The award is made possible through the Virginia Tech�s Outreach and International Affairs division, recognizing the efforts of faculty who have made outstanding contributions in �putting knowledge to work� for the benefit of constituencies outside the university.

Feiertag, a leader in all aspects of outreach activities, has accomplished this through his involvement in research, continuing education, publishing, consulting, and supervising off campus service learning for students. His outreach work, which won for him the 2004 award for Pamplin College of Business involves hospitality and tourism industry training in areas of customer service, improving sales productivity, employee relations, and maximizing meeting and conference return on investment.  He has received numerous prestigious hotel and hospitality industry awards including those from Meeting Professionals International, Educational Institute of the American Hotel & Lodging Association, Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International, Professional Conference Management Association, as well as the Convention Industry Council, for his lifetime achievements in industry education and mentoring.

His background of over 40 years in hospitality includes convention bureau management, hotel operations, food & beverage, sales & marketing, catering, meetings and convention management, as well as tour and travel. He has been appointed to the Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International�s Hall of Fame.  A  Charter member of MPI, he has received the President�s Award from Meeting Professionals International for his involvement in industry education and training.  In 1998 he was voted Educator of the Year by the Professional Convention Management Association.  In 1999 Feiertag was inducted into the Convention Industry Council�s Hall of Leaders as a life-time achievement award in recognition for his leadership and contributions as a role model for the meetings and convention industry.  In 2001 he was appointed a �Fellow� of the American Hotel & Motel Association�s Educational Institute.  Feiertag is the recipient of the 2001 Arthur Landstreet Award from the Educational Institute of the American Hotel & Lodging Association for significantly advancing the quality of hospitality education and training through his mentorship initiatives and lifetime commitment to training and development of hospitality professionals. In 2002 he was honored by the Board of Directors of  Meeting Professionals International with a Lifetime Membership.