Ashlyn Toledo, Author at Chaplin School of Hospitality & Tourism Management

Chaplin School Alumna Appointed Group Operations Director of Elegant Hotels

Chaplin School Alumna, Gayle Talma '92, has been appointed Group Operations Director of Elegant Hotels. The hospitality group comprises the west and south coast luxury properties of Tamarind, Crystal Cove, The House, Turtle Beach, Colony Club and Waves Hotel & Spa. In her new role, the Florida International University graduate will report to the company’s chief executive officer and will be appointed to the local management Board of Directors. All general managers will also report directly to her. Her new duties include overseeing the day-to-day operations of all the hotels and independent restaurants within the group, including the world renowned Daphne’s Restaurant. She also has responsibility for developing and maintaining brand standards, operational quality and guest satisfaction as well as introducing new concepts and managing approved capital expenditure projects. Talma has been with Elegant Hotels since 1992, when she joined as a management trainee, and has had the distinction of working at every hotel in the group. Her career path included the posts of food and beverage manager, deputy general manager, regional food and beverage director and acting general manager. Prior to her appointment, she served as general manager of the Colony Club and continues in that capacity until her replacement is announced. Commenting on her promotion to Group Operations Director, a very elated Talma said: “This is an exciting time for Elegant and I am really looking forward to my new post. I expect that it will be a bit different to running one property but I am looking forward to the new experiences that will come with it. I think my years with the Group, which have been invaluable, have prepared me for this new task and it will be a pleasure working [...]

Jose Fernandez ‘02 Recognized as Humanitarian of the Year

By ASHLYN TOLEDO Jose Fernandez has built a name for himself in Miami’s competitive real estate industry. But it’s his work with charitable organizations around the world that has really set him apart, earning him the distinction of being named Humanitarian of the Year by Florida Realtors. Fernandez has always been passionate about helping others. Even as a child growing up in Puerto Rico, he remembers raising money for disadvantaged children in other parts of the world. And while many have donated their money generously, Fernandez has given an incredible amount of time to the causes he champions. “I really have a servant’s heart,” Fernandez said. “I think the most precious thing a person can give is their time, because it’s the only commodity that you can never get back.” Fernandez studied hospitality management at the Chaplin School and eventually made his way into Real Estate. He was drawn to the flexibility it gave him because he felt that it would afford him more time to pursue other projects and passions. But, he took a great deal of his skills and training with him in his new career. “I think in any career, whatever it is, you can use the skills and the knowledge that you learn in your life,” he said. “I look back at all the classes that I took at FIU - Accounting, Marketing, statistics - I have used them all one way or another in my business.” In 1999, after arriving at FIU as an international exchange student, Fernandez began sponsoring a Honduran boy named Jairo through Children International. As fate would have it, he soon formed a friendship with a Honduran classmate. Together, they traveled to Honduras where Fernandez was able to meet Jairo. The following [...]

Carnival On Board with Third Cohort of Gold Scholars at FIU

This fall, five recent high school graduates from across South Florida began classes at Florida International University in the Chaplin School of Hospitality & Tourism Management as the third cohort of Carnival Gold Scholars, a program established by Carnival Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Carnival Corporation & plc. Selected for their outstanding academics, personal ambition, and financial need, this new slate of scholars represents the pinnacle of pre-collegiate achievement. After immigrating to the U.S. as a child, Taisha Coradin overcame language and cultural challenges to excel in high school, where she served three years in the Navy Junior ROTC. At FIU, she plans to focus on event management and culinary innovation. Serena Beze was president of the Academy of Hospitality and Tourism in high school and plans to major in travel and tourism as she works to become the first member of her immediate family to graduate from college. While helping her mother, who is disabled, Leah Esper found time for academics and activities in high school; she received the Hospitality and Tourism merit diploma for her exceptional extracurricular accomplishments. Her career goal is to work in communication, and travel and tourism. Working part time to help her family, Dyani Roberts still found time in high school to serve as Vice President of the Distributive Education Clubs of America (DECA) chapter and place in the statewide competitions, and complete a year-long internship at the Marriott Harbor Beach Resort and Spa in Fort Lauderdale. After college, she wants to work in human relations within the hospitality industry. Despite multiple relocations and family separations, Faith Snow found her focus in high school, where she received the Hospitality Excellence Award from the Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association. She [...]

Florida International University’s Chaplin School of Hospitality & Tourism Management Launches the Rocco Angelo Legacy in Leadership Campaign

Florida International University’s prestigious Chaplin School of Hospitality & Tourism Management is reaching out to its global alumni base to support the Rocco Angelo Legacy in Leadership Campaign. The new fundraising campaign was created to recognize the contributions and ensure the legacy of the university’s beloved and admired teacher, mentor and friend, Rocco Angelo, acting Associate Dean for Alumni Relations at the Chaplin School. Still active after six decades of service to the hospitality industry, Mr. Angelo’s exceptional achievements will be honored through an endowment fund that will make certain his legacy endures, benefiting FIU students of the future. The funds raised will provide scholarships, recruitment initiatives to attract the best and brightest students, alumni engagement efforts, mentoring programs, career services, and student enrichment opportunities. Several prominent alumni of the Chaplin School have already contributed seed money to launch the effort, with alumni John McKibbon ’75, Chairman, McKibbon Hospitality; Burt Cabañas ‘76, Founder and Chairman, Benchmark Hospitality International; and Eric Pfeffer’77, Founder and President, The Pfeffer Group, contributing $25,000 each. “A legend in the hospitality industry, Rocco Angelo has personally led more than 15,000 students and alumni on their academic and professional paths to success,” says FIU alumnus Burt Cabañas, Chair Emeritus, Chaplin School’s Dean’s Advisory Council. A visionary leader and a gifted teacher, Rocco Angelo’s achievements span the globe, teaching and consulting in North, Central and South America, the Caribbean, Middle East and Europe. As co-author of Hospitality Today: An Introduction, he saw his textbook, now in its eighth edition, used in colleges and universities across the United States. His efforts were rewarded with numerous accolades, including the prestigious Statler Foundation Professorship in 1993. But it is his legacy as a teacher and [...]

Tamika Duffus Graduates Worlds Ahead

Tamika Duffus has faced many personal challenges, including losing her father when she was in middle school, but she has always focused her energy on her classes and related extracurricular activities. From an early age, she knew she wanted to work in an environment where she could interact with others and have a powerful impact within her profession. So she enrolled at FIU and set her sights on a hospitality management degree, where she became passionate about the food and beverage industry. By her senior year at FIU, Tamika had added a slew of honors and invaluable experiences to her resume, including acting as secretary of the Caribbean Student Association and the University Town Hall Council. She became a teaching assistant for one of her Hospitality Management professors, Margaret La Belle, and successfully completed the distinguished Disney College Program while attending FIU. Following graduation, Tamika will travel to Atlanta, Georgia, where she’ll begin her journey to become an executive in one of the most diverse industries in the world. She was chosen for the highly selective Marriott Voyage Global Leadership Program as a Manager in Training. These are coveted positions with hundreds and sometimes thousands of student applicants from across the country competing for a handful of spots. After completing the program, Tamika is guaranteed a management-level position within the Marriott organization.

CSHTM Awarded Second Cochran Fellowship Grant

Dr. Michael Cheng, Dr. Mark Traynor & Dr. Imran Ahmed have been awarded a second Cochran Fellowship grant for 2016, which supports international exchange in food studies. As part of the program, the Chaplin School will host eight international guests from Mexico and the Dominican Republic from August 1 to August 14. They will receive training in Post Harvest Loss and Food Systems Management, and take trips to two of the largest ports in Florida - Port Everglades and Port Tampa Bay. In May of this year, the first round of Cochran Fellows - 17 gastronomy and agriculture professionals from Colombia - visited the Chaplin School to gain an understanding of U.S. cuisine and techniques used. Update: The USDA Cochran Fellowship Program has funded three grants to the Chaplin school over the last year totaling $349,000 to train gastronomy and agriculture professionals from Central and South America in U.S. cuisine, school lunches and agriculture techniques, and to promote trade between the U.S. and other developing countries.

Chaplin School Career Office Places Students In Management Positions

In two and a half years since it expanded, the FIU Chaplin School of Hospitality & Tourism Management’s J. Willard and Alice S. Marriott Foundation Career Development Office has successfully placed more than 200 students in management positions immediately after graduation, while 100 percent of students graduate with internship or work experience. The office, which is funded by The J. Willard and Alice S. Marriott Foundation, provides students with access to internships, jobs and management in training programs with brands across the hospitality industry. It also funds scholarships to attend industry events, national conferences and global competitions. Now, with an additional $225,000 grant providing an additional three years of operating funds, The J. Willard and Alice S. Marriott Foundation will continue to take the lead in promoting hospitality education worldwide, reflecting the entrepreneurial spirit of the pioneers for which it is named. “The J. Willard and Alice S. Marriott Foundation Career Development Program at the Chaplin School helped me shape and expand my understanding of the hospitality and tourism industry. The services they provided gave me the skills and confidence to get a head start in my career,” said Stephanie van Romondt, who was selected to participate in a management in training program in Dubai with Kerzner International. The goal of the grant is to ensure that students receive a well-rounded academic education with a focus on professional skills in the areas of communication, language, leadership and cultural awareness. “The J. Willard and Alice S. Marriott Foundation is a big supporter of the hospitality industry as a whole and of our program, in particular. The success of the career development office demonstrates how FIU and the Marriott Foundation are working together to create development opportunities [...]

A Good Education, Hard Work and Determination Helped Student to Achieve Her Goal

Elaine Zhou, recent graduate of the Marriott Tianjin China Program, received the Management Trainee position at The Opposite House hotel in Beijing. Zhou, who had been pursuing opportunities at TOH since first learning about the hotel in 2014, completed a three-month internship last Spring. She immediately fell in love with the culture. "[I loved] the high standards, the friendly 'hi' and smile from the top levels to first line members, and the well-behaved guests. I have grown and learned a lot there, and met excellent and interesting people," she said. "And, I was becoming a better and more qualified hotelier and restauranteur." As graduation neared and everyone around her was receiving full-time jobs, Zhou decided to hold out for the job she really wanted - the MT program with Swire Hotels, owner of The Opposite House and several other boutique hotels in China. Zhou will spend the next 18 months with Swire Hotels, working with different departments and gaining first-hand knowledge of the operations, before focusing on her chosen department - Food & Beverage. Zhou, who earned the Marriott Scholarship and National Scholarship, graduated in the top two of her class this Spring. She credits FIU and The Opposite House with much of her success, but also recognizes the hard work she herself put in to making her dreams a reality. "It’s FIU that offered me a good education and opportunities to better know this industry, TOH that made me love this industry more and helped me to make the decision to start with F&B, and me myself who made the decision to choose FIU and TOH, and to choose Hospitality Management. I believe that Best ＋Best ＝Better." Currently, there are 43 FIU Hospitality students completing management training programs [...]

Dean Hampton to Present ‘Innovations in Learning Technologies’ at CHART 92

Chaplin School Dean Mike Hampton will participate in a CHART talks session at the 92nd Hotel Training Conference in Charleston, South Carolina July 30 to August 2, hosted by the Council of Hotel and Restaurant Trainers. Dean Hampton will share his thoughts on innovations in learning technologies that are providing trainers with new resources to elevate engagement, impression and impact to unprecedented levels. To register for the conference, visit chart.org.

Adjunct professor Patti Shock records F&B cuisine trends webinar

Industry icon and FIU adjunct professor Patti Shock recorded a webinar on recent F&B cuisine and program trends for Meetings Today. You can register for the on demand webinar here.

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