FHSU tourism students show hospitality by hosting event

By UNIVERSITY RELATIONS

In celebration of National Travel and Tourism Week, Fort Hays State University’s tourism and hospitality management program helped coordinate a Tourism Expo Tuesday in the Memorial Union.

The tourism industry is one of the fastest growing career fields in the nation, ranking in the top three industries in all 50 states.

A group of students led the charge in partnering with the Hays Convention and Visitors Bureau, FHSU’s Tourism and Hospital Management Club and Eta Sigma Delta – THM’s honorary society – in hosting an expo for the first time.

More than 20 vendors set up shop in the Fort Hays Ballroom and visited with students about numerous opportunities in Hays, on campus and abroad.

“It was a way to celebrate travel and tourism, especially in Hays, Kansas,” said Rachel Luedders, a Hays senior who will graduate later this month. “Also, we wanted to help raise awareness of how many jobs and internships are available to students in Hays.”

Luedders was one of the lead student organizers, along with Chelsie Andrews, a graduate student from Bennington.

“This was our first one, but it’s a start,” said dr. Stacey Smith, chair of the Department of Applied Business Studies and associate professor of tourism and hospitality management. “This was a great leverage of partnerships within the community.”

Also on the agenda for Travel and Tourism Week is a VIP tour of FHSU’s Sternberg Museum of Natural History on Wednesday and a Tourism Appreciation Reception from 2 to 4 p.m. Thursday at the Hays Welcome Center, 2700 Vine.

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