of drink (Educational Institute of AH & MA, 1993). The legal responsibility component measures subjects’ awareness of hospitality establishments’ obligations to provide an alternative "safe" means of transportation to prevent guests from driving while intoxicated (Educational Institute of the AH & MA, 1993).
Summary of Methods Used
The study was conducted at the University of Southern Mississippi – Hattiesburg campus - during the Fall semester of the academic year1999-2000. A total of 213 students were randomly selected. Those who administered the survey followed the techniques pertaining to proper on-site intercept methodology procedure. Subjects had to be at least 18 years old and U.S. citizens; the sample had an equal representation of students based on the following variables: gender, and educational status (year in school). In regard to age, 107 students fall in the "18-20" age category and 106 are in the "21 years old and above" one. An internal consistency reliability test was not applied since the nature of the questionnaire is testing knowledge and therefore questions should not yield internal consistencies. A descriptive analysis was conducted to reveal the subjects’ overall mean scores on the different areas: 1. regulations, 2. recommendations, 3. physical impacts, and 4. legal responsibilities.
STUDENTS’ SOCIO-DEMOGRAPHIC VARIABLES
STUDENTS’ ALCOHOL AWARENESS COMPONENTS
FIGURE 1: The CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK OF STUDENTS’ ALCOHOL AWARENESS
Cross-tabulation of the age variable was conducted to reveal the total number of subjects in age category one (18-20 years old) and those in age category two (21 years old and above). Independent t-test was performed to explore the possibility of a relationship between students’ awareness level of the different alcohol-related issues and the variables of gender and age. One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was applied to explore the possibility of a relationship between students’ awareness level of the different alcohol-related issues and the variable of educational status (year in school).
Results and Implications of the Study
The descriptive analysis technique revealed that overall students’ awareness level of alcohol-related issues in the areas of regulations (` x = 70.61, SD = 23.51) as well as USDA and USDHHS recommendations (` x = 79.81, SD = 40.23) tends to be higher than of those under physical impacts (` x = 76.99, SD = 24.61) and hospitality organizations’ legal responsibilities when serving alcohol (` x = 58.65, SD = 49.35). The results of t-test analysis portray some relationships between age and knowledge of regulations t(205)=2.56,p=.011; those in age category 21 and above tend to be more aware of alcohol-related regulations issues (` x = 73.88, SD = 22.51) than those in age category under 21 (` x = 65.20, SD = 24.72). The results of ANOVA portray some relationships between students’ awareness of alcohol issues related to recommendations and the educational status variable F(4/205)=2.67,p=.033; sophomores (` x = 93.47, SD=24.96) tend to be more aware of such issues than juniors (` x= 68.08, SD = 47.12). This research revealed that there was no significant relationship between students’ awareness level of alcohol-related issues and the gender variable.
Students who are under 21 lack knowledge in the area of alcohol regulations. This study’s overall implications reveal the importance of incorporating and emphasizing more on alcohol’s physical impacts and hospitality organizations’ legal responsibilities toward guests when serving alcohol in on-campus alcohol awareness programs and wellness courses. It may be that local hospitality establishments, such as bars, need to be more active in educating college students on such aspects through sponsoring on-campus awareness programs; such initiatives could strengthen their stand in the community. Based on the study’s results, there seems to be misconceptions about alcohol’s physical impacts among college students; wellness and awareness programs need to work more on the inclusion of this area and clarify misunderstandings by students. In regard to age, those who are in age category under 21 need to be more targeted by alcohol awareness programs on the issue of regulations. This group needs to be made aware of such a component, regulations, before they learn about it from their own mistakes when they reach 21 and become eligible to consume alcohol in public places. In other words, just because they are under-age does not mean they should know less about regulations. In regard to sophomores knowing more about the component of recommendations than juniors may be attributed to the fact that students in the recent years are being more exposed to such an issue in awareness-related programs or wellness courses than previous periods; that may be considered a positive trend.
References
1. Aguire-Molina, M. & Gorman D. (1996). Community-Based Approaches for the Prevention of Alcohol, Tobacoo, and Other Drug Use. Annual Review Public Health, 17: 337-358.
Introduction
The state of South Carolina recently acknowledged that tourism is the leading industry in the state. To ensure that the tourism industry continues to thrive in South Carolina, the state must manage and plan for the many advantages and disadvantages of this industry.
A study was conducted to investigate the relationship between tourism and crime to determine if the two, in fact, are directly or indirectly linked to each other. This was done by examining the levels of tourism and crime rates in all 46 counties of South Carolina.
Methodology and Data
Crime statistics were obtained from the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (S.L.E.D.) agency’s annual Uniform Crime Report for 1998. Criminal data was divided into seven offenses including: murder, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, breaking and entering, larceny, and motor vehicle theft. The first four of these offences are classified as violent crimes, while the offenses of breaking and entering, larceny, and motor vehicle theft are classified as nonviolent crimes. Criminal offenses are classified according to standard definitions used throughout the United States.
The Uniform Crime Report (UCR) gave a crime index, which is a total of all of the offenses per county. The index represented the total number of crimes officially reported to the police and does not represent the crimes not officially reported. For the purpose of this study, crime rates were presented as crime rates per 1,000 population for each county.
Tourism activity of each county was measured by a tourism index formula developed by Dr. David Pearlman, School of Hotel, Restaurant and Tourism Management, University of South Carolina and Bill Evans, Director of Economic Research, United States Travel Data Center. Pearlman used Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) codes to measure the number of employees for three major sectors, which play major roles in tourism activity. These sectors include: eating and drinking establishments (SIC #5800), hotels and lodging establishments (SEC #7000) and amusement and recreational establishments (SIC # 7900). Then, using the U.S Bureau of the Census’s publication of County Business Patterns, the number of employees for each of these three sectors were determined for each of South Carolina’s 46 counties. A tourism activity index figure was calculated by adding a weighted portion of each of these three SIC employment figures.
Results Of The Survey
The study showed that a relationship does exist between crime rates and tourism activity for the counties of South Carolina. Results showed that six of the top ten crime counties were also in the top ten tourism activity counties.
There seems to be a relationship between some violent crime: rape and robbery had five counties each in the top ten tourism counties. Murder and aggravated assault had two counties each in the top ten tourism counties.
There seems to be a greater relationship between non-violent crimes and tourism activity: Larceny had eight counties, breaking & entering had six counties and motor vehicle theft had five of the top ten tourism activity counties.
Conclusion
Counties with high crime rates and high tourism activity should look into why this is occurring. Further studies should be conducted as to address this problem. For example, identify the counties with high tourism and lower crime rates and research why they are successful in lowering the crime rate while still maintaining a high level of tourism. Larceny and breaking & entering had the highest non-violent index among the top ten tourism activity counties. Police agencies should take note of this and develop crime prevention programs for their respective county.
Introduction
Electronic commerce is booming because of faster and newer technologies being introduced. People are becoming more and more net savvy and have more ways to conduct business safely over the Internet. Currently there are hundreds of new dot-com companies opening every week. Everyone says that the information superhighway is changing the way today’s modern businesses need to operate. On-line travel will be a $20 billion industry by the year 2001, compared to $2.5 billion in 1998 (Travel Weekly, May 12, 1999). With statistics like this, it is clearly apparent that E-commerce is the wave of the future. With changes in the marketplace, there are winners and losers
Statement Of The Problem
Consumers are being enticed to book travel services on-line. Due to decreased commission rates travel agents have to sell more, just to earn the same. Since travel agents are losing sales to non-traditional travel product sales agents, traditional travel agents have begun charging their customers a service fee. The purpose of this study was to conduct a baseline study of the size and impact of electronic commerce activity on southeastern United States travel agents. The study helps understand operational changes that travel agents might have made concerning charges and services to help further business. The study also reveals the impact on corporate business and individual business clientele from traditional to electronic travel planning and purchasing.
Methodology
Fax and telephone channels were used to administer a brief survey. ASTA membership directories, Internet searches and electronic telephone directories were used to develop a sample frame comprised of travel agents from the southeastern United States. For the purpose of this study the southeastern United States area will comprise of North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Florida.
The surveys were well received. Out of the 720 telephones and/or Fax surveys made there was about 142 telephones and/or Fax numbers that were either disconnected or no longer operated as travel agencies. A total of 578 telephone and/or Fax calls were considered valid for which we received 247 responses, all of which were considered valid after data cleaning and coding. These 247 respondents represent a 42.73 % response rate.
Research Findings
The final research paper will be an approximately fifteen page, single spaced report with multiple tables to present findings. Results of the study will be summarized under the following headings:
Results And Implications
Based on this research, it is obvious that the Internet and E-commerce is affecting travel agencies’ bottom line and the way they are doing business. Almost half of our respondents had heard of business closures due to these technological changes. These changes have affected the way travel agencies make their money. Almost three fourths of southeastern agencies have adopted some type of service charge. Findings indicate that over one fifth of all customers are calling in with Internet-based researched travel itineraries. Findings also indicate that these charges have impacted individual travelers considerably more than corporate clients. Does this finding foreshadow the future? Are travel agencies soon going to cater to a corporate clientele only while individuals, after more e-commerce capable sites are developed, surf the web and then fly the skies.
These findings lead to suggested new research. Is it reasonable to assume equal patterns throughout the United States? What do travel agents need to do to maintain non-corporate clients?
A number of issues are occurring: 1) additional travel provider consolidations are likely to occur; 2) these providers are trying to cut out the middleman; 3) more individuals are becoming comfortable with technology and 4) E-commerce travel sites are growing rapidly. Do these three issues indicate the eventual extinction of the brick and mortar travel agency?
Bibliography
Caviness, D. (2000, April 20). Forest Lake Travel, Personal Communication.
Staff Writers. 1997 County Business Patterns United States. CenStats [On-line], Available: http://tier2.census.gov/cgi-win/cbp/detail.exeStaff Writers. 1998 County Business Patterns United States. CenStats [On-line], Available: http://tier2.census.gov/cgi-win/cbp/detail.exe
Flowers, G. (2000, April 24). News- Business & Governmental Travel, Study: More on-line biz bookings. Travel Weekly, 22-24.
Staff Writers. (1999, May 12). News - Travel Technology, Study says on-line travel will hit $20 billion in 2001. Travel Weekly, 34-36.
Statement of the Problem
The hospitality industry worldwide currently employs over 255 million people. These individuals work in hotels, restaurants, travel agencies, convention centers, airports, and private clubs, to name only a few. Within the United States, the hospitality industry employs over 13.9 million people, or 11% of the population. In 1996, the hospitality industry gross output within the United States totaled $872.5 billion, or 10.2% of the Gross Domestic Product. Projections indicate a growth of 39.3% in gross dollars by 2006 (Travel and Tourism’s Economic Impact, 1996).
The hospitality industry’s employment base is the largest of any industry in the private sector in the United States. It surpasses the agriculture sector and the auto, electronics, steel, and textile industries combined in number of people employed (Riegel, 1992). National unemployment continues to remain low, with only 4.6% of the working population unemployed in September 1998 (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics). The managers of hospitality operations find hiring enough staff to be a constant challenge, regardless of the applicant’s qualifications. National annual turnover rates within the industry are reported to be 154% (Fortino, et al, 1996), up to 240% (Woods, et al, 1989). This compares to 17% annual turnover reported for all US businesses (Carlino, 1988).
The private club segment of the hospitality industry is characterized by its high degree of service offered to its members. There are over 12,000 clubs nationwide. Facilities managed by Club Managers Association of America (CMAA) members employ over 268,000 people, serving over 2.03 million members. In 1996, the average club belonging to CMAA generated $3.5 million annually, for a collected impact on the National economy of $9.44 billion (Economic Impact of Clubs, 1997).
Kaak et al (1998) estimates the turnover costs per employee to be $267.39. According to CMAA, the average club employs 90 people. Using the modest annual turnover rate cited above of 154%, each club spends approximately $37,167.00 per year on labor replacement issues. Throughout the clubs represented by CMAA, this figure soars to $111,501,630.00 spent on turnover annually in private clubs. This is a conservative estimate.
The term "turnover" is defined by Price (1977) as "crude turnover rate...the ratio of the number of organizational members who have left during the period being considered divided by the average number of people in that organization during the period" (p.15).
Gustafson (1999) studied the turnover rates within private clubs nationwide. This study seeks to breakout North Carolina and South Carolina for a closer examination of turnover trends.
Summary of Methods Used
A random sample of CMAA managers was surveyed to measure the turnover rates of their private clubs. The data was self-reported by the managers, yet care was taken in the design of the survey to reduce bias. Managers provided employment statistics, which allowed the researcher to calculate the turnover rate.
Demographic data was collected including club zip code. It is the goal of the researcher to re-code the data using SPSS to calculate turnover statistics for 3-5 regions within each of the two states. These results will be compared to the national results.
Results and Implications of the Study
This study is in progress. Implications of the study will be useful data to club managers in the geographic area being studied. These managers will be able to examine the turnover rates of their respective clubs and compare to others in the region. This will create a meaningful benchmark for these managers.
Introduction
In order for a state to be truly economically sound, it must have a diversified economy. The state of South Carolina recently acknowledged that tourism is the leading economic producing industry in the state. To ensure that the tourism industry continues to thrive in South Carolina, the state must manage and plan for the many effects of this industry, both good and bad. Previous studies and debates have tried to either show a direct association or no correlation at all between tourism activity and crime rates in certain locations. Several studies conducted by B. H. Archer (1977) suggested that one of the most significant and least desirable effects of tourism is its negative impact of moral standards on the surrounding community (Archer, B.H., 1977). Matheison and Wall (1982) suggested that tourism contributes to increases in crime because potential gains can be large, the likelihood of detection is small, and because of the existence of friction between host community residents and visitors (Matheison, A., 1982). Contrary to the above assumptions, several studies have shown there is little correlation between crime rates and tourism activity (Goeldner, C.R., 2000). Goeldner, McIntosh, and Ritchie (2000) suggested that tourism’s effects on criminal activity are insignificant; however, tourists can become easy prey for criminals. Thus, increases in tourism activity in an area do not necessarily increase the number of criminal incidents that do occur; however, tourists are susceptible to the area’s normal criminal activities.
Statement Of The Problem
The purpose of this study was to identify and rank tourism’s influence on predicting crime levels. Examining the levels of tourism, ethnic diversity, poverty, income levels and criminal activities in the state of South Carolina will be used to rank tourism. Crime rates and tourism levels among many other factors for each of South Carolina’s 46 counties were obtained and analyzed in order to recognize any trends that may be evident so that effective actions can be taken if they are needed.
Methodology
In determining the relationship between levels of tourism activity and criminal activity, this study compared crime statistics to a tourism activity index for each of the 46 counties in the state of South Carolina for the year of 1997. Crime statistics from South Carolina’s State Law Enforcement Division (S.L.E.D.) were obtained from the agency’s annual Uniform Crime Report for 1998. Criminal data for each county was divided into seven offenses including murder, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, breaking and entering, larceny, and motor vehicle theft. Criminal offenses are classified according to standard definitions used throughout the United States. The final part of the study will include, building a regression model and using the beta co-efficient to rank tourism’s role in predicting crime.
Literature Review
In the past, pleasure travelers primarily selected their destinations on the basis of price, location’s image, and activities available. Today, personal safety and security have become two of the more important factors when choosing a vacation destination. Tourist locations that have gained the reputations of being crime spots are finding it very difficult to retain their tourism industries.
In a study conducted on tourists’ need to feel safe, Bloom, Pizam and Tarlow (1997) noted that tourists become easy victims of crime for four specific reasons. First, they are tempting targets because they carry large sums of cash and other valued possessions. Secondly, tourists often engage in risky behaviors and activities such as visiting nightclubs, bars, and other unsafe places. The third reason was that tourists are often ignorant of the local language, dialect, signage, cultures, and customs. Finally, natives and residents frequently perceive tourists as aggressive and insensitive to local norms and customs. Lin and Loeb (1977) further suggested that the per capita income difference between the host community and tourists could also play a major roll in the amount of criminal activity in a tourist location. This suggests that when wealthy tourists visit low-income communities, the rate of criminal activity is likely to increase.
In a study of tourism and crime in Cape Code, Pizam (1978) uncovered that vandalism, drug abuse, and disorderly conduct were the most notable criminal activities that increased during tourist seasons. McPheters and Stronge (1974) suggested that economic crimes such as robbery, larceny and burglary increased during tourist seasons while auto theft and crimes of passion (murder, rape, and assault) showed no signs of increase during tourist seasons. The findings of the study will assist in a clearer understanding of tourism’s role in criminal activity.
Introduction
City planners, downtown economic development corporations and politicians are positioning conventions and meetings as the panacea for depressed or stagnant economies. According to International Association of Convention Visitors Bureau, $165 billion was spent on meetings in 1998. Many feel South Carolina is the hottest state in the southeast region for attracting meetings and conventions. In 1998, South Carolina recorded $6.7 billion in visitor spending. In the Columbia Metropolitan area meetings and conventions have also experienced a $1.5 billion economic impact.
Recently, Columbia‘s city leaders received permission to begin planning and building a $20.5 million convention center. Growth in the meetings business, combined with shrinking marketing staffs and budgets, has forced municipalities to work smarter rather than harder to fill their destination meeting and convention venues (convention centers, hotels, meeting space and tourism businesses).
Everyone says that computers make life easier thus allowing more free time. The media tells us the information highway is the wave of the future. Many old time marketing people give it the politically correct lip service, on one breath "yeah it is changing the way we will do business," but under their breath many are saying nothing beats face-to-face contact.
Purpose of the Study
The purpose of this study is to document previous methods employed by convention and visitors bureaus to sell business space thus "putting heads in beds." Additionally, this research will present a case study where a supply-side inventory (prospect list) was generated from the Internet for the Columbia Metropolitan Convention Visitors Bureau SMERF customer.
Methodology
The mapping and listing of the 350–mile radial market region’s cities from Columbia began the research process. Multiple methods were used in order to secure the desired information needed to fulfill this report’s objectives. Search engines such as Metacrawler, Go2net, Yellow Pages, Yahoo, Dogpile and Excite were used in order to gather this information for one of the research objectives. Each of the SMERF sub-segments was then entered to acquire the desired information. More than 40,000 names, addresses and telephone numbers were collected. To achieve the first and third research objectives, telephone interviews were conducted. The sample frame was constructed using a random start sequential numbering method. From the census of attainable names, over 400 were pulled to obtain the pre-desired 100 completed interviews.
Findings
The study expanded the potential for target markets and eliminated areas of the segment population that either would not travel the distance to Columbia, South Carolina or were restricted to their local market. With this study, the Columbia Metropolitan Convention and Visitors Bureau learned that styles of communications have fluctuated, no longer are trade shows and trade publications the best way to cultivate new customers. In the age of computer technology person-to-person and telephone contacts far out weigh the use of the Internet as stated by study respondents. This study’s findings indicate that neither technology nor tradeshows and trade publications can replace personal communication methods.
References
Braley, Sarah J. F., (Meeting Market Report 1996), Meetings & Conventions
Burke, James and Resnick, Barry, (Southwest Publishing, 1991) Marketing and Selling Product Gartrell, Richard B., (Kendall/Hunt Publishing, 2nd Edition, 1994), Destination Marketing for Convention and Visitor Bureaus Manning, Gerald L. and Reece, Barry L., (Prentice Hall, 7th Edition 1997), Selling Today, Building Quality Partnership Morrison, Alastair M., (Delmar Publishers, 2nd Edition, 1996), Hospitality and Travel Marketing
Problem Statement
In every year since 1993, North Carolina’s lodging industry has enjoyed substantial increases in occupancy, average daily rate (ADR), and room revenues (Hobbs, 1999). However, during September of 1999, the coastal plain of North Carolina was pummeled by high winds and pounding surf, and it was then further devastated by the worst flooding in recorded history. In late October 1999, the president of the North Carolina Hotel and Motel Association (NCH&MA), in conjunction with the North Carolina Division of Tourism, Film and Sports Development, contacted the author to design, develop, and administer an assessment of the economic impact of the recent hurricanes and flooding on North Carolina's lodging industry.
Methodology
Survey Instrument
In collaboration with the NCH&MA, a survey instrument was developed based on the monthly summaries of data that were collected by the hotel association. Survey items were developed to determine guestrooms available, guestrooms occupied, and average daily rate per occupied room (ADR) for the months of August, September, and October of 1998 and 1999. Additional survey items were included to measure the financial and/or economic conditions that resulted from the hurricanes and flooding.
Data Collection
The NCH&MA developed a randomly selected representative sample of 453 hotels that were distributed proportionately among each of the three geographic regions of North Carolina. To expedite the data collection process, the survey instrument was distributed via e-mail and fax to all sample hotels by the NCH&MA, and respondents were asked to fax their completed questionnaires directly to the principal investigator at East Carolina University. The data collection period was seven days. The data were handled to protect the identity of respondents and in a manner that ensured the confidentiality of the information provided.
Statistical Analyses
Respondents were grouped according to region. Rooms available, rooms occupied, and ADR were summarized and averaged. The financial impact of the hurricanes and flooding were calculated on the basis of revenue losses per guestroom, and then adjusted to account for variances between the number of guestrooms in the regional populations and the regional samples. Finally, a series of one-sample t-tests were conducted to compare the occupancy levels between the regional populations and regional samples during August, September, and October of 1998 and 1999.
Findings
Every region of the state was impacted. The Coastal Plain suffered the greatest loss, with an occupancy loss of 12% during October 1999, creating in a direct revenue loss of nearly $750 thousand. Across the state, the physical damages suffered and lost room revenues were estimated to be between $96 million and $125 million for September and October alone.
Implications
In the year since this enormous catastrophe, the lodging industry has grown, although the growth rate has been much slower than previous years. However, there are several critical economic issues to be addressed. Much additional research is needed to preserve the continued financial health and growth of North Carolina’s lodging industry.
References
Hobbs, J. (2000). Gross lodging/accommodation sales: Hotels, motels, cottage rentals fiscal year comparisons through June, 2000. Raleigh NC: NCH&MA.
Hobbs, J. (1999a). [Gross lodging/accommodations sales: hotels, motels, cottage rentals]. Unpublished raw data.
Hobbs, J. (1999b). NCH&MA Annual Lodging Statistics Report. (Available from the North Carolina Hotel & Motel Association, Post Office Box 30457, Raleigh, NC 27622)
Tomsho, R. (1999, October 5). 'Anthill' economics: How natural disasters can change the course of a region's growth - In Pascagoula, Miss., sales surged, jobs multiplied; then there's Galveston - a year of living with mom. The Wall Street Journal, p. A1.
Acknowledgements:
The author would like to express his appreciation to Mr. Gordon Clapp, Director of the North Carolina Division of Tourism, Film, and Sports Development, and to Mr. Jim Hobbs, President of the North Carolina Hotel & Motel Association, for their assistance with, and support of, this project.
Introduction
Recent studies in disciplines other than the hospitality field have explored the use of new technologies, such as fax and internet/e-mail, especially as it relates to customer interaction and receiving information from them (Andreasen, 1988). The studies have explored the advantages of existing methods, utilizing the new technologies, the speed of obtaining the information, the rate of responses, and the associated costs (Alreck & Settle, 1989; De Vaus, 1990). Utilizing the fax and internet/e-mail technology allows a researcher to combine the advantages of different data collection techniques. The fax and internet/e-mail technology allows one to send a survey via the telephone line or high-speed broadband line. Using a fax machine or internet/e-mail can enhance the advantages of a typically mailed questionnaire with the speed and efficiency of the technology (Gerson, 1993).
Internet/e-mail and fax surveys have some potential advantages over the traditional survey sent and received via the mail:
Fax surveys also have some potential disadvantages over the traditional survey sent and received via the mail and the internet/e-mail method:
Both internet/e-mail and fax surveys also have some potential disadvantages over the traditional survey sent and received via the mail:
Hypotheses
As proposed by Dickson & MacLachlan (1996), the older technology, faxed surveys, was used as the control group because of its familiarity and common use among many businesses and researchers in 2000. This is the standard that the internet/e-mail surveys were compared to in this study. The six hypotheses are:
Method
Private club members were selected as the population under study because of their predisposition to have internet/e-mail access and fax machines, their tendency to reside or have a business in the same area code as the club, their typically high response rate to surveys about their private club, and their position as consumers of products offered by the private clubs.
Three country clubs in a major metropolitan area in the southeast portion of the United States were selected. The clubs were selected because of the cooperation offered by the club’s general manager and board of directors. The clubs were located in residential areas between ten and twenty miles from the city’s central business district. The country clubs were member-owned, non-profit, and governed by boards of directors. The clubs’ facilities each consisted of an 18-hole golf course, tennis courts, swimming pools, and a clubhouse with a formal dining room, mixed grill (casual coed dining area), and private meeting rooms. Each club had between 525-600 regular members, total revenue between $4 and 5 million, and food and beverage revenues between $1.5 and 2 million.
Data were collected during a one-month period in the spring of 2000. Two hundred and fifty members from each of the three clubs were randomly selected from a list of the regular members that reported having an e-mail address and a local business fax number. The 250 members from each of the clubs (750 total) were randomly divided into two groups, one that received an e-mail with a letter and survey attached to it and one that received the survey via fax.
Listed on the survey and letter were directions that respondents could complete the survey and return it via e-mail for those receiving it in that format, and or/return the survey by fax with the appropriate return fax number listed. Members receiving the fax received directions to return the survey via fax or the URL address that the survey could be completed on the internet. Accompanying the survey was a letter from the club’s general manager asking the member to complete the survey so that the club could find out how they felt about certain issues related to the club’s operation. A cover letter from the club’s general manager or president of the board of directors is a common tool used to get a high response rate from members at private clubs.
The sample of members was sent a single page survey with nine questions about the club’s dining room. The nine questions were structured as a four-point Likert-type scale. The first six questions asked the members to rate their level of satisfaction (4 = very satisfied to 1 = very dissatisfied) with different aspects of the club. The last three questions had members rate their level of agreement (4 = highly agree to 1 = highly disagree) on three food and beverage issues. All of the surveys and/or notices were sent on the first Tuesday of the month from the three clubs in order to accurately calculate the speed of response rate (the number of days to receive the survey). There were no holidays during the three-week period in which the surveys were sent and the last one was returned.
Results
As indicated in Table 1, there were no significant differences among the three clubs in the number of surveys returned and the average number of days to return the surveys. The average return response rate for the three clubs was 51.5 percent. Again, this high return rate is typical of surveys administered to private club members when the survey elicits feedback from the members about their specific club (Foutch, 1996). The return rate for the three clubs ranged from 48.8 to 54.0 percent. The analysis of variance test among the three return rates resulted in an F = .93, p-value = .59.
The average number of days to return a survey among the three clubs was 4.9 days. The number of days to return the surveys ranged from a low of zero days (e-mailed or faxed back the same day it was faxed out) to 20 days. The analysis of variance test among the three clubs reported no significant difference in number of days to return the surveys (F = .79, p-value = .67). These results indicated that the data among the three clubs were similar therefore allowing the data from the three clubs to be combined and used in the study.
Table 1
Results for Three Private Clubs
|
Clubs |
Surveys sent |
Number returneda |
Return rate% |
Average number of days to returnb
|
|
A |
250 |
129 |
51.6 |
4.7 |
|
B |
250 |
135 |
54.0 |
5.1 |
|
C |
250 |
122 |
48.8 |
4.8 |
|
Total |
750 |
386 |
51.5 |
4.9
|
The results of the study comparing the return rate and number of days to return the survey are depicted in Table 2. Hypothesis one was supported, since members receiving the survey by internet/e-mail returned the survey faster (3.8 days) than members receiving the survey by fax (6.6 days). Hypothesis two was also supported: those returning the survey via internet/e-mail returned it faster (3.9 days) than those returning the survey by fax (6.2 days). This two day average return rate difference is probably attributable to the time it takes the administrative assistant or other club employees to deliver the fax and send it back via the fax machine.
Members were more likely to return the surveys using the same medium through which they received them. Almost two-thirds (67.1%, 153 out of 228) of the members who received their surveys by internet/e-mail returned them by internet/e-mail as well. Moreover, 66.3 percent (108 out of 163) of the members who received their surveys by fax also returned them by fax. These results were significant and supported hypotheses five and six.
Table 2
Return Rates and Speed of Surveys Returned
|
Sending medium
|
Surveys sent |
Returning medium |
Surveys returned |
Return rate% |
Average number of days to return |
||||||
|
Internet |
375 |
Internet |
153c |
40.8 |
3.2 |
||||||
|
Fax |
75c |
20.0 |
4.9 |
||||||||
|
Internet/e-mail sent subtotal |
228 |
60.8a |
3.8e |
||||||||
|
Fax |
375 |
Internet |
55d |
14.7 |
5.7 |
||||||
|
Fax |
108d |
28.8 |
7.1 |
||||||||
|
Fax sent subtotal |
163 |
43.5a |
6.6e |
||||||||
|
Internet/e-mail received subtotal |
208 |
55.5b |
3.9f |
||||||||
|
Fax received subtotal |
183 |
48.8b |
6.2f |
||||||||
|
Overall |
750 |
391 |
52.1 |
4.9
|
|||||||
As proposed by hypothesis three, the response rate of members who received the survey via internet/e-mail (60.8%) was higher than that of members who received the survey via a fax (43.5%). Hypothesis four was also supported; the return rate of those members returning their survey by internet/e-mail (55.5%) was higher than that of those returning the survey by fax (48.8%). In both cases, the return rate of members who received and/or returned their surveys by internet/e-mail was 6.7 to 17.3 percent higher than for members who received and/or returned their survey by fax. Some possible explanations for these higher return rates are:
Discussion
It appears from this study that internet/e-mail surveys may produce better results than faxed surveys in some cases. Surveys sent and returned by internet/e-mail had a higher response rate and were received faster than those using the fax system. Therefore, it would seem useful to use the internet/e-mail to distribute questionnaires that were appropriate for faxing, that is, those that met the criteria outlined in the introduction section.
This study showed that consumers who had a true interest in the product they use and purchase were willing to use the internet/e-mail and fax machine to answer questions about that product. Private clubs as well as hospitality businesses should be able to incorporate internet/e-mail and fax machines in market research and information-gathering techniques for repeat customers.
Limitations and Future Research
The findings of this study are limited in their application. It appears that internet/e-mailing surveys is appropriate for loyal, repeat customers. Future studies that would be of value to hospitality businesses would explore whether internet/e-mail surveys would be appropriate with new customers, low-use customers or non-customers. Hospitality businesses often try to collect market information from these individuals, and knowing if internet/e-mail surveys would produce a higher response rate and be more cost effective would be useful.
References
Andreasen, A. R. (1988). Cheap but good marketing research. Homewood, IL: Irwin. Alreck, P. L., & Settle, R. B. (1989). The survey research handbook. Homewood, IL: Irwin. De Vaus, D. A. (1990). Surveys in social research (2nd ed.). Boston: Unwin Hyman.Introduction
The inception of School to Hospitality Career programs dates back to 1986 when the Academies of Travel and Tourism began in the high school systems of New York City and Miami. The growth of such programs was rather sporadic until 1996 when the Hospitality Business Alliance, a joint effort of the National Restaurant Association and the American Hotel and Motel Association, undertook an active role in sponsoring and supporting high school academic programs aimed at attracting students to the hospitality industry. There are three highly structured components involved in these programs, Lodging, Food Service/Culinary and Travel and Tourism. School to Hospitality Career programs are now in approximately 400 high schools in 24 states (Georgia Hospitality & Travel Association, 1999).
Because of the limited research available on this topic, Cannon and Stalcup (1999) conducted an exploratory pilot study of school to hospitality career programs in four different schools located in three cities in Georgia. The number of high school participants in this initial study totaled 48 which was only 7.7% of the total 625 students enrolled throughout the state.
Most of the sample (62.5%) were Seniors in high school and 100% of the group planned to continue their education after graduation. The results of the pilot study were somewhat alarming in that only one subject planned to pursue a hospitality-related course of study following high school graduation. This one subject planned to attend culinary school. These results warranted a more in-depth and expanded analysis that led to the current research.
Statement of the Problem and Methodology
The focus of the current descriptive study was to expand the 1999 research and determine 1) how students entered the School to Hospitality Career programs and 2) student expectations of these programs. Demographic information including class status and grade point average were also collected. With an objective of obtaining a comprehensive analysis of the programs, a 360 degree approach, sometimes referred to as "triangulation," was utilized in the research design. "Triangulation is the combination of multiple sources of data … to assess a variable" (Lauer & Asher, 1988, p. 288). In addition to surveying students, the study will also include perceptions of the participating high school teachers. Through telephone interviews, which are currently in progress, teachers are being asked how they were selected to participate, the support received internally from administration as well as externally from the hospitality industry and particular strengths and weaknesses of their programs. The third component of this study will involve interviewing hospitality employers of the high school students regarding their perceptions of how students are being prepared for this industry and the type of work and mentoring opportunities being provided throughout the state. A multiple regression analysis will be utilized in determining predictors of long-term hospitality career interest by the participating high school students.
Preliminary Results
The current sample of students was surveyed during Spring 2000. Plans are to administer another questionnaire before the end of the 2000-2001 school year with a third group of students following the initial exploratory study. Almost 300 students completed the Spring survey which was 48% of the approximate 625 students participating in the School to Hospitality Career programs. In an initial analysis of data, 133 surveys were analyzed. Of this group, 72.9% of the sample were female with a mean age of 17 for the entire group. The age of participating students ranged from 14 to 20. Almost 64% (63.9%) of the sample were Black with 25.6% White, 3.8% Asian, 3.0% Hispanic and 3.8% other. The majority (60.9%) of the sample were Juniors in school, with 28.6% Seniors and 9.8% Freshmen. The high school curriculum differentiates between a college preparation focus, career/technical preparation or a combination of both. Almost 50% (49.6%) of the students were in the career/technical preparation segment with 33.8% in the college preparation program and 15% in the combined program. Most of the sample (44.4%) had a B grade point average with 27.1% in the C range, 23.3% in the A range and 4.5% with a GPA of below C.
Regarding selection procedures, 40.6% (n = 54) of the participating students stated that they were selected by a teacher to participate. Over 38% (38.3%, n = 51) selected the program on their own because of their interest in the hospitality industry followed by 32.3% (n = 43) having to go through a formal application process to participate. Almost 21% (21.1%, n = 28) of the students entered the program based on the advice of a high school guidance counselor. (Multiple answers were allowed resulting in a total greater than 100%.)
The students, in an open-ended question, were asked what they expected from the School to Hospitality Career program. The written responses were grouped into six categories:
Of the 133 surveys analyzed, 30.1% (n = 40) stated that they planned a career or some type of future in the hospitality industry. An additional 3.8% (n = 5) stipulated that they planned to study some facet of hospitality (most indicated culinary) after graduating from high school. Almost 29% (28.6%, n = 38) expected to gain information about the industry and increased awareness which some stated could be of benefit even in another selected career. Almost 16% (15.8%, n = 21) expected to learn skills that they could immediately apply (i.e. learn to cook different dishes) or that could lead immediately to some type of hospitality job. Some students (19.5%, n = 26) did not know their expectations (although this survey was conducted towards the end of the school year) and 2.3% (n = 3) stated their primary expectations were to get a grade, earn course credit or have fun.
Projected Implications
Based on the results of this phase of the research (over 30% of the students in the sample expressing interest in hospitality careers, as compared to the initial study with only one student expressing interest), it could be speculated that improvement has been made in reaching the target market. As the future phases of this research are conducted, the researchers hope to identify specific ways in which the School to Hospitality Career programs can be strengthened throughout Georgia. The Georgia Hospitality and Travel Foundation, as a partner with the Hospitality Business Alliance, has been a strong support to the participating high schools in Georgia and their involvement in this research has been vital. The synergistic contributions of all constituencies to the success of these high school programs can have multiple benefits but maximized success will necessitate the involvement of all concerned – from interested, dedicated students and teachers to involved, supportive industry representatives and post-secondary institutions. In following the growth of School to Hospitality Career programs across the nation, the researchers plan to extend their study to other regions in comparing the dynamics between students, teachers, industry and higher education.
References
Cannon, D.F. & L. D. Stalcup (1999). An exploratory study of School to Hospitality Career Programs. International CHRIE Convention Proceedings, 187 – 190.
Georgia Hospitality and Travel Association (1999). Personal interviews with Jeralyn Forcier, Director of the Georgia Hospitality and Travel Foundation.
Lauer, J.M. & Asher, J.W. (1988). Composition Research, Empirical Designs. New York: Oxford University Press.
Statement of the Problem
The travel expenditures, as well as the number of people traveling, have been on the rise. US Travel Data Center reported that the business receipts of the US travel industry increased from $146.901 billion in 1972 to $287.257 billion in 1987. In 1997, total travel expenditures in the US reached $502.4 billion dollars. Clearly, the economic impact of tourism is very positive.
The expenditure patterns for travel have been affected a lot by significant demographic, social and economic changes during the last two decades in the US (Kotler, 1991). The purpose of the present study is to determine demographic and socioeconomic household characteristics affecting the total expenses for trips and vacations. Due to the significant portion of households with zero-value expenditure on food, lodging, transportation, and sightseeing/entertainment from travel expenditures (Cai, 1998), this study has to take a very unique approach to analyze the total trips and vacations expenditures in relation to household variables. In addition to the analysis technique (Tobit model), this study distinguishes itself from others by using a nationally representative sample for a whole year.
Methodology, Data and Sample
This study used the Diary 1995 Consumer Expenditure Survey (CEX) conducted by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). The CE survey is a national probability sample of households designed to represent the total civilian population. The CEX program provides a continuous and comprehensive flow of data on the buying habits of American consumers. The data files are organized by the quarter of the calendar year in which the data were collected (USDA, 1995). The four quarterly data sets were combined with sophisticated elaboration to view the consumer behaviors across the year.
Statistical Analyses
The Tobit regression technique was chosen for the present study because the sample has a number of zero-value dependent variables. The Tobit model refers to a regression in which the range of the dependent variable is constrained in some way. Application of OLS (Ordinary Least Squares) methods to the type of sample produces inconsistent estimators of the regression parameters. Tobit model, rather than alter or dispose of household records containing zero expenditure, accounts for this information to adequately portray the full range of household behavior.
Significant differences are expected to be found in the key variables of households, which determine the trips and vacations expenditures. The key variables which are hypothesized to affect trips and vacations expenditures are; age, race, gender, education, income, employment status, marital status, number of earners, number of children, number of infants, housing tenure, and location. The variables included were from previous researches related to the trips and tourism expenditure behaviors.
Results and Implications
The results of the study would benefit the hospitality and tourism businesses in understanding travel expenditure patterns in various types of households. The information is useful for providing travel expenditure estimates of households with specific demographic and socioeconomic characteristics, and is of substantial value in evaluation of the market potential of a particular segment as well as in developing segmentation and targeting strategies.
Introduction
Culinary education has not always been the modern curriculum and formalized training it is today. In the past, before there were "chefs’ schools", there were professionals who dedicated their life’s work to teaching people to cook. The Boston Cooking School was one of the first significant cooking schools in the United States. In addition to teaching students to cook, they also taught how to instruct others to cook. In 1877, 30 year old Fannie Merrit Farmer attended the Boston Cooking School. After graduation she began teaching and eventually became the school’s principal. She published the Boston School Cookbook in 1896. In an age when foods were measured by the pinch and handful, her teachings were very influential. Through her book and the school, she taught the importance of recipe accuracy and measurements. Her book is still a valid resource and remains in print today.
In 1946, when television was in its infancy, James Beard began to teach through this brand new medium. Later he opened a cooking school in his Greenwich Village brownstone and for more than 30 years taught professionals and nonprofessionals the significance of American Cuisine. When Julie Child hit the airwaves, she showed America how to prepare and cook French Cuisine. These two events brought much publicity to the craft of being a chef.
The 1940's was an important period for culinary education in America. As the postwar economy boomed, so did cooking schools. The same year James Beard aired his television show, the Culinary Institute of America was founded. The CIA was the first career oriented cooking school in the United States. Originally located on Yale’s campus in Connecticut and called the New Haven Restaurant Institute, the school relocated in 1972 to its present home in Hyde Park, New York. Prior to opening the CIA, if one wanted to become a chef, one had to apprentice under a seasoned master and learn the craft on the job. Apprenticing has always been the obvious choice for a European chef, but this was not the case in America.
The Culinary Institute of America is perched high above the majestic Hudson river in one of the most beautiful locations in the world. The Hudson Valley has inspired artists for hundreds of years and spawned the Hudson Valley School of painting, spectacular landscapes and dreamy interpretations of nature at its pristine and unsullied best. The school is an imposing red brick, five story Victorian structure. It is actually a converted Jesuit Monastery, named St. Andrew’s on the Hudson. The thickly wooded and wildlife laden (deer, skunk, squirrel, racoon and the occasional black bear) 75 acre campus is home to more than 2000 full time culinary students who study in its ancient halls and modern kitchens.
Resources
The "Culinary," (the first syllable of the word is pronounced "cull’ not "cue"), has 22 fully equipped and technologically advanced kitchens, bakeshops, pastry kitchens, butcher shops and garde manger kitchens. The quality of the kitchens rival any of the world’s finest hotels for equipment and small wares, in fact it sets the standard for much of the foodservice industry. Many of the CIA kitchens are donated by equipment manufactures who supply the latest equipment, some not yet available on the commercial market. There are also more than 50 classrooms, fully equipped with the latest video and power point equipment. Students must study both with their hands and with their minds, as culinary art is a whole body experience.
Students have access to the 43,000 volume (all culinary related) library. The library focus is to provide students with the why of cooking and what happens sciencewise. The library includes a rare book room where the oldest and rarest book, printed in Latin in Paris in 1556 is Athenaei Dipnosophistarum sive coenae sapintum libri XV. It consists of a dialogue between two men at a banquet who talk for days on end about food, famous epicures, noted personages and feasts of ancient Greece back to the days of Homer. In the Learning Resource Center (LRC), a complete video library, with more than 20,000 tapes of "hands-on demos" by CIA chef-instructors and the world’s great chefs, gives culinary students the opportunity to see close up how to do a particular culinary technique. The LRC also has the student run television station (all food most the time) and radio station, which caters to the eclectic nature of the culinarian from Beastie Boys to Bach.
The school also boasts of its four Mobile 5 Diamond rated student operated classroom restaurants; The Escoffier Room, fine French Cuisine and booked in advance for up to a year, The American Bounty Room, featuring regional dishes and cuisine of the Americas, The Catrinia D’ Medici Room, featuring traditional provincial Italian cuisine and the nutritionally oriented St. Andrew’s Café. Students are rotated through the restaurants creating the menu, ordering the supplies and food, preparation and service of items ordered by paying guests (up to $100 per guest) and washing the dishes when it’s all over. These real life experiences provide students with a sense of urgency and knowledge not found in textbooks.
Culinary students, both male and female, are dressed in the uniform of the trade, a crisp white, double-breasted chef coat, a yellow neckerchief (which is a functional part of the uniform), black and white hounds tooth checked pants (they show less dirt than black or white pants), a white apron, with a towel draped over the belt to serve as a pot holder, and the toque. The hat’s 100 pleats, as the story goes, represent either the number of ways a good chef can cook and egg, or the number of days of mourning after the death of the legendary French chef Auguste Escoffier in 1935. Hair is worn completely under the toque, or it is restrained by a hairnet. Sanitation is a central issue at the CIA and students who do not abide by the rules are quickly eliminated.
One student in my class experienced this extreme attention to sanitation and rules first hand. Working in the Escoffier Room kitchen, the class had begun production for the evening meal. One of the male students had a long pony tail, which he tucked up under his toque. The pony tail fell out and the chef-instructor, Chef Hennin a feisty French chef, told the student to put his hair back under his toque and not to let it happen again. Well, once again the pony tail flopped out from under the toque and Chef Hennin saw it. This sent Chef into a rage, he snatched his French knife, a very large and razor sharp knife, grabbed the pony tail by the end and cut off the entire ten inch long tress in one pass of the knife close to the scalp. Upon completion of the student shearing the Chef exclaimed "You will not have to worry about your hair any longer my petite fleur, catch....". Point made and well taken by all in class that evening.
Students in traditional garb, tools slung across their back, knives hanging from their belt, scurry from classes in Oriental foods to Garde Manger to Advanced Cost Control Management Systems, where they use computers to prepare production schedules, cost summaries and budgets. The Learning Resource Center offers computer assisted remedial sessions for students with deficient math and language skills. In the unit on Culinary French they learn that voiture is not pronounced "voycher" and that Parmentier was a 18th century alchemist who introduced the potato to France after doing time in a German prison camp. They learn to identify and butcher meat, to sculpting ice and salt dough, to analyzing and learning to appreciate wine.
The Curriculum
In Supervisory Development how to confront hypothetical crises: how should a maitre d’ react if, for example, a customer arrives 45 minutes late to claim his reserved table? What should a chef say to a worker who spills five gallons of consomme? And what is the proper response of a general manager on discovering that the hamburger count is 75 short?
The $28,000 tuition for the 21-month program leading to an Associate in Occupational Studies degree covers room, board, books, uniforms, laundry, insurance and knives. The CIA has a year long waiting list for acceptance to the program. Enrollment is predominantly male, about 60 percent, but more women are entering the field than ever before. The four 15 week periods on campus are interrupted by a salaried 18-week "externship" in some approved restaurant where at least 51 percent of what is served is prepared from scratch and where there is a resident executive chef to provide enough "hands-on training’ to offer "a real learning experience." CIA graduates can expect four or five job offers, minimum starting salaries of more than $20,000 and a lot more respect than cooks used to get when it was thought that oafs, who weren’t good for much else, could always work with food. The thinking here is that since chefs study at least as hard and long as nurses and accountants, they should be registered or certified and treated with the dignity their counterparts have in Europe.
The Faculty
The faculty consists of a who’s who of the world’s best chefs. 16 Master Chefs, of which there are only 72 in the whole world, are on the faculty, along with an additionally qualified group of 56 chef instructors. To become an instructor at the CIA, a chef must have completed a formal course of training, either at a recognized culinary school, or approved apprenticeship program. They must have a minimum of 10 years of industry experience as an Executive Chef and pass a rigorous "Mystery Basket Exam," where an entire menu, appetizer; salad; soup; entree with sauce; starch; vegetable and kitchen dessert; must be produced and be perfect, from ingredients seen for the first time at the beginning of the three-hour test. The attrition rate of chef-instructor applicants is high, only two out of 10 applicants are offered a position. Positions do not come available very often, as the average time on the job for chef-instructors is seven years. The 22 member academic faculty must also be recognized in their field and possess a minimum of a Master’s degree in the discipline they instruct, 35% possess a terminal degree. The chef-instructor to student ratio is 18:1 in kitchen labs and 36:1 in academic classes. The school is led by Master Chef Ferdinand Metz, one of the world’s most recognized culinarians. Chef Metz, the 52-year-old native of Bavaria Germany, is an uncompromising leader who insists on quality and will not accept less than perfect. Under his leadership, the school has become a Distinguished institution which receives global respect. The administrative staff also includes an office dedicated to the employment of students and coordinates student job opportunities from employers who call the school looking for graduates to fill key positions. The financial aid department helps students arrange for payment of tuition and living expenses. An average of 85% of students receive some sort of financial aid, scholarship or grant to attend the CIA.
The typical in class time for faculty and students are six hour kitchen labs and 90 minute academic classes. Students will have one kitchen lab and three academic classes per day, five days per week, on a three-week schedule. Every three weeks a student advances to a new block, the school is a progressive learning year program, starting with A and ending with Y.
One of the rites of passage entering culinarian undertake, is upon completion of "A" block, one of the most demanding, students go to the Pagoda-On-The-Bluff, which has a spectactularly sweeping view over the Hudson River and is the best place on campus to view a sunset, chugs a beer and throw their school issued, shiny new vegetable peelers into the flowing river. Who knows how this venerated tradition started, but I am certain there are tens of thousands of rusting vegetable peelers at the bottom of the Hudson which will be discovered by an anthropologist some day in the future and cause them fits trying to figure out why they are there!
The CIA also hosts the American Culinary Federation’s ten day Master Chef program. Chefs from all over the country come to the school hoping to be qualified and certified as a Master Chef. They are required to prepare menus for cardiovascular, low sodium, bland and diabetic diets as well as to show their more extravagant side. These professionals may already have salaries in the $100,000 range. Only half the applicants for Master Chef certification pass the test.
The Famous 25
In the 21 months students attend the CIA, the average student will gain 25 pounds! It is little wonder because it is rare to not go for an hour around the campus without being offered abite of pate, a taste of soup, a fresh croissant or some other delightful pastry creation from one of the school’s many kitchens. The school serves an average of 4,000 meals per day and insists that everything cooked in classes is eaten, either by students or paying customers. The CIA spends nearly $5 million a year on food and an additional $1.5 million on wine and other beverages.
In Closing
At graduation, which happens 16 times per year, students receive their diploma, a "Cordon Bleu" from which the bronze school medallion hangs and the tall toque, their newly earned badge of honor. Only 56% of students who began the program less than two years earliergraduate. Many leave because the school is too demanding, some quit because they realize thatbeing a chef is a lot of work, others have money problems and can’t afford to continue and some stay on as a full time employee at the restaurant where they did their mid-term externship. The ones who do graduate and the three guests they are each allowed to invite, are served a stupefyingly festive six course lunch, including four types of wine (two red, one white, one sparkling) by the Banquet Organization class.
Diplomas in hand, Cordon around the neck, a head full of knowledge and hands full of skill, the CIA graduate is ready to take their place in line with the long list of great chefs who have come before them and live their dream of being a professional culinarian. I am proud to be one of these elite graduates. For the remainder of my life I will continue to abide by the traditions I learned and savor the experiences I enjoyed during my time at The Culinary.
Introduction
It is a well-known fact that hospitality education provides the foundations for knowledge in the pursuit of success by students in their chosen careers. While these foundations obviously provide the core value for many our programs' missions, other things seem to become lost in the quest for knowledge. One such area that was identified by two faculty members was the intimate connection between hospitality students and industry mentors.
As the largest hospitality educator in the world, Johnson & Wales University has developed an array of (DVL) Distinguished Visiting Lecturers and (DVP) Distinguished Visiting Professors series to provide students with exposure to world leaders in hospitality. In addition, Johnson & Wales has developed an innovative summer program titled Career Explorations that enables high school seniors to work in hotels, restaurants, tour companies and other areas of specialty to gain a hands-on understanding of the industry. Most recently for 2000-2001 Johnson & Wales has developed a new program titled Industry Awareness Days which runs throughout the year and brings prospective students into personal contact with chefs, hoteliers, restaurateurs, travel managers and others in hopes of exposing them to industry leaders.
While all of these programs serve as useful tools in creating an awareness of the industry and a better understanding of hospitality, they do not create the close connection provided by the role of a mentor. Defining the relationships which mentors hold is one that is derived from the Greek origin meaning challenged. (Peer Resources, 2000) As we begin our classroom exercises in mentoring it is important to distinguish that we are not referring to "peer counseling" but rather to those who use "their greater expertise and practical wisdom to provide enrichments, inspire dreams and encourage the pursuit of realistic goals." (Mentoring International, 2000) Peer, on the other hand, more commonly refers to one who is equal in experience and capability --- that is not the goal of our classroom exercises.
For the purposes of our project(s) the faculty, with guidance from Mentors Peer Resources, established the characteristics of a mentoring program to be:
Purpose And Objectives
These classroom exercises examine the outcomes and direct benefits that students within the hospitality college gain after having participated in acquiring an industry mentor. The purpose of conducting these exercises was to measure the effectiveness of different systems of delivery within a variety of different courses to determine if methods of implementation could be replicated for our students in future coursework and classroom experiences.
The objectives of these exercises included:
Methodology
For the purposes of mentoring implementation, two hospitality instructors recognized and discussed the value of incorporating a specific mentoring project into required course work whenever possible. Both instructors decided that unique mentoring projects would be incorporated in separate programs using separate methodology for each in an effort to measure general effectiveness of mentoring programs in the hospitality curriculum. Mentoring projects were adapted according to specific course curriculum, course objectives and levels of study. A complete description of information for each project conducted is included below.
Introduction to Travel-Tourism Management
The introductory course for travel-tourism management majors includes a mandatory Integrated Career Project that requires the student to identify career opportunities, analyze the inter-dependence between careers, and identify skills needed for different careers. The student is required to research possible positions for one specific segment of the tourism industry along with information on salary ranges, experience needed, education level required, and sample job descriptions along with duties and responsibilities. The student is encouraged to choose this company carefully, as s(he) will expand initial research by utilizing this same company in subsequent course work.
The Process
During the first two weeks of the term students are exposed to a variety of industry career possibilities through course lectures, guest speakers, internet exercises and the course text. Students are encouraged to participate in classroom discussion about short-term and long-term goal setting as a means for effectively planning their education and career goals. The role of a "mentor" is defined and outlined in the context of providing positive outcomes for students. During the end of the second week students are asked to provide short-term and long-term goals related to where they could envision themselves working. On the last day of week two, students are provided with over one hundred business cards of professionals in the travel industry and asked to select someone they would choose as their mentor. The business cards included executives from the following industries: airlines, car rental agencies, cruise companies, hotels/resorts, tour companies, sales and communications, as well as state and federal organizations.
Once students selected their mentor they were asked to complete the following steps:
*If the person was not interest as was the case in two incidents, students were asked to select another person and cards were removed from the collection.
Outcomes
The following outcomes were determined through student participation in the mentoring project:
Introduction Field to the Food Service
The introductory course for food service management majors includes a mandatory Integrated Career Project that requires the student to choose a company in the food service industry and investigate its mission, management structure, target markets and future development plans. The student is also required to explore career opportunities with this company by outlining specific career strategies that would facilitate his/her implementation of the chosen career path. Emphasis and encouragement is given for choosing this company carefully, as the student will expand initial research by utilizing this same company in subsequent course work.
The Process
As Johnson & Wales is a career-focused university, over fifty percent of students enrolled in hospitality programs hold jobs in the industry while pursuing their education. In order to reinforce student awareness of the value of establishing industry mentoring resources early in the college experience, the instructor opens the classroom discussion with an invitation to begin the college experience with the pursuit of career opportunities and industry mentoring relationships.
Students are asked to begin the class with a discussion of their past and present industry experiences. Those students currently working in the industry are requested to recommend employers who, in their opinion, are providing productive learning opportunities in the workplace and would make effective classroom presentations as well as professional mentoring partners. The students are asked to obtain business cards from these employers, who are then invited to address the class as appropriate. In the experience of the author, these presenters consistently bring valuable career insights to the classroom discussion while offering timely information regarding current and future career opportunities and specific positions with their companies.
Outcomes
The outcomes of this exchange are threefold. First, the student’s perception of the education process shifts to include the pursuit of career opportunities at the beginning, rather than the end, of the process. Second, the student begins to view prospective employment opportunities as important chances for developing industry mentoring relationships as well as opportunities for producing income; consequently, employment decisions shift to reflect this change in perspective. Finally, educators reap the benefit of expanded industry contact, gaining valuable insights regarding the ever-changing job market and contemporary issues in the marketplace.
Private Club Management
Private Club Management provides the student with an opportunity to explore management opportunities and the unique challenges that exist for leaders in this segment of industry. Due to a limited number of private clubs in the immediate area, mentoring resources for students interested in pursuing prospective careers in the industry were somewhat limited.
The Process
As a means for providing mentoring opportunities for students interested in pursuing careers in private club management, the instructor utilized the required term project for the exploration of mentoring relationships. The project required that each student research a private club of the student's choice outside the immediate metropolitan area by completing a survey of membership requirements, club privileges, activities and facilities.
In addition, students were required to establish a link with the general managers of their chosen clubs by pursuing a formal interview. The interview was conducted by mail, email, personal or telephone contact and included questions specifically designed to help the student gauge the management challenges and service realities encountered by the typical club manager. Further, the interview provided a unique opportunity for the student to gain valuable insights into the actual career planning choices and compensatory realities that exist for managers in this particular segment of the hospitality industry.
Outcomes
This project broadened the realm of possibility for the establishment of mentoring relationships by expanding mentoring opportunities beyond the classroom and immediate geographic area and by providing the opportunity to develop relationships with industry practitioners in chosen geographic areas. Furthermore, it afforded students the opportunity to selectively create and develop their own unique educational experiences by selecting properties and managers who could provide them with:
Conclusion And Future Implications
It was the opinion of both instructors based on student feedback that each of the mentoring projects implemented within the hospitality curriculum provided an array of positive benefits. While each project was different by nature they all accomplished the primary objectives outlined for our mentoring program. Both instructors strongly feel as though the qualitative experience was high based on student response to the program. All of the characteristics outlined for the mentoring program were followed as described. The scope of this study is limited by the number of students, diversity with programs of study, and differences in academic progression.
It will be the goal of the instructors to design and implement a survey to provide quantifiable data in order provide links between the mentoring projects and the following:
REFERENCES
Bell, Chip (2000) The Mentor as Partner Vol. 54 i2 (page 52) American Society for Training & Development, Inc.Mentors Peer Resources (2000) Starting and Maintaining a Mentoring Program or Service Available [on-line] http: www.mentors.ca/mentor.html
The Mentoring Leadership & Resource Network (1998) Characteristics of Successful Mentoring Programs Available [on-line] http: www.mentors.net
Description of Learning Activity
This learning activity is designed for students in a 300 level convention management class. The purpose of this project is to expose students to international trends in the convention industry and to strengthen the understanding of diverse cultures, perspectives, and industry practices. This is a team effort, which requires two to three students attending the University of Southern Mississippi in Hattiesburg, Mississippi and Washington State University, Swiss Center in Brig, Switzerland to interact in a collaborative manner on all aspects of the project. The structure of the project requires that two to three students from each location be assigned to one country or region of the world to research. The project is designed in three stages: (1) discovery, (2) data collection, and (3) reporting. Stage one requires identification of United States meeting industry trends and international practices. During stage two, each team will begin to collect data on their assigned country. Industry contacts, provided by the professors, allow students to interview and survey professionals active on both the planner and supplier side of the industry. Email and industry publications available on the Internet are the primary resources used for this project. Stage three requires students to prepare a written report and present their findings.
Learning Objectives
The objectives of this activity are for convention management students:
Procedural and Content Requirements of the Activity
During the discovery stage, students are required to focus their attention in three areas: (1) US meeting industry trends; (2) international and foreign meeting practices, and (3) information specific to the assigned country. The United States convention industry will provide a framework for the identification of trends. Areas of trends research will include: types of meetings, length and size of meetings, locations, growth rate, primary markets, attendee profiles, professional level of meeting managers, scope of service requirements, costs, technology usage, site selection and negotiation strategies, contract clauses and enforcement practices. To gain familiarity with trends, students are required to read approximately ten articles on the state of the meetings industry that have appeared in industry trade publications over the past three to five years. The purpose is to provide a benchmark for comparing and contrasting existing industry practices, emerging practices, and practices not being utilized in the assigned country.
Because of the unique requirements of international and foreign meetings it is also necessary for students to review articles that discuss key international issues. Important issues include customs regulations, payments and currency exchanges, shipping brokers and other vendors required for international meetings, technology variations and considerations, and contract negotiations and other legal and regulatory considerations.
Students will simultaneously collect general information on the assigned country. This research includes maps of the geographic region, political and economic facts such as that available in The World Factbook: Guide to Country Profiles (www.odic.gov/cia), and information on the meetings industry in the assigned country of the type available from national tourist offices. Industry specific information on the individual countries can be found in the trade magazines of international professional associations and to a lesser degree from general business publications. To further focus the research, students will then identify the major cities in the country that are popular venues for local and foreign meetings, the hotels and other types of meeting facilities that are suitable for hosting conventions. In addition to gaining background information on the assigned country, the students will identify potential contacts at local hotels.
Data Collection Stage
As a result of participation by the Professional Convention Management Association, industry professionals were made aware of the project. Individuals with international and foreign meeting experience volunteered to serve as professional and/or academic mentors. The mentors were matched with the country with which they had meeting management experience. The role of the mentor is to provide assistance with the identification of local convention industry professionals and US convention mangers who have conducted meetings in the assigned country.
The expectation is for each student to contact six professionals: two local hotel sales or convention services managers, two local meeting planners, and two US meeting planners based in the United States who have conducted meetings in the assigned country. Each paired-teams goal is to have twelve to eighteen interviews per country/region. Students were provided with a list of qualitative interview questions to ask industry professionals about the "state of the industry" in their country as well as a quantitative survey for each professional to complete.
The quantitative portion of the interview was based on the Convention Industry Council (CIC) Accepted Practices Exchange’s (APEX) initiatives. These initiatives fall into the following seven categories: terminology, meeting and site profiles, meeting histories and post event reports, request for booking proposals, (RFPs), resumes and work orders (EOs/BEOs), housing and contracts. The survey was placed on a web site, which allowed industry professionals to answer questions online and simply send back via the Internet.
Reporting Stage
Utilizing information from both the discovery and data collection stages, each paired-team is to combine the information and begin to organize and synthesize the findings, which are to be presented in an approximately five-page report. Each team is expected to jointly prepare the final report. The report includes the following:
Attachments to paper include the following: copies of emails to and from research partner(s); copies of communications with individuals providing specific country information; copies of articles that have provided insights; a list of useful email addresses for others researching this country; copies of the completed questionnaires; and copies of thank you letters.
For presentations, paired-teams are reconfigured into eight to ten economically and geographically related regions such as Europe, the Far East, and Australia. Individual country trends will then be collapsed into a regional format. As technology and resources permit, group presentations will be simulcast via teleconferencing or using an interactive Internet technology such as Meetings Net which is a much more affordable alternative.
Grading Criteria
This project equates to approximately 25% of the total points available in the two classes. The project evaluation is based on the following:
Specific points are not assigned to each grading consideration because of the diversity that is likely to be found in each country. Points will be deducted for areas that are of poor quality or appear to have insufficient information and/or effort.
Conclusions
This project is currently being implemented, so final outcomes are not available. The innovative nature of the project requires flexibility and continual adjustments to enhance the learning process and minimize uncertainty. The difference in time zones has impacted the speed with which the various components could be developed. As with all student projects there are varying degrees of enthusiasm and participation. If an enthusiastic team member is paired with an unenthusiastic one, the impact on motivation appears to have a greater impact than same-classroom teams.
Because of the evolving nature of the project, some students appear frustrated because they prefer specific instructions and deadlines. From the instructors’ perspectives, this is not a negative but provides a more realistic experience in preparation for projects that may be assigned in the workplace.
It is the intent of the instructors to publish the outcomes of the research to assist industry professionals who conduct international and foreign meetings. Also, the information collected will be provided to the Convention Industry Council’s (CIC) Commission on Accepted Practices Exchange, which will hopefully contribute, to the development of standardized industry practices that have international application.
Introduction
The world of hospitality and tourism education has evolved through the cycle of limited educational choices to over several hundred schools throughout the nation. During this evolutionary period, many of the traditional foodservice programs (i.e. home economics restaurant management or institutional foods) began to lose enrollment throughout the nation and changed the title of their programs to include words like hotels, tourism, convention management, and other non-food related descriptors. At first it seems that foodservice programs were expanding their offerings to include other hospitality and tourism sectors. However, in many cases, the reality was that only a limited number of courses were being added to these other areas.
Many hospitality and tourism programs replaced the first word of their title from restaurant to another words like hotel, convention or tourism. However, the reality was that their curriculums were still primary foodservice. Expertise of faculty, capital investment in foodservice laboratories, inherit resistance to change by educational institutions and faculty, and fear of change made it difficult for programs to fully developing in these other areas. Today’s hospitality and tourism educational arena is filled with other competitors with dropping enrollment in many programs. Niche or specialized programs are the growing programs while the general hospitality programs are shrinking in size.
Is your Program a Non-Learning Organization?
James O’ Toole (1985) described General Motors as a "non-learning organization." General Motors was described as being complacent and arrogant, such behavior resulted in losses in profits and market share. O’Toole, who worked for years for general Motors felt that their decline was due to four primary factors:
By examining hospitality programs against these four points made by Toole, a similar fate could be avoided that occurred to General Motors. The questions that should be asked of educational programs are the following:
Large organizations, including educational, are very slow to change. The fear of failure, real or unreal, is greater in larger organizations due to the investment that already been made by the institution. However, large organizations must be flexibility, willing to change, and responsive to survival. The total quality management philosophy dictates that change needs to be done incrementally rather than waiting for a complete overhaul. Educational institutions must make swift changes and create an environment that allows for innovation, creativity, and competitiveness.
A competitive environment must be established within institutions to award and support the growing areas while reducing the resources to the areas that are not growing. Too often, educational institutions support unproductive segments by allowing current structure to dictate how resources are allocated rather than by meeting the needs of the program.
Program Evaluation
To evaluate a program, the following four questions should be used.
1) Do we deliver what we are advertising?
By examining the name of the program, curriculum, publications, student, industry, and faculty perspectives, you can determine if the program is actually delivering what is being advertised. A program needs to make sure that all of these factors are representing a single perspective. Otherwise, confusing might result because there are inconsistent factors that are creating different images.
2) Who are our competitors and which niches should we pursue?
The faculty needs to evaluate their competitors in their area. In addition, a market analysis might also expose unique niches that previously ignored, for example, gambling management, club management, time-share management, and other unique areas. These areas allow a program to build relationships with an industry segment that previously has been ignored.
3) Does the faculty have the expertise to deliver what the program is offering?
Faculty expertise is an important issue related to the curriculum since the expertise of the faculty dictates how well the program is preparing students to enter into the industry. Tenure and a rapidly changing environment require that faculty must constantly retool themselves to meet the challenges of the industry while also meeting the needs of the students. Through faculty internships and by the faculty constantly updating their skills are the only ways for a faculty member to remain current. Without this type of commitment, faculty will become obsolete.
4) What do our students, industry, and other constituents desire from the programs?
The question now becomes does the program meet the needs of our constituents? If not, the program might not be appealing to students and/or is not meeting the needs of the industry or other groups. Not only is it is important to do what we are advertising, but it is equally important in delivering a program that meets the needs of our constituent groups (The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, 1992).
Conclusion
No longer can programs hide their inadequacy because the use of the Internet has exposed our weaknesses to all of our constituencies. The Internet and distance education have truly exposed our weaknesses and allow the public to decide how well we are meeting their needs. Competition will increase which means that only programs that are able to meet the challenges of a rapid changing environment will become successful in the next decade.
References
O’Toole, J. (1985). Vanguard management: Redesigning the corporate future. New York: Doubleday.The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company (1992). Application summary, Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award.
Description of Learning Activity and Teaching Method
Societal trends show an increase in casualization of American restaurants. Chains that thrive today, did not exist a decade ago. Many of us can remember the introduction of the ‘golden arches’ and questioning their longevity. With these trends, is the natural and correct focus on these segments of the industry in most food and beverage related classes. However, many of the elements and traditions associated with fine dining are the core of cuisine and service. In addition, fine dining or upscale restaurants are still a significant portion of the restaurant industry.
The course, which teaches fine dining, should be an elective in the curriculum. Its relevance will not appeal to the masses of students in a hospitality program. However, students seeking employment in upscale restaurants, deluxe and luxury hotels, resorts, clubs, and private homes clearly need this knowledge base, and the skills associated with it.
At the University of South Carolina, the School of Hotel, Restaurant and Tourism Management offers such a course once a year. The course is entitled HRTM 473 Club Cuisine and Service, and holds as prerequisites HRTM 270 Quantity Food Production and HRTM 370/372 Restaurant/Catering Management.
This course is designed to teach students about many elements of fine dining: 1) menu management, 2) menu pricing strategies, 3) menu engineering, 4) layout and design, 5) menu development, 6) wine and food pairings, 7) synchronized service, 8) white glove service, 9) plate design, and 10) gourmet cuisine.
Learning Objectives of the activity
The learning objectives of this course primarily focus on teaching the above named concepts. Bloom’s Taxonomy of learning is integrated throughout the design to achieve ‘evaluation’ and ‘synthesis’ learning in most areas.
This course allows the student to be well educated in yet another facet of the food and beverage industry. It is not only crucial to their knowledge base as a potential manager, it teaches skills necessary for successful navigation through a fine dining meal. Frequently managers are interviewed in an upscale setting, especially if it is indicative of the future employment style, to test the candidate’s comfort and skills in such an environment.
Procedural and/or Content Requirements of Activity; Grading Activity
This course uses a combined lecture and lab environment. It is currently taught on an eight-week semester calendar. To accomplish the course requirements, it meets in six-hour time blocks once a week. Numerous teaching methods are used during each session to provide variety and cover the content. Such methods are: lecture, case study, simulation, role-play, demonstration, hands-on preparation, analysis of actual menus, small group discussion, and large group discussion.
The course culminates with the production of two fine dining meals completely designed, created, and served by the students in the course. Teams are chosen by the Instructor to provide balance, dividing student experience. Each team divides between front-of-house and back-of-house for their event. These individuals serve in the opposite area on the second meal. Therefore at the end of the semester each student has served in the dining room, and each worked in a food preparation position.
Synchronized service is taught and is the service style utilized for the meals. Extreme attention to detail is provided in food choices and placement. Appropriate wines and champagnes enhance these combinations. Tableside preparation of at least once course is required.
The proceeds of these meals are used to arrange for the students to dine-out at a local private club, experiencing a similar level of service and food selections. Attention to service standards, plate presentation, and menu design are critiqued by the students.
Course evaluation occurs by numerous measures. A rubric is used to gauge the effectiveness of the team during meal development and execution. Two exams, meal critiques, and a menu project are also used to evaluate the student’s understanding of the course content.
Background and Description
The hospitality management department at this university in the Southeast U.S. offers a bachelor’s degree program to students attending either the main campus or the regional campus. From 1994 to 1998, program enrollment at the main campus increased 26% to 135 students. After its fall 1994 inception, enrollment at the regional campus never exceeded 16 students. As a result, the university administration established that the number one priority of the department was to increase student enrollment, especially at the regional campus. In 1999, the departmental Chair dedicated approximately $65,000 for the development and implementation of a marketing plan to increase student enrollment and expand the awareness and visibility of the department. These funds had been received through a 1997 state legislative appropriation to enhance the expansion of the hospitality management program at the university’s regional campus.
Marketing Plan
The departmental marketing plan outlined strategies to expand the awareness and visibility of the department and increase student enrollment, primarily at the regional campus. Target markets for potential students included university students, community college students, industry employees, recent high school graduates with some or no college, and current high school students. Proposals were solicited from advertising agencies and an agency was selected to assist with the refinement and implementation of the marketing plan. This included conceptual development, production of print materials, advertising, and direct mail. Other more indirect methods to increase awareness and visibility of the department included press releases and industry/community relations.
Program Objectives
The primary objective of the marketing plan was to increase student enrollment at the regional campus from 12 to 50 students, while building and maintaining an enrollment at the main campus of 150 students. This objective was incorporated into the department’s strategic plan under the broader goal of attracting and retaining quality students. The secondary and more broad-based objective of the marketing plan was to expand the overall awareness and visibility of the department at both campuses.
Implementation of the Student Recruitment Campaign
The implementation of the student recruitment campaign as part of the marketing plan included, but was not limited to, the following 10 steps:
Results of Student Recruitment Activities
Since student enrollment goals were established for a five-year period, we are only in the first phase of this recruitment campaign. During the past two years, enrollment at the regional campus has increased by almost 200% from 12 to 35 students. The enrollment at the main campus has reached a level of nearly 150 students. Based on these positive preliminary results, the five-year goals of the campaign appear to be achievable.
Description of Learning Activity and Teaching Method
Hospitality students are exposed to numerous industry options throughout their college classroom study. They are often encouraged to try different fields, and may be influenced by faculty who have a passion in one area of specialization or another. Experiential learning through college internships is paramount in guiding the hospitality student while selecting an initial career path.
Though the standard sophomore level internship is critical to the student to allow them to "get their feet wet", a second more structured junior-senior level internship can provide a true sense of the business. Senior level internships should be more complex, allowing the student to serve in a supervisory capacity.
Faculty involvement is crucial in the senior internships. Faculty should be involved in each facet of the experience: 1) job placement, including the screening of management’s commitment to the students’ learning, 2) frequent contact, especially during the initial weeks and during any ‘difficult’ situations, 3) site visitation, 4) private meeting with management during the site visit, 5) written student evaluation of the experience, 6) final correspondence with management to open opportunities for others in future years and thank them for their support of the student and school.
Learning Objectives of the Activity
The learning objective of the senior level internship is to further expose students to their industry of choice, and expose them to components of management in a highly structured, closely monitored environment.
A secondary objective of this level of internship is to create an avenue of employment for the student upon graduation. This may be with the employer of the internship, or through networking opportunities to which the student was exposed.
Procedural and Content Requirements of Activity; Grading Activity
The student is required to obtain an approved position. This is most frequently accomplished through one-on-one advisement of the student by the faculty member, utilizing faculty-industry contacts in the students’ geographical area of preference. Faculty typically make the initial contact with the management, and allow the student to follow-up with direct contact. Faculty will need to insure the resume and cover letter developed by the student are professional and reflect the students’ strengths.
The student is required to maintain a minimal level of contact with the faculty member. In addition, the faculty must maintain some level of communication with management. The frequency of contact will vary from student to student, but should be at least once a month.
The student will be required to work a minimum of three hundred hours, at least two hundred of which are in a supervisory capacity. As a supervisor the student should be entrusted with basic operational decisions and duties.
Visitation should occur so that faculty can assess the working environment and job characteristics. Faculty and management need to discuss the work habits of the student and the strengths and weaknesses that the employer has noticed. This can be used as an excellent source of curriculum evaluation, as management can point to areas of expertise, or skills the student is lacking.
Written evaluation of the internship should be a major component of the course. It should include probing questions the student needs to answer to assess their comprehension of the entire experience. The course evaluation should also include an interview of the manager, and possibly others in the industry. This component of the class allows the student an opportunity to synthesize the elements of the internship.
Introduction
This learning activity is used as a class project in a 300 level introductory class for hotel, restaurant, and tourism majors. The inceptive purpose was to familiarize students with the business-based resources available from university library data sources. The concept was a scavenger hunt for corporate information. It first began requiring students to exclusively use the non-electronic reference sources in the university library. Today it has evolved into an exclusively electronic project using the library databases and the Internet. Students are assigned a publically held hospitality company and must visit twenty sites to collect information on the assigned company. The information collected at these sites requires analytical and interpretive processing. The findings are presented in a written report.
The theoretical structure of the project is based on Benjamin Bloom’s Taxonomy of Educational Objectives (1977). The objectives include all six levels from simply identifying and demonstrating they have visited a site to analysis and interpretation of a variety of types of data and data sources to form a conclusion.
The skills obtained from this project have proven valuable in other hospitality class research projects and when researching companies for internships and professional employment.
Description of the Learning Activity
This project is focused in three unique but related areas. The first is the need for students to learn where to find information on hospitality management companies for research and employment purposes. The second is the need for students to gain familiarity with the Internet business-based resources and university library databases. The third is for students to develop analytical skills and demonstrate the ability to draw and support conclusions about their findings. This project was designed to accomplish all three of these teaching objectives and to allow students to demonstrate, through specific learning outcomes, their ability to invoke the six levels of cognitive thinking.
Levels of Cognitive Learning
Glen Ramsborg described the six levels of cognitive learning as follows in his book Objectives to Outcomes: Your Contract with the Learner (1993).
Level 1: Knowledge is demonstrated by the ability to recall or recognize content in a form that is virtually identical to the way it was originally presented." This is the lowest level of learning.
Level 2: Comprehension involves the learner’s ability to manipulate knowledge elements in a meaningful way. It includes the ability to change the content presented from one form to another, to explain or summarize a body of content and to go beyond that content to determine its probable implications, consequences, or effects.
Level 3: Application refers to the ability to use material in new and concrete situations, including the use of content learned in one situation to either solve a problem or to facilitate learning in a new situation.
Level 4: Analysis involves the ability to identify relevant knowledge components that foster an understanding of the whole. Analysis requires the learner to see the connection between one part of an aggregate of content and other parts. This requires that learners understand both the content and structure of the material so that relationships can be identified.
Level 5: Synthesis entails the ability to take parts of previously acquired knowledge elements and produce a unique response. It requires the ability to arrange and combine content in such a way as to produce a new structure, pattern, or idea.
Level 6: Evaluation refers to the ability to appraise or judge the value or appropriateness of a proposed or applied behavior and to make both quantitative and qualitative judgments about the way in which particular elements or aggregates of content meet external or internal criteria. The learner must make a judgment about the value or worth of something in relation to some purpose. This is the highest in the cognitive hierarchy and contains all the elements of previous categories, as well as conscious value judgment based on clearly defined criteria. This is often equated with originality of thought, inventiveness, and creativity
Learning Outcomes
Based on the hierarchical structure of the domains of learning, learner outcomes were developed which corresponded to the six cognitive levels. Below is an example of the learner outcomes representing each level.
Level 1: The student will be able to identify databases that provide useful information on corporations and select the one that best offers the type of information required.
Level 2: The student will be able to extrapolate the required information and summarize the portions that are relevant to the topics being researched.
Level 3: The student will recognize data found on financial statements (income statement and balance sheet) necessary to calculate specific financial ratios and produce a five-year summary of activity with each financial ratio.
Level 4: The student will analyze the pattern and identify each ratio pattern as representing a stable, growth or declining position of the corporation.
Level 5: The student will identify financial ratios for the hospitality industry segment with which s/he is researching and will formulate an opinion on how the company is doing in relation to the industry segment as a whole.
Level 6: The student will evaluate all of the information including the financial analysis for the assigned company and its’ competitors and determine the distribution of a $100,000 investment in one or more of the companies. The student must present an argument to support allocations.
Procedural and Content Requirements of the Activity
This assignment is an individual assignment although students are allowed to work together in learning how to access the various databases to minimize the frustration of those less comfortable with computers and/or the Internet. In past years, students have been grouped by industry segment but this did not appear to enhance the learning process. Approximately three weeks are allowed for the student to complete the project.
The project has three stages: a training stage; a data collection stage; and an analysis and reporting stage.
Training Stage
During the training stage, three special lectures are scheduled. The first is an introduction to the project. During this class, the guidelines for the project are explained, grading criteria is reviewed, and students are assigned a publicly held hospitality company. The second lecture, held at the university library, is conducted by one of the research librarians. Students receive training on the library databases that contain information on publicly held companies and a virtual tour of the library identifying hospitality and general business resources. Included in this lecture is the electronic card catalog system and instructions on how to locate journals other print resources in the library stacks. Prior to the third lecture the students are required to obtain the five most recent years of financial data from their company’s annual reports. An accounting professor conducts the third lecture. The purpose is to acquaint students with two key financial statements, the income statement and the balance sheet. They are shown how to differentiate between summary and supportive data found within these two documents. . A worksheet is provided for each of the two financial reports to assist them in recording the data that is used to calculate financial ratios.
Data Collection Stage
The data collection stage requires students to collect literature at twenty Internet sites and library databases that can be electronically accessed. They are required to visit each site and print selected portions or all of the information. There are very clear instructions for identifying the information collected at each site. This information forms the appendix of the final report. There are five categories of sites, which the students must visit. The first is the company’s home page and various indexed locations including the investor information, which contains the annual reports. The next category is Hoover’s Online where students must print the company capsule, two to three articles that are available at this site, an industry report, and reports on competitors. The next category is an "open-ended search" on the Internet using one or more search engines such as Dogpile, Yahoo, Lycos, Excite, Infoseek. The final category is library databases. Through Academic Universe they visit Lexus-Nexus. Here they find additional information in Standard & Poor’s corporate descriptions and Hoover’s Online that is only available to subscribers. They are also required to visit General Business File ASAP, Predicasts Prompt, World Scope, Compact Disclosure and other business databases. Finally, they are required to "surf the net" to find additional sites and useful web addresses. Suggested sites include Fortune Magazine, the Wall Street Journal, and industry professional association home pages.
Analysis and Reporting Stage
Once all of the data is gathered the third stage of the project begins which is the analysis and interpretation of the information, and the preparation of a written report. The literature analysis requires students to analyze information found at the Internet sites and library databases and the financial position of the company.
As a part of the financial analysis, students calculate the current and debt ratios from the balance sheet and profit margins and return on assets from the income statement. The ratios are calculated over a five-year period to establish an observable pattern of financial performance. The students then analyze the results and interpret the financial condition of the company to be positive, negative or stable. Any unusual years direct the student to look for specific situations during that year that caused a disruption in the pattern.
Each student must write a two-page, single-spaced report on the findings. The first one-half page is a report on the condition of the industry i.e., lodging, restaurants, cruise lines. This is followed by a report on the individual company, which must include the following:
Grading Criteria
The entire project is worth 100 points and contains three parts: the written report, the financial worksheets, and the appendix. The distribution of the 100 points is as follows: appendix 35%; financial worksheets 25%; and 40% for the written analysis and professionalism. Evaluation is based on organization, correctness, and completeness of attachments in the appendix; the completeness and accuracy of the financial worksheets; the quality of the thinking and writing in the written report; and the overall professionalism of the entire package. In the written report, the financial and overall analysis carry the most weight. Each day that the project is late 10% is deducted from the grade.
Summary
This is a project that has been evaluated very positively by the students although some find it very frustrating particularly if they do not have familiarity with the computers and the Internet. The project has several challenges. First is the recognition that the trade name is often not the same name as the parent, so they must learn how to find official corporate names. Most are then easily able to find three years of financial data, five years is more difficult. To uncover the additional 2-3 years requires them to understand the relationship between the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and annual shareholder reports and SEC filings. The professor’s role is very active, often on an individual basis, during this stage of the project. After these hurdles, the students seem to be able to collect the remaining information with relative ease and produce a professional product. There seems to be an advantage to making the worksheets due about two weeks after the project has been assigned, since this has proven to be the most difficult part of the assignment. The final project due is due two to three weeks later. Without the worksheets due early some will wait until the last week and will have to change companies because data is not available. From a planning perspective, the most difficult part is keeping up with changes in ownership of the various chains. A list of companies is provided to students and ownership changes are identified when the student begins to look for the financial data and is unable to find it. At that point, it is easy to change to a new company. Interestingly, this also becomes an important part of the learning process. Each year changes and adjustments are made so it has become a very dynamic project.
References
Bloom, B.S., Krathwhol, D.R. (1977). Taxonomy of Educational Objectives: Handbook 1: Cognitive Domain. New York: Longman.
Ramsborg, Glen C. (1993). Objectives to Outcomes: Your Contract with the Learner. Birmingham, Al: Professional Convention Management Association.
Mohamed Abdul-Ghani
Department of Hospitality Management
University of Southern Mississippi – Gulf Coast
Statement of the Problem
In less than a decade, travel and tourism, as a whole, will become the nation’s number one employer, with one out of every five employed American workers working in some segment of the industry. This labor-intensive industry should have an abundant supply of workers to expand in response to the growth in travel demand. Recent trends of shifting demographics have resulted in smaller numbers of young people entering the labor force and a shrinking labor pool. Many senior travel and tourism industry leaders have suggested that the employment issue of the future for this industry is an impending shortage of labor. In spite of a phenomenal real growth in employee compensation in some segments of the industry, primarily in the last decade, travel and tourism has continued to be characterized as an industry of low paid workers with little chance for personal growth and advancement.
The purpose of this study was to assess school career counselors’ perceptions of the hospitality and tourism industry as a viable career option, identify the factors influencing career counselors’ decisions on career advising, and identify the usefulness and effectiveness of different available sources of hospitality and tourism career information.
Summary of Methods Used
A descriptive survey method was used. A questionnaire consisted of five parts was developed. The first part aimed to evaluate career counselors’ expectations about choosing a career in general. The second part assessed the perceived image of a list of forty-five different occupations including selected hospitality and tourism occupations and non-hospitality and tourism occupations. The third part asked to rank six hospitality and tourism occupations with regard to the perceived job expectations. The fourth part intended to measure the usefulness and effectiveness of selected existing and potential sources of career information. The final part of the questionnaire collected demographic information about schools and career counselors.
The questionnaire was mailed to the 1700 career counselors in the State of Michigan. The first mailing took place on the last week of August 1997. Three weeks from the original mailing date of the survey, a post card was sent to non-respondents appealing for the return of their response. Of the 1700 questionnaires sent, 334 usable questionnaires were received (20 % response rate). Responses were coded and entered into computer. Descriptive statistics techniques were used to analyze the items of the survey. Frequencies, means, and standard deviations were calculated for each item in the first, second, third, and fourth part of the questionnaire.
Results and Implications of the Study
School career counselors were asked to rate the importance they placed on a series of job expectations when they advise students for a career in general. Most counselors perceived a job which fits with personal values and beliefs, provides feeling of personal achievement, represents good opportunities and prospects, interests and challenges the mind, and offers security as the most important expectations. The least important expectations were working alone and a job that has regular routine. The image associated with hospitality and tourism jobs was significantly lower than that associated with non-hospitality and tourism jobs. Counselors viewed jobs within the industry as synonymous with poor image.
School career counselors found talks and speaking visits by professionals in different hospitality and tourism jobs and hospitality and tourism career literatures to be the most useful sources of career information. But visits to different hospitality and tourism places of work and work experience and placements of students in hospitality and tourism jobs were the most effective sources of career information.
It was recommended that hospitality and tourism businesses and education programs should clarify and promote more extensively the wide range of opportunities available within the industry and career progression. Future career materials should improve the image of hospitality and tourism jobs by demonstrating success stories and testimonials. Hospitality and tourism leading organizations and associations should increase partnerships with education programs and supply school career counselors with updated career information and encourage more involvement in lively and entertaining career talks and visits to hospitality and tourism places of work.
Misconceptions about employment and career opportunities in the travel and tourism industry will need to be corrected if the industry is to attract qualified workers and ensure significant contributions to growth in the U.S. economy. Continued expansion of travel and tourism will require well-educated and professionally trained personnel to serve increasingly demanding consumers and keep pace with the rapid introduction of technology in the workplace. Unless the industry can make itself more appealing to potential employees, employers will find it difficult to recruit and retain good staff in the numbers they need and the labor shortage problem will become serious.
Introduction
The southeast area of the U.S. has historically been thought of as an area where low-cost labor and ready availability of raw materials has caused the manufacturing sector of the economy to be the main force in job creation. Since 1900, the southeast economy has been driven by the manufacturing sector, largely in textiles and cut-and-sew manufacturing operations. The 1960s saw an increase in heavy steel manufacturing in the south. In the 1970s and 1980s, the southeastern economy began shifting from heavily dependent on manufacturing, to a slow transition to high technology and service-based economies. Many of the service-based economies are based on hospitality related operations. The purpose of this paper is to show how service sector related jobs are playing a larger role in the economies of states in the southeast U.S.
Several factors have contributed to the changing foundation of the job creation in the southeastern U.S. Urban growth in rural areas of the south has shifted once rich agricultural land into residential communities. Technological changes in manufacturing have generated new economic sectors toward high tech manufacturing. Public policy changes in global trade policies have shifted manufacturing jobs to lower-cost countries as seen by the North American Free Trade Agreement. However, with all these changes in the manufacturing sector, which once dominated job creation in the south, job creation and employment continue to increase.
The service sector of the economy in the southeastern U.S. has continued to grow during the time when manufacturing jobs have decreased. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the changing employment sectors in the southeastern states and to demonstrate the increased importance of the service sector in general and the hospitality industry in particular to states in the southeastern CHRIE region.
Methodology and Data
Employment data were examined for seven states in the Southeast CHRIE region in major Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) codes for 1998 (latest year available) from the U.S. Department of Labor’s Regional Economic Information System(1998). Data collected for each state included 1) total full- and part-time employment, 2) manufacturing sector employment, and 3) service sector employment. From this data, the percent of the total workforce employed in the manufacturing sector and service sector were generated for comparison among states. Employment data in the manufacturing and service sector areas were also collected for the U.S. economy for comparison pruposes.
Results
Table 1 shows the percent service sector and manufacturing employment for each Southeast CHRIE state and the U.S. Georgia and Tennessee have the highest percent employment in the service sector at 29 percent each. The range for service sector employment for the Southeast CHRIE states is from a low of 24 percent for North Carolina to a high of 29 percent for Tennessee and Georgia. Manufacturing employment was lowest in Georgia with 12 percent and Kentucky with 14 percent.
Implications for this employment data suggest the services sector of the Southeastern CHRIE state’s economy is increasing. The fabric of the economy in the south is changing where manufacturing no longer generates the number of jobs as it did in the 1950s to 1990s. Thus, the hospitality sector of the economy, while partially represented by the service sector employment has an increasing role in each state’s economy. Hospitality administrators and program directors can use this information to justify additional program resources as colleges and universities continue to educate leaders and managers for the service sector of the economy that is generating more jobs than the manufacturing sector of these economies.
Table 1. Service Sector and Manufacturing Sector Employment
in Southeast CHRIE States, 1998
|
State |
Percent of Total Jobs Represented by Service Economy (1998) |
Percent of Total Jobs Represented by Manufacturing Economy (1998) |
|
Alabama |
26% |
17% |
|
Georgia |
29% |
12% |
|
Kentucky |
26% |
14% |
|
Mississippi |
26% |
18% |
|
North Carolina |
24% |
18% |
|
South Carolina |
25% |
17% |
|
Tennessee |
29% |
16% |
|
United States |
31% |
12% |
References
U.S. Department of Labor, (1998). Regional Economic Information System. U.S. State Employment by Standard Industrial Classification. U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C.
Problem
Agreements between the four-year and two-year programs sound simple but rarely produce the anticipated results, especially from the two-year program’s viewpoint. After earning seventy or more hours for an associates degree with at least fifty of those hours in hospitality coursework, the actual hours approved for transfer may be whittled to a mere twelve hours.
Ironically, some of the two-year programs offer more courses in the topic than some four-year programs. For example, Trident Technical College offers a maximum of twenty-nine courses in this curriculum. In addition to the sheer number and applicability of courses, some of the courses may use the identical textbook in the two-year course as in the four-year course and still not be accepted for transfer. Instances of disparity go even further: adjunct faculty working in a two-year program AND a four-year program, teaching the same course with same text in both. Yet, the course may not be approved for transfer.
Rules of articulation vary as frequently as personalities. The clearest transfer the Trident students see is an agreement offered by Charleston Southern University for a Bachelors of Science degree at the four-year school. The associates degree transfers entirely with the remaining two years of study filled with core curriculum rather than the specialty area already addressed in the two-year degree. Notable is that CSU does not have a hospitality curriculum but is willing to recognize the work students have completed in the subject area.
Variance in transfer potential among four-year programs is extremely discouraging for the two-year student population profile of fulltime workers in the industry who are attempting education for the first time since high school. After accomplishing a two-year degree, they are attracted to what they might accomplish on the four-year level. Another drawback is the tendency of the four-year programs to discount their two years or more of hard work. This discourages industry-students from proceeding for the four-year degree and, subsequently, raising industry standards.
Problem
Which hospitality management courses and how many credit hours should be allowed to transfer from two-year to four-year schools? Since there are varying levels of duplication of hospitality/tourism management course content and textbooks across institutions, it is often difficult to establish a consistent and uniform policies for specific transfer credits from two-year to four-year schools. Further, similar courses may represent course equivalents in name only, due to differences in the mission and markets served between two-year and four-year schools. Finally, a state’s general education requirements for a bachelor’s degree results in a more diversified curriculum with more lower-division courses than a specialized two-year associate’s degree. This results in transfer students often having a shortage of lower-division general education courses and an excess of specialized upper-division courses.
Problem
Of the sixteen technical schools in South Carolina, only three are located in what are considered "tourist destinations." These colleges benefit from having the hospitality industry viewed as a major financial contributor to the economy of that area. While all of the other thirteen schools may not have Hospitality/Culinary programs, the programs that currently do exist are challenged with recruiting students.
The manufacturing industry is prevalent in most areas of SC, and globalization has magnified the focus on the hospitality industry through the increase in the numbers of lodging and food service venues. The main challenge is developing an interest in educating a labor force that is already under-staffed.
Problem
With the emphasis in many 4-year institutions shifting to graduate programs, Hospitality Management and Tourism programs (HMT) often face difficulties having their requests granted for resources needed to maintain and enhance the laboratory courses that make these programs unique. These resources include instructors, laboratory assistants, equipment and space.
Possible Solution
One solution to this ongoing problem would be for 4-year programs to establish a working partnership with a local community college or culinary school. This partnership would be built around a curriculum that included courses from each institution. It would stipulate that all students who wanted to receive a baccalaureate degree in Hospitality Management and Tourism (or similar degree title) would attend the two-year institution to take certain subjects such as courses in culinary arts, service, and front office procedures. Students then would attend the 4-year institution for the liberal arts, business, and other subjects usually offered there. Inherent in the agreement would be that neither institution would offer courses that the other offered. Continual dialogue between the two institutions would be, of course, a necessary part of the partnership.
For most state-funded institutions, this type of agreement would probably require approval from the upper level administration of each institution involved and perhaps even from the state education commission as well. Moreover, the agreement would probably take several years to develop and implement. However, it would be a way to justify both types of institutions and to capitalize on the strengths of each.
Granted this solution would not solve all the difficulties that programs face as they attempt to make student transfers as efficient as possible. However, it would allow for the acceptance of all the courses specific to the HMT major because those courses would have been written into the accepted curriculum and approved by both institutions. The outcome would be industry-ready HMT graduates and 2-year and 4-year HMT programs that continued to thrive.
Problem
Many High Schools in the United States are participating in the National Academy Program. Participating High Schools offer students the chance to study a curriculum developed by the National Academy Foundation. The student completes a high school degree, with a concentration in an area of interest to their career goals. For example, the National Academy Foundation developed the ACADEMY OF TRAVEL and TOURISM which is now available at over 69 High Schools across the United States.
The National Academy Foundation has developed articulation agreements with 2 and 4 year schools. The development of these academies and articulation agreements present opportunities and challenges for college programs. Although some colleges accept credits from high school, many programs do not accept this type of credit. Educators in the field of Hospitality Management need to address this situation.
Do college programs want to accept credits earned in High School for degree requirements in the Major? How many credits, if any, should be accepted? What is the future of high school to college articulation agreements in Hospitality Programs?
Problem
Students who graduate from an accredited two year program in culinary arts and hospitality management are given credit towards professional certification by the American Culinary Federation (ACFEI) and National Restaurant Association (SERVESAFE / Foodservice Management Professional) programs. In this way students who complete an upside down major, concentrating on their core courses first and required courses later, have a distinct edge over non-certified students. Many times students who are competing for entry-level positions need this critical edge to move ahead of the competition.
Graduates of four-year programs who wish to continue their professional training in culinary arts at an accredited school are able to transfer in credits and rapidly complete their training through advanced standing placement. At this time they will be able to apply for professional certification and gain an edge over their competition that are vying for the same entry-level positions.
If it were possible for four-year graduates to receive professional certification in addition to the baccalaureate degree by completion of advanced foodservice courses offered as electives during the summer or in the evening at accredited culinary programs, or in house if the university has the resources, students would certainly become more valuable to employers and gain the critical edge needed in the highly competitive hospitality management sector. It would also mean that they would not have to enroll in another course of study at a different school to gain this critical edge.
By working with professional organizations, two year and four year programs can meet the needs of its students while meeting the criteria set by the professional organizations who represent the career they have chosen to enter.
Problem
Each institution is different in terms of their constituencies, specializations, requirements, and faculty expertise. When any curriculum makes any changes, all transfer agreements need to be modified. The complexity of every institution making a single change takes months or years to implement.
A common core is needed for all hospitality & tourism programs in the State of Carolina. This will allow for all programs to understand what is transferable and what is not. This will provide assurances that at least a certain number of courses will be transferable among programs.
Another key issue is flexibility of transfer credit. For example, some programs are specialist in certain areas, like restaurant, hotel, or tourism management. Two-year programs should be allowed to develop upper level courses in certain areas related to their specializations. However, the four-year programs should also reserve certain courses or percentage of courses to be delivered at the four-year level. More flexibility in the transfer agreement will eliminate the need to rewrite an articulation agreement every time an institution makes a change.
Problem
It is very crucial to establish positive and cooperative relationships between the 2-year and 4-year schools for the 2+2 agreements to work as planned. Continuous communications regarding any changes in requirements for academic programs is a must. Students who convey interest to pursue 4-year degrees should be advised to contact an academic advisor from the 4-year school as early as possible to avoid transfer problems and taking extra hours they may not need.
Problem
State or consortiums are not planning their curriculum strategically according to national standards. The hospitality Industry is the largest consumers industry in the United States. The growth trends have tremendous implication for both the practices of the industry as well as program planning and curriculum development.
At the College and University level, curriculum development is given a high priority. It creates opportunities to influence the size, mix and quality of student enrollment through student recruitment and retention efforts and causes improvement in the quality of academic program and student services. An effective curriculum is critical to success by establishing a reputation for academic excellence for that program. One might ask, What strategies can be used to develop a good, sound curriculum within the hospitality and tourism component that would serve both 2-year and 4-year programs?
States or consortiums of school need to start planning strategically together using the ACPHA curriculum standards. If all schools are on the same playing field, confusion on credit hour, course relevance, or student readiness will be eliminated. Two year programs can be planed to flow into a four-year program. If the school team wish to carry it further, programs can become accredited. National standards often provide a framework, content and format for a program that benefit all - student, faculty, administration, program and institution of learning.
Problem
The signing of articulation agreements between two and four year institutions essentially places the two year institution in a position of hiring only staff who meet qualification requirements for the four year institution. Normally a Masters degree with a minimum of 18 hours in the area being taught. As an example, one recent articulation agreement allowed for the transfer of 60 semester hours of credit however, the two classes being taught by an individual with only a bachelors degree will not transfer, even thought the instructor has over 25 years of industry experience, is a Certified Hotel Administrator, and past president of the North Carolina Hotel and Motel Association. The agreement further requires the two-year institution to notify the four-year institution if someone is hired who does not meet the SACS requirement. This requirement was added to ensure that the two-year institution was not put into a position of hiring only instructors who met SACS requirement.
Topic #2: It is impossible to advise students regarding the transferability of specific courses.
Problem
Advisees often inquire "if I take this course will it transfer"? Unfortunately, the answer too often is "it depends". It depends on the University and their curriculum requirements, the number of credits they will allow to be transferred, and possibly the mood of the individual reviewing the transcript. I actually had a student who took HRM 240 Hospitality Marketing, using the textbook from the American Hotel and Motel Association be denied transfer of credit. This occurred even though the University used the same textbook. The student was not required to retake the course rather a different marketing course within the business department. The end result was that the student felt her work at the two-year institution was somehow inferior and that the four-year institution was simply trying to fill classes. The student did not complete the Bachelor degree requirements and elected to enter a management trainee program with a major hotel chain. She is doing well now however, I can only wonder how far this young lady could have gone were it not for her frustrations with the "system" which seemed more interested its needs than those of the student.
Problem
The validity and appropriateness of transferring AAS hospitality courses from community colleges that equate to junior and senior level courses have been raised by university faculty and denied transfer acceptance by some universities in the past. The questions raised relate to the mission of the university and the community college in preparing hospitality students for employment. Community colleges offer an applied curriculum that produces a highly technical prepared student for entry-level management positions while the four-year universities offer a comprehensive curriculum which prepares students with a balance of conceptual, technical, interpersonal and leadership skills necessary for graduates to assume leadership and managerial roles at the district, regional and corporate levels of an organization.
The question to be answered is "What differentiates the level of preparation, competency and mastery by students graduating with the Associate degree versus the Bachelor's degree, if courses at the junior and senior levels at the university are seamlessly transferred?"
North Carolina Central University, through its community college initiative launched in March of 1999, has as one of its priorities, to initiate and forge effective bilateral articulation partnerships with Community Colleges that facilitate, and encourage graduates to advance toward the completion of their baccalaureate degree. Through this initiative, 64 semester hours of course work will be awarded students holding the Associate in Applied Science degree (AAS). Twenty-two semester hours may be applied to the General College Studies and 42 hours are applied in hospitality and business management. Work experience through internships, practicums and full-time jobs are given credit to meet the 1,000 hours of work experience required for graduation.
The transfer of community college courses equivalent to senior and junior level courses at universities can become seamless if both the university and the community college utilize the certification courses offered by the Educational Institute of the American Hotel Motel Association and the Educational Foundation of the National Restaurant Association. The utilization of course certifications would eliminate questions regarding course content and levels of mastery if students from both the college and the university pass the same national examinations. Thus, the development of articulation agreements would involve convening of faculties to discuss similarities in programs, sequencing of courses for continuity, the avoidance of curriculum redundancy, and utilization of work experiences. These efforts should increase the pools of students progressing to institutions of higher learning to fulfill their intellectual and human potential while reducing the time to obtain the baccalaureate degree in Hospitality Management.