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Michael A. Leven Honored with Landstreet Award
from Educational Institute of AH&MA
 

ORLANDO, Fla., May 1998�Michael A. Leven, CHA, CHSE, president and CEO of U.S. Franchise Systems, Inc., has received the 1998 Arthur Landstreet Award, the hospitality industry�s highest honor for advancing the cause of hosptality education.  The award was presented at the �Stars of the Industry� luncheon  during the AH&MA�s annual convention and leadership forum in Reno, Nev., in April.

The Landstreet Award is presented to an individual who, in a singular and extraordinary way, has significantly elevated the quality of hospitality education through support of EI and the industry.

Mike Leven has spent his entire 37-year career in the hotel industry. Prior to the formation of U.S. Franchise Systems in 1995, Leven served as president and CEO of Holiday Inn Worldwide.  From 1985 to 1990, Leven was president of Days Inn of America.  Under his leadership, the company grew from a 225-unit regional chain to more than 1,000 units.  Leven was also responsible for leading the company in initiatives to hire older workers, people with disabilities, and the homeless at the Days Inn corporate office.

Leven�s career began with Sonesta Hotels, where he served for 12 years in operations and marketing capacities, leaving as vice president of marketing in 1973. He worked for Dunfey Family Hotels from 1973 to 1976, when he joined Americana Hotels as senior vice president of operations and executive vice president.  He was named president and CEO of that company in December 1984.

Leven has lectured at most of the hotel schools in the country and taught strategic marketing at the University of New Hampshire.  He holds the Certified Hotel Administrator (CHA) designation from the Educational Institute of the AH&MA and the Certified Hotel Sales Executive (CHSE) designation from the Hotel Sales & Marketing Association International (HSMAI).  In addition, he founded the Asian American Hotel Owners Assocation (AAHOA) and is active in supporting the organization and its offshoot, AAHOA Youth.

The Landstreet Award is named after the Tennessee hotelier who founded the Educational Institute in 1953.

Established in 1953 as a nonprofit educational foundation of the AH&MA, the Educational Institute has become the hospitality industry�s first source for organizational development and training, leading hospitality operations through today�s changing business environment.

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Contact:
Teresa Trent, 
Vice President, External Affairs
407-999-8100
  [email protected]
 

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