WASHINGTON—The American Hotel & Lodging Foundation (AHLA Foundation) awarded over $1 million to 336 hospitality program participants for the 2022-2023 academic school year. This year’s pool of recipients includes 51 percent students of color and 72 percent female students ranging in age from18 to 70. With six-affiliated historically Black colleges and universities, the AHLA Foundation continues its tradition of supporting the future of hospitality by providing financial assistance to scholarship recipients.
In the second year of its partnership with 10 community colleges, the number of two-year college students awarded scholarships has risen by 56 percent to 88 recipients. The remaining 248 recipients are enrolled in four-year hospitality programs at 71 institutions representing 36 states and Washington D.C. To date, AHLA Foundation has contributed nearly $16 million to deserving students across the United States.
“Now more than ever, it is critical to empower the future minds of the hospitality industry. Through this generous giving, the scholarship recipients at these various institutions will build upon their skills to discover the many exciting career opportunities our industry has to offer,” said Sarah Cozewith, vice president of workforce development of the AHLA Foundation. “We could not be more thrilled to help them on their journey.”
Scholarship recipients for the 2022-2023 academic year provide their own perspectives and talents to an industry that is eager to serve:
- Joshua Jackson (New Mexico State University)—Joshua attended four high schools across three states while his father progressed through a 24-year career in the military. After observing the substantial financial impact that COVID-19 has had on the hospitality and tourism industry, Joshua pursued this academic scholarship to focus on his academic studies, expand his knowledge through internship opportunities, and serve his community.
- Allison Busch (San Diego State University)—Allison grew up in San Diego after being adopted from Vietnam at five months old. Her curiosity in the hotel industry sparked when she first got the opportunity to work at Marriott in 2019—which led her to apply to San Diego State‘s hospitality program. Allison is grateful for this scholarship opportunity to fulfill her academic goals and continue progressing in her career in hospitality.
- Santiago Reveles Gonzalez (University of Houston)—Originally from Mexico, Santiago is a rising senior with an emphasis in lodging at the Conrad N. Hilton College of Global Hospitality Leadership at the University of Houston. After the pandemic took a toll on his mental and physical health, everything changed for him when he accepted a hospitality job at the Hilton Garden Inn in Houston. Santiago plans to use his AHLAF scholarship to pursue his dreams in hospitality.
The AHLA Foundation’s scholarships are funded through the support of individual donors and corporations. The AHLAF Academic Scholarship Program, the Foundation’s largest scholarship program, includes funds provided by the AHLAF General Campaign, AHLAF Hospitality 2000 Campaign, Americas Lodging Investment Summit (ALIS), AHLAF New Century Fund, the National Restaurant Association, John Clifford Memorial Fund, Cecil B. Day Memorial Fund, Handlery Hotels, Conrad N. Hilton Memorial Fund, Creighton Holden Memorial Fund, Hospitality Asset Managers Association, Steve Hymans Extended Stay Scholarship, Richard Kessler, J. Willard Marriott Memorial Fund, Joseph McInerney Scholarship, Curtis C. Nelson Fund, and AHLAF’s Annual Giving Program.
Additional scholarship programs include The Hyatt Hotels Fund for Minority Lodging Management Students; the Rama Scholarship for the American Dream Program; the American Express Scholarship Program; the Ecolab Scholarship Program; the Karl Mehlmann Scholarship; the Banks Brown Graduate Scholarship Program; the Arthur J. Packard Memorial Scholarship Program; the Stephen P. Holmes Scholarship; the Incoming Freshman Scholarship, which awards PepsiCo Foundation and ALIS Scholarships; and the Opening Doors to Opportunity Scholarship, which awards the Minaz Abji Scholarship.
