Classes
HTM 201:Â Introduction to Hospitality and Tourism Management
HTM 250:Â Law in Hospitality
HTM 223:Â Hospitality Managerial Accounting and Control
HTM 301:Â Service Leadership Development
HTM 330:Â Event and Meeting Industry
HTM 430: Specialty Event Management
HTM 431: Convention Services
HTM 380:Â Hospitality Leadership Theory
RTM 404:Â Cross Cultural Perspective of Tourism
HTM 398:Â Internship in Hospitality
HTM 480:Â Leadership Coaching in Hospitality
RTM 470:Â Global Sustainability in Tourism
HTM 490:Â Strategic Management in Hospitality
HTM 491:Â Leadership and Self Development
HTM 498:Â Internship in Hospitality
Leadership Coursework
HTM 480- Leadership Coaching in Hospitality
Since beginning my educational journey in the Hospitality and Tourism Management major, I’ve been lucky to have had the opportunity to collaborate on some exciting solo and collaborative projects. The HTM curriculum highly regards projects both in groups and individually, as they foster networking and allows the student to be able to show their work to others upon completion. One project that allowed me to go out of my comfort zone was my HTM 480 Leadership Experience. The project was designed for a student to take charge and be a leader in some sort of experience and be able to showcase your work with a detailed visual. My leadership experience happened to coincide with a work opportunity. I traveled to Houston, Texas for an Air Force Yellow Ribbon Program. My boss had asked me to come join her at this program to shadow her and learn the ropes of managing these programs on-site. At first I was very hesitant, as I had to miss a day of class, but then I knew that it would be an opportunity that I may never get to do again, as I was an intern at the time. I also knew that I wanted to see my hard work in person as this was my first Yellow Ribbon Program I had planned from behind the scenes from site selection to creating the on-site binder. It was important for me to be at the program to see how it came together and learn the on-site portion of managing these programs.
REFLECTION
While on-site in Houston, I ended up being the lead on-site contact and quickly took over my boss's responsibilities. I got to incorporate a lot of what I learned in class at the program, including strategic decision making. At the first morning breakfast, I noticed bottlenecking at the end of the buffet station due to the condiments (salsa, ketchup). So, the next morning, I had the banquet staff set up a small cocktail round for the condiments off of the buffets and noticed a much faster moving line as a result. I was a leader on-site communicating with the hotel staff and various departments, the client's staff, and our internal AV team. From this opportunity, I learned more about myself and what I want to do outside of college. I realized that I am much stronger on-site than behind the scenes and I admired and enjoyed working with the hotel Convention Services Manager (CSM). As a result, I not only boosted myself within my position at work, getting promoted just two months later, but also walked away setting a new goal for myself to become a CSM later in life. If I never said "yes" to my boss's opportunity due to my excuses of missing school, losing a weekend to do homework, and being away from home, I would have missed out on growing my career.
View my Leadership Experience blog at the button below.