Prof. Kaye Chon (Ph.D., CHE, FIH) is Dean, Chair Professor and Walter Kwok Foundation Professor in International Hospitality Management of the School of Hotel and Tourism Management at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University. In 2011, Prof. Chon received the Ulysses Prize from the United Nations World Tourism Organization. Commonly known as “Nobel Prize in Tourism”, Ulysses Prize is annually given to one scholar for distinguished contribution to knowledge creation in tourism.

Under Prof. Chon’s leadership, the School has arisen as one of the world’s leading institutions in hospitality and tourism management. According to Journal of Hospitality & Tourism Research, the School is ranked no. 2 in the world based on research and scholarship. Before assuming the current position in 2000, Prof. Chon was Professor and Director of Research and Director of Tourism Industry Institute at Conrad N. Hilton College of the University of Houston in the United States.

A frequent speaker at international conferences, Prof. Chon has published over 200 papers in international journals and professional publications and has authored or edited eight books. One of his textbooks Welcome to Hospitality: an Introduction has been adopted as a textbook in more than 100 hospitality and tourism schools worldwide. He is currently the Chief Editor of the Journal of Travel & Tourism Marketing and the Asia Pacific Journal of Tourism Research.

In his university teaching that spans close to 30 years, Prof. Chon twice received “Teaching Excellence Award” and five times received “Research Excellence Award”. He is the recipient of John Wiley & Sons Award and Howard B. Meek Award from International CHRIE, Martin Oppermann Memorial Award from ISTTE, Michael D. Olsen Award from the University of Delaware, and Founders Award in Research from Purdue University and the University of South Carolina, all for his lifetime contribution to scholarship and research in tourism/hospitality. In 2003, he was recognized by his alma mater Georgia State University as the “Most Outstanding Alumni in 30 Years”.

Prof. Chon is the past Chairman of the International Society of Travel & Tourism Educators (ISTTE), Vice Chairman of the United Nations World Tourism Organization’s Education Council, and Chairman of Pacific Asia Travel Association Education and Training Committee.

He has been listed in Who’s Who In The World.

Prof. Chon is a graduate of the University of Maryland, Georgia State University, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and Virginia Tech.