| HOUSTON, Sept. 12, 2007�Getting from here to there is more
than just a question of transportation. It�s a question of psychology,
culture, luxury and finances. Understanding those factors is part
of the foundation of two new classes on tourism at the University of Houston
Conrad N. Hilton College of Hotel and Restaurant Management.
The classes � one designed for undergraduates and the other open to
graduate students � are taught by a new UH faculty member who brings her
global experiences to a campus renowned for the international dimension
of its educational offerings. Students from more than 130 countries are
enrolled at UH.
�Tourism is the umbrella for any field of study in the hospitality
industry,� said Joanne Yoo, assistant professor at the college. �Tourism
doesn�t exist in a vacuum. To be a good hotelier, restaurateur or
chef you need to know what brings your guests there.�
Yoo�s passion for tourism began when she worked as an in-flight interpreter
for the KLM Royal Dutch Airlines. Overseas leisure travel was restricted
for South Koreans until 1989, so her involvement in the industry was limited
to helping business and leisure travelers on the plane. It was during
the early 1990s, when the restrictions were lifted, that Yoo felt the call
of the road. No longer were the stories of worldly travels bound
to the airline passengers she assisted. She could go and find her
own stories � and she did.
�The idea of traveling to another country to work or to play was both
exotic and exciting,� Yoo said. �When I witnessed overwhelming outbound
travel demand in my home country, I knew I wanted to study tourism.�
She traveled to Australia for graduate school and to Hong Kong for
her doctorate. Tourism was bourgeoning in Asia during this period,
Yoo said. She joined the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) as
assistant director of the Strategic Intelligence Center. PATA promotes
travel and tourism to Asia. She knew her travels would eventually
send her to the United States, and was hopeful it would be in a university
setting.
�It was a great experience to work in the industry like that,� Yoo
said. �It really broadened my horizons. I�m hopeful these experiences
can be conveyed to my students who will need a global perspective about
tourism, even if their careers stay in the U.S.� Her classes will
emphasize the service-oriented aspect of tourism and the attitude needed
to serve guests from around the world.
�Students may understand how to serve a guest from the West, but cultural
differences may bring different expectations from a guest from the East,�
Yoo said. �The world is very small. Students need more than
an appreciation for other cultures. They need to have knowledge of
how to serve guests from various cultural backgrounds.�
In addition to teaching, Yoo will continue researching trends in the
industry. She says there are two current tourism trends � gaming
and medical tourism. Gaming refers to the multi-billion-dollar industry
that includes casinos, while medical tourism is a relatively new idea that
describes travel for the purpose of getting health care. Yoo believes
it also is a term that describes Houston.
�The medical industry should be service oriented,� she said. �Patients
will be staying here for treatments, and they will also be living here,
buying things here, looking for places to eat. There is good infrastructure
for making Houston a medical tourism destination.�
Yoo will pursue research on building Houston as a destination for medical
tourists, and she hopes to partner with marketing colleagues in the world-renowned
Texas Medical Center. She plans to focus her research on the image
of the city of Houston and community perceptions about becoming a medical
tourist destination.
For more information on the UH Conrad N. Hilton College of Hotel and
Restaurant Management, visit www.hrm.uh.edu/.
The University of Houston, Texas� premier metropolitan research and
teaching institution, is home to more than 40 research centers and institutes
and sponsors more than 300 partnerships with corporate, civic and governmental
entities. UH, the most diverse research university in the country, stands
at the forefront of education, research and service with more than 35,000
students. |
