Tourism and Hospitality students present at research symposium

By ALICIA FEYERHERM

Tiger Media Network

Three Tourism and Hospitality students presented at the first Annual Eta Sigma Delta Undergraduate Research Symposium in Miami, Fla. at the end of February. Cally Anderson, Marisol Banda and Katie Hale worked on two research papers leading up to the conference. 

The first paper, titled “Understanding Implications of Restaurants in a Post-Pandemic World: A Tourism and Hospitality Case Study for La Tasca,” examined a local entrepreneur’s experience of opening a restaurant post-COVID and the unexpected challenges he faced. The restaurant name was anonymized, but the group followed the individual through the business startup process.

“This identifies the support and resources needed in communities to assist local tourism entrepreneurs to ensure future success,” Banda said. 

The second paper, “Exploratory Study on the Use of Artificial Intelligence for Tourism Marketing in the Midwest,” concluded that there are not enough resources for rural Midwest tourism organizations to use or understand AI. The paper went on to provide recommendations on how the industry can support tourism businesses through the adoption and utilization of AI technologies. 

“This research is important because it gives valuable insights that can benefit tourism businesses, destinations, and stakeholders, ultimately contributing to the long-term sustainability and success of the industry,” Banda said.“Tourism holds a strong future with AI.”

Eta Sigma Delta advisor Stacey Smith emphasized the importance of research. 

“Projects like these are important to help students personally develop problem-solving skills, creativity, teamwork, communication, writing, and critical thinking skills,” Smith said. 

Investigating topics related to their major, the group also gains a deeper understanding of the field they are entering. 

“Depending on the research, they can understand how it is used to identify market trends, planning and development issues, identifying risk, formulate policy, measuring impact, forecast and planning, and so much more,” Smith said. 

Smith encourages students to get involved with research if possible. 

“Students often think that research is daunting and scary, but it can be fun and exciting discovering new things that can make a positive impact on the industry they enjoy,” Smith said. 

Banda echoed that sentiment. 

“I had never done this kind of research,” Banda said. “It can be a little scary, but I remember that these topics are important for the tourism industry which is one of the fastest growing industries.”

The group was recognized with a Meritorious Paper Award for the AI paper. 

“I am so proud of the work we did the past two months and getting recognized with the meritorious paper award,” Anderson said. “It just goes to show that even when you try something new like this undergrad research, pushing ourselves academically will pay off in the end.”