CRE Launches New Certification Program
CRE Launches New Certification Program
Hospitality and Tourism Business Management Certification Now at LSC
April 7, 2016
Lyndon State College’s Center for Rural Entrepreneurship has created a Hospitality and Tourism Business Management Certification Program. The program is designed to meet the workforce needs related to the hospitality, tourism, and recreation industries that are important drivers of the area’s rural economy.
The new certification program aims to close the divide between employer expectations and motivated employees looking to move to the next level. The program offers the opportunity to upgrade hospitality and tourism skills without the commitment or expense of a full degree program through certification trainings online, on-site with employers, or in LSC’s state-of-the-art classrooms.
“The College is very excited about the new professional certification program. With it the workforce will be able to meet the needs of employers in the Vermont and New Hampshire tourism industries. And employees will be able to advance their careers,” said Lyndon State College President Joe Bertolino. “We look forward to expanding certifications to other professions.”
Of particular interest to potential students and employers:
The program partners with industry leader American Hotel and Lodging Association to offer nationally recognized credentials;
- The local trainers are industry experts and professional educators familiar with the unique needs of the region;
- The program is competitively priced; and
- Trainings are flexible in duration and available to suit every schedule.
The program’s development came in response to discussions with industry leaders. It quickly became evident that Vermont and New Hampshire employers understand the competitive advantage of having a highly skilled workforce, yet struggles to find and advance qualified employees.
The tourism and hospitality industry is crucial for the state of Vermont, attracting millions of tourists and visitors each year. According to the Benchmark Study of the Impact of Visitor Expenditures on the Vermont Economy: 2013 prepared by the Vermont Department of Tourism & Marketing in December 2014, Visitors made an estimated 12.8 million person trips to Vermont for leisure, business or personal travel with direct spending by visitors for goods and services totaling $1.82 billion. Visitor spending supports an estimated 30,000 jobs for Vermonters or approximately 8.0% of all Vermont jobs. Similarly, travel and tourism is New Hampshire’s second largest industry in terms of jobs supported by dollars from out of state according to the New Hampshire Department of Resources and Economic Development.
The program has been made possible through a generous grant awarded by the Northern Border Regional Commission. The two core outcomes of this initiative include local opportunities for training new and incumbent hospitality workers to meet the American Hotel and Lodging Association (AH&LA) certification requirements valued by area employers and the creation of a local Bachelor-level Mountain Resort Management degree attainable now from Lyndon State College.
To sign up or for questions, contact Ann Nygard at the Center for Rural Entrepreneurship at Lyndon State College (802) 626-4867 or ann.nygard@lsc.vsc.edu.