| “Our
students are taking all the same classes the business students take in
terms of their core classes — statistics, finance, calculus — and they
have to maintain a 3.0 GPA their first two years,” explained Carl
Winston, director of the hospitality
school, which bears the name of one of its largest benefactors. “If
they’ don’t, they’re out of our major.”
It’s not unusual for about half the students who start
out in the hospitality program to eventually drop out, but that’s a
good thing, says Winston.
“Some people consider this a glamorous industry. A young
woman will come in and say, ‘I saw this movie with Jennifer Lopez
called The
Wedding Planner, and I want to do this.’ We put them through a
series of exercises the very first year that really weed them out.”
Not only do students have to survive the academic rigor
of the hospitality major while working in the industry a minimum of 400
hours their first two years, they also have to learn how to be an adept
team player, say school officials.
Music video
Take that music video, for example, one of several group
projects the school requires over the course of the four-year program.
The task assigned them is to produce a video about some aspect of the
hospitality industry, but also sing and dance in their own production.
It’s not for everyone, acknowledges Winston, but it’s better to
discover that earlier than later, he says.
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About the school
L. Robert Payne School of
Hospitality and Tourism Management
Founded:
2001 with a $1.1 million donation from L. Robert Payne, owner of the
Crowne Plaza Hotel in Mission Valley.
Name change:
When The L. Robert Payne and Patricia L. Payne Family Foundation
donated an additional $2.4 million last year, the school’s name was
changed to honor Payne.
Areas of emphasis:
• Hotel operations and
management.
• Restaurant operations and
management.
• Meetings and event
operations and management.
• Tribal gaming operations
and management.
Faculty: Mix of academics and local
professionals in the hotel, restaurant and tourism industry.
Number of graduates since inception: 531
Average graduating class: 100 annually
• Just more than half leave San Diego upon graduation.
• 80 percent are female.
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