L to r: Mrs. Janelle Cambridge-Johnson, Coach of the Anatol Rodgers Team; International Hospitality & Tourism Management Competition Champions, Miss Dezeraye Dean, Miss Ameera Poitier, Mr. Vernajh Pinder, Miss Jeanie Farris; Mr. Ernest P. Boger, Chairman of the Hospitality & Tourism Management at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore.
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Four students from Anatol Rodgers have secured
scholarships for Hospitality and Tourism Management to some of the best
universities in the industry. Vernajh Pinder, Ameera Poitier, Dezeraye Dean and
Jeanie Farris were the winners of the 2015 American Hotel & Lodging
Educational Institute (AHLEI), International Hospitality and Tourism Management
Competition.
This annual event welcomes high school students from
around the world to Orlando, Florida to display their skills in a two-day
competition that challenges the students with situations inspired by real-world
job scenarios in the hospitality industry.
Besides winning scholarships, the students also won
an all-expense paid trip to New York City to attend the American Hotels and
Lodging Association Fall Conference and the International Hotel, Motel &
Restaurant Show, where they will have the opportunity to connect with some of
the most influential leaders in the hospitality industry.
This year marks the fifth year that students from
Anatol Rodgers have participated in this competition. Each year however, they
have been determined to improve on the performance of the previous year. The
first year, the team placed 5th overall; the second year, the team
took 7th overall, the third year, they placed 5th; the
fourth year, they secured a 4th place finish and this year, they
walked away as the champions. Anatol Rodgers is the first school outside of the
United States of American to win the competition.
Among this year’s competitors were two high schools
from Florida, a school from California, Guam, Idaho, New Hampshire, Texas,
Washington, DC and Whyoming. There was also another Bahamian school in the
competition. Their fellow-Bahamian competitors were from Jack Hayward High
School in Freeport, Grand Bahama.
During the HTMP competition, teams
of students display their proficiency while competing in three contests:
· Hotel
Operations: Students apply their knowledge in a three-part challenge: room
inspection, in which students have 10 minutes to find 10 housekeeping cleaning
errors in a typical guestroom using an executive housekeeping checklist; night
audit, in which teams perform financial calculations and manually post front
desk accounting information; and case studies in food and beverage, guest
service and sales and marketing, in which students have 20 minutes to prepare
solutions to case study scenarios.
· The Hospitality
Project: Teams demonstrate their knowledge, skills, and abilities in event
planning. They are given a scenario that includes budget parameters, proposal
design, banquet event order, menu, and floor plan.
· The
Knowledge Bowl: Teams demonstrate their knowledge through a multi-round,
question-and-answer quiz.
Mrs. Janelle Cambridge-Johnson, who
has been out of the classroom for approximately one year, introduced this
competition to the school in 2011. A former Hospitality and Tourism Management
teacher at Anatol, Mrs. Cambridge-Johnson wanted her students to be exposed to
the international world of Hospitality and Tourism Management and give them an
avenue to explore their talents. Although she is no longer in the classroom,
Mrs. Cambridge-Johnson views this as a way to give back and regards her efforts
as community service. She credited the students for their commitment to the
preparation required. She stated, “We met every Sunday from September 2014 to
April 19 to ensure that they were well prepared for the competition and the
sacrifice paid off.” A certified hospitality instructor, Mrs. Cambridge-Johnson
took advantage of the opportunity to become certified a few years ago when she
participated in a partnership between the Ministry of Education, Science and
Technology and the Ministry of Tourism.
Mrs. Cambridge-Johnson also thanked
Mrs. Myrtle McPhee, the principal at Anatol Rodgers who she says has been an
ardent supporter. Mrs. Johnson reflected, “she was always very supportive of my
efforts to enhance the Hospitality and Tourism program while I was at the
school and even when I decided to continue working with the students for the
competition after I left. She was my greatest advocate.”
Each student received a scholarships
valued at $57,000 and among their university selections are: Culinary Institute of America, Sullivan University,
Florida International University, University of Maryland Eastern Shore, San
Diego State University, Johnson & Wales University, Newbury College
(Brookline Massachusetts) and the American Hotel & Lodging Educational
Institute. Mrs. Cambridge-Johnson expressed her
joy for the students’ performance by stating, “I am happy that these students
will have the opportunity to attend university. This reinforces what we already
know - that hard work pays off. I am sure that these students will have a
bright future in hospitality and tourism management.”
Congratulations are also extended to
the team from Jack Hayward High School in Grand Bahama; Ajayi Oliver, Rose
Cherilus, Kendecia Woodside and Coach, Gailey Williams for their 5th
place finish.