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3400 Peachtree Rd. NE, Suite 725
Atlanta, GA 30326
Phone: 404-364-9847 Fax: 404-262-9518 Contact: Neville Bhada, Southeast Tourism Society 53 TOURISM PROFESSIONALS COMPLETE SOUTHEAST TOURISM SOCIETY MARKETING COLLEGE CURRICULUM Record number of professionals take part in program DAHLONEGA, Ga. (August 18, 2006)-Fifty-three tourism industry professionals completed the curriculum of the Southeast Tourism Society Marketing College this month and earned certification as Tourism Marketing Professionals (TMP). The Southeast Tourism Society Marketing College is a professional development program that for one week each summer turns the facilities of North Georgia College and State University into a laboratory to teach tourism marketing. Earning TMP certification requires three years' participation. This was the 15th year for the program, which now has graduated more than 330 TMPs. A record 225 students participated, including 22 graduates who returned for a special seminar on sports marketing. "In the tourism industry, the TMP certification carries a lot of weight," said Bill Hardman, president of the Southeast Tourism Society (STS), an 11-state organization that promotes tourism in the Southeast. This year's record number of graduates will be recognized in a special program at the STS spring meeting in Biloxi , Mississippi next March. The STS Marketing College was begun to provide continuing education for tourism professionals. Tourism ranks as the first-, second- or third-largest industry in each STS member state. Students come from many sectors of the industry such as convention and visitors bureaus, chambers of commerce, attractions and hotels. Course topics range from family vacation research and special events marketing to media relations and creative advertising. Courses in heritage tourism and community/rural tourism have attracted special interest in recent years. "Our curriculum is practical. What students learn can be put to practice as soon as they get back to their workplaces," Hardman said. More than 25 senior executives in the travel and tourism industry are the volunteer faculty. Among them are Karen Lingo, an editor at Southern Living Magazine, who teaches students how to work with travel journalists; Judy Randall, president of Randall Travel Marketing, who teaches tourism marketing fundamentals such as research, product development and how to develop an effective brochure; and Don McEachern, president of North Star Destination Strategies, who teaches courses in brand-building for travel destinations. "The Southeast Tourism Society is recognized nationwide for the cohesiveness and camaraderie it fosters in the region. No other region has a similar organization. Our marketing college is a major project to build the skills and professionalism in the tourism industry," Hardman said. About Southeast Tourism Society (STS) # Contact:
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