UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — The Creating Opportunities for Young Hospitality Leaders (COYHL) summer program presents high school students with a behind-the-scenes look at how hotels and restaurants are run, exposure to the many career paths available in the hospitality industry, and an introduction to the Penn State School of Hospitality Management.
The COYHL summer program is a six-day camp for rising high school juniors and seniors from around the country to learn about the educational and career options available in the hospitality industry.
Applications for the 2024 COYHL program, which will run from July 14-19, are now open.
“One in three American's first job is in hospitality, and we want people to understand that their first job in the field does not need to be their last,” said Donna Quadri-Felitti, Marvin Ashner Endowed Director and associate professor of hospitality management. “Hospitality management can provide a wide array of opportunities for students after college with a deep well of transferable skills to many industries, and the COYHL summer program aims to recruit the next generation of the nation’s best and brightest hospitality professionals."
During the 2023 program, which happened on and around the Penn State University Park campus, high school students visited several hospitality businesses and engaged in educational workshops run by hospitality management faculty and alumni. With the support of faculty and undergraduate majors in hospitality management mentors, known as captains, the high schoolers learned about what comprises a successful hospitality business and gained important skills for presenting themselves professionally.
“I’m really interested in the business of helping people,” said high school junior Kai Edwards. “When I looked into hospitality, I was surprised by the variety of careers that are available and the diversity of people with different interests that Penn State’s program accommodates.”
Edwards expressed his admiration of the hospitality industry’s focus on creating a positive experience for the customer, as well as those who work within the business, something he learned more about through the COYHL program.
For participants, COYHL is a platform for exploring possible career choices that they might not have been aware of. Staying in Penn State dorms, enjoying faculty presentations and sampling hands-on learning experiences gives students a sample of the college experience, and working with undergraduates and faculty in the School of Hospitality Management exposes them to the variety of career paths available in the field, said Quadri-Felitti.
Participants said touring several local hospitality businesses was especially engaging; students said they were fascinated to learn the ins and outs of the Penn State Berkey Creamery, the Graduate State College hotel and Chick-fil-A. Multiple high school students said they were impressed by all the hard work that goes on behind the scenes.
“When I thought of hospitality, I always imagined a friendly person greeting you at a front desk,” said high school senior Anna Rosani. “But in reality, hospitality is every other aspect of the customer experience, too.”
Students said they were shown how the customer experience contributes to the overall value proposition, resulting in a viable and successful enterprise.
“Between visiting the businesses and working on group activities, everything we’ve done here at Penn State has taught me a lot about utilizing your inner creativity and finding that spark,” Rosani said.
In addition to educating prospective college students on hospitality management, the COYHL program provided a leadership opportunity for current Penn State undergraduates. The undergraduate captains, all of whom are undergraduate students in the Penn State School of Hospitality Management, worked with the high school students to provide advice, guidance and support.
“A lot of the students are questioning what they want to choose as their college major, let alone their career,” said Matthew Stover, senior in hospitality management. “[The captains] are here to help them understand what the field of hospitality can offer. I’m the youngest in my family, so mentoring them has been a great learning experience in being a leader and role model.”
Stover remarked that management roles in any industry require patience and respect, which are two skills he was able to practice as a COYHL captain. Stover added that learning to guide and manage these students was both a personally enriching and professionally valuable experience for him.
“Even though the students are supposed to be the ones learning from this, I’m actually gaining a lot of information and knowledge from them, as well,” Stover said.
Another undergraduate captain, junior Picose Gomes, explained that creating a valuable and meaningful experience for people is one of the main goals of hospitality management. As a COYHL captain, Gomes said he worked to create a worthwhile experience for the students while teaching them how to do the same for others.
“When talking to [the students], cracking jokes and just being authentic has been the most important,” Gomes said. “That’s the way you show that you care.”
According to the captains, hospitality management facilitates a much broader set of career tracks than most people understand. As a result, some of the undergraduate students, like Gomes, said they only found their path partway through their college career. However, the experience of switching majors and exploring a new avenue in the School of Hospitality Management fostered valuable knowledge for Gomes that he could offer to the high school students and anyone else considering hospitality, he said.
“This major and the industry are very wide, and there are no limits to what you can do,” Gomes said. “You can always find something that fits your interests, especially if you like people.”
Learn more about the 2024 COYHL summer program and sign up to express interest in participating.