UH Shidler College of Business teams up with School of Travel Industry Management

Reading time: 6 minutes
We have spent more than a year discussing the possibility and we think it is a good idea for several reasons:

• Workforce development is a major concern in tourism, one of the world’s largest industries. Shidler College of Business joining forces with the School of Travel Industry Management (TIM School) will help provide professionals who are qualified for leadership opportunities in the local and global tourism industries.
• The TIM School will retain its identity and focus on the tourism industry while operating under a “school-within-a-college” model. This model has been successful at the Shidler College and other top hospitality schools nationally and internationally.
• The recombined college will build on the TIM School’s legacy and strengthen relationships with the community, industry, alumni, and students, as it did under Dean Chuck Gee’s visionary leadership.

Reading time: 6 minutes
Absolutely not! The TIM School would become a “school-within-a-college” in Shidler College. The TIM School will have a full-time executive leader who will be Director of the TIM School and Associate Dean of Shidler College. This allows the TIM School to retain its identity and focus on Hawaiʻi’s largest industry.

Reading time: 6 minutes
The curriculum of the TIM School will always be focused on the travel industry. However, TIM students will be able to enjoy a wider range of course offerings through Shidler College. These courses will help strengthen their core business knowledge, which sets a stronger foundation for top careers in the hospitality industry.

Reading time: 6 minutes
No. In fact, it may strengthen the school’s accreditation. According to Cornell University and Virginia Tech University, in today’s tourism industry there is a greater need for students to have a strong business foundation. Local industry leaders have also told us the same thing. They want candidates with a solid business background.

Reading time: 6 minutes
There are no plans to physically move the TIM School. In fact, private funding will be raised to upgrade existing facilities as part of a major fundraising strategy for the TIM School.

Reading time: 6 minutes
No.

Reading time: 6 minutes
No.

Reading time: 6 minutes
No. In fact, the integration will result in additional opportunities. Shidler College has excellent relationships within Hawaiʻi’s business community, including the hospitality and tourism industry. Jay Shidler, a major Shidler College philanthropist with over $1 billion in hotel holdings on the mainland, has committed to developing internship opportunities for TIM students.

Reading time: 6 minutes
No, but there are plans to give the TIM School faculty more support. For the first two years, Jay Shidler will offer summer research support for all tenured and tenure-track TIM faculty and matching funds for six new faculty endowments in the TIM School. The goal is to elevate the visibility of the TIM faculty’s research and stature of the school. The faculty has done excellent work over the years, and we think they deserve more recognition. In addition, two TIM alumni from the Asia-Pacific region have already matched funds for two additional faculty endowments—a $500,000 professorship and a $250,000 faculty fellowship.

Reading time: 6 minutes
No, in fact, the plan is to make the events even better.

Reading time: 6 minutes
Yes. Since joining Shidler College of Business, the School of Accountancy has thrived under the “school-within-a-college” model. The school has its own director, and has increased its resources and strengthened the quality of its program, faculty and students after integrating with Shidler College. The school also enjoys a strong alumni network, most private support, and has its own advisory board.

Reading time: 6 minutes
Jay Shidler has committed a separate $1.55 million gift to fund an initial two years of summer research support for all tenured and tenure-track faculty. He has also pledged to develop internships for TIM students at his hotel properties in an effort to give them more diverse internship opportunities. Jay Shidler currently owns more than 25 hotels in several states across the mainland. Since Jay’s first major naming gift in 2006, we have learned these gifts stimulate other gifts as donors see exciting change happening and want to be part of it. We would love to see the same excitement happen with the TIM School.

Reading time: 6 minutes
The TIM School operated successfully under this model until it separated from the College of Business Administration (now Shidler College of Business) in 1992. Many of the TIM School’s most successful alumni attribute their success to the strong business foundation they received in this combined college. In addition, the School of Accountancy has strengthened the quality of its program, faculty, and students since becoming part of Shidler College.

Reading time: 6 minutes
Yes. We have been in close touch with the administration at Cornell University’s School of Hotel Administration, which joined forces with two accredited business programs in 2016. They are the number one school in the nation and have reported great success in hiring new faculty thanks to the appeal of a larger school, improved services for all schools, and a large naming gift from SC Johnson.

We have also been in close touch with Virginia Tech University. Administrators at Howard Feiertag Department of Hospitality and Tourism have reported increased support from the local tourism industry including work opportunities for students and a donation from Marriott International that will help pay for a brand-new kitchen facility closer to Pamplin College of Business.

Reading time: 6 minutes
We spent the past year engaging with students through various avenues, including council meetings and town hall seminars. Some of the benefits TIM students will gain from Shidler College joining forces with the TIM School will include more internship opportunities, increased resources, and a stronger business foundation that will prepare them for some of the top-paying jobs in Hawaiʻi’s tourism industry.

Reading time: 6 minutes
Shidler College’s growing Asia-Pacific presence will help strengthen the TIM School’s relationships with key influencers and alumni in the region, which will better serve international students. Our plan is to build on the TIM School’s legacy under Dean Gee’s visionary leadership.