CSU launches hospitality initiative

The California State University (CSU) system has partnered with hospitality industry leaders to launch a Hospitality Industry Initiative, which aims to create excitement about career opportunities in the hospitality industry and prepare the industry's next generation of managers.

California's hospitality industry accounts for more than 5 percent of the state's Gross Domestic Product and provides jobs for approximately 10 percent of the workforce, according to data from CSU.

On May 29, the CSU and industry executives held the inaugural meeting of the Hospitality Industry Advisory Board to discuss industry trends and workforce expectations. Fourteen of the 23 CSU campuses are taking part in the initiative. Participating board members include:

• Bob Alter, executive chairman and CEO of Sunstone Hotel Investors;
• Bruce Baltin, senior vice president of PKF Consulting;
• Caroline Beteta, CEO of the California Travel and Tourism Commission;
• Paul J. Brown, president of Global Brands and Services for Hilton Hotels Corp.;
• Jim Burba, president of Burba Hotel Network;
• Jot Condie, CEO of the California Restaurant Association;
• Tom Davin, CEO of Panda Restaurant Group;
• Daniel Haag, president of Sysco Los Angeles;
• Jeff King, co-founder and chairman of King's Seafood Co.;
• Mark S. Liberman, president of LA Inc.;
• Lynn S. Mohrfeld, CEO and president of the California Hotel & Lodging Association;
• Robert Martin, tribal chairman of the Morongo Band of Mission Indians;
• J. Michael Ortiz, president of California State Polytechnic University, Pomona; and
  
• Julia Stewart, chair and CEO of DineEquity Inc.