Martinsville-Henry County Economic Development Corporation

Tourism Professionals Extend Education with Annual Program on Georgia Campus

Aug 13, 2006
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: David Rotenizer
Director of Tourism
Martinsville-Henry County Economic Development Corporation
276.403.5940
drotenizer@yesmartinsville.com

Crystal France
Director of Marketing/PR
Martinsville-Henry County Economic Development Corporation
276.403.5940
cfrance@yesmartinsville.com


Tourism Professionals Extend Education with Annual Program on Georgia Campus

DAHLONEGA, Ga. (August 2006) — David Rotenizer, Director of Tourism, Martinsville-Henry County Economic Development Corporation has completed the first portion of a three-year professional development program that will lead to certification as a Tourism Marketing Professional (TMP).

Rotenizer was one of 225 tourism professionals who became students for a week at the Southeast Tourism Society Marketing College earlier this month. The program turns the facilities of North Georgia College and State University in Dahlonega into a laboratory to teach tourism marketing each summer.

This was the 15th year for the STS Marketing College. There is no other professional development program like the STS Marketing College, and it is recognized nationally for its training of tourism leaders. Almost 335 people have earned TMP certification.

“In the tourism industry, TMP certification carries a lot of weight,” said Bill Hardman, president and CEO of the Southeast Tourism Society, an 11-state organization that promotes travel and tourism in the Southeast.

The STS Marketing College began in 1992 to provide continuing education for tourism professionals. Tourism ranks as the first-, second- or third-largest industry in each STS member state. Students come from convention and visitors bureaus, chambers of commerce, attractions, hotels and other segments of the tourism industry.

The curriculum covers topics that range from family vacation research and special events marketing to media relations and creative advertising. Heritage tourism and community/rural tourism are courses that have attracted special interest in recent years.

“The fundamental concept of STS Marketing College is that the curriculum is practical. What students learn can be put to practice as soon as they get back to their workplaces,” Hardman said.

Twenty-five senior executives in the travel and tourism industry serve as volunteer faculty.

The marketing college attracts students from throughout the Southeast and occasionally from other states. This year’s program included students from Arizona and Oklahoma.

“The Southeast Tourism Society is recognized nationwide for the cohesiveness and camaraderie it fosters in the region. No other region has a similar organization. Our marketing college is a major project to build skills and professionalism in the tourism industry,” Hardman said.

The 11 STS states are Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia. STS headquarters are based in Atlanta, Georgia.


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