PolyU School of Hotel and Tourism Management Recognised for Outstanding Tourism Education

The School of Hotel and Tourism Management (SHTM) of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University was deeply honoured to be bestowed the 2023 ISTTE Institutional Achievement Award by the International Society of Travel and Tourism Educators (ISTTE) in recognition of its significant contributions to tourism education.

The latest honour was bestowed at the Annual Conference of the International Society of Travel and Tourism Educators held in Toronto, Canada on 16–18 October 2023. The SHTM was praised for its leadership in advancing tourism education in the region and the world for its innovativeness in academic programming and world-class teaching and research facilities.

Professor Kaye Chon, SHTM Dean, Chair Professor and Walter and Wendy Kwok Family Foundation Professor in International Hospitality Management, said that the accolade further underpins the School’s world-leading position in providing innovative programmes that advance the tourism and hospitality sector’s development. “As a global centre of excellence in hospitality and tourism education and research, the SHTM is well poised to continue to lead hospitality and tourism in the years to come,” he remarked.

The SHTM has made a lasting mark on hospitality and tourism education by being a two-time recipient of the ISTTE Institutional Achievement Award. The School first received the prestigious award in 2003, recognising its commitment to educational excellence. A ringing endorsement of the SHTM’s visionary leadership, dedicated researchers and innovative educational approach, the award confirms the School’s outstanding reputation and dedication in providing world-class hospitality and tourism education for Hong Kong and beyond.

Taking this opportunity, the SHTM is delighted to announce that the 43rd Annual ISTTE Conference will be held at Hotel ICON, Hong Kong on 14-16 October 2024. The year 2024 is a special year for the SHTM as it marks the School’s 45th anniversary. In hosting an international event as celebrated as the annual ISTTE Conference in such an auspicious year, the SHTM aims to further contribute to the ISTTE and to extend the frontier of knowledge in tourism and hospitality.

The International Society of Travel and Tourism Educators is an international organisation of travel, tourism and hospitality professionals representing all levels of educational institutions. A non-profit international organisation, the ISTTE is dedicated to improving the quality of education and research in travel, tourism and hospitality by promoting the exchange of information and ideas and outstanding service among its members.

SHTM Dean Kaye Chon with the 2023 ISTTE Institutional Achievement Award

 

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About PolyU’s School of Hotel and Tourism Management

For over 40 years, the School of Hotel and Tourism Management (SHTM) of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University has refined a distinctive vision of hospitality and tourism education and become a world-leading hotel and tourism school. Ranked No. 1 in the world in the “Hospitality and Tourism Management” category in ShanghaiRanking’s Global Ranking of Academic Subjects 2022 for the sixth consecutive year; placed No. 1 globally in the “Commerce, Management, Tourism and Services” category in the University Ranking by Academic Performance in 2022/2023 for six years in a row; rated No. 1 in the world in the “Hospitality, Leisure, Sport & Tourism” subject area by the CWUR Rankings by Subject 2017; and ranked No. 2 in the world among university based programmes in the “Hospitality and Leisure Management” subject area in the QS World University Rankings by Subject 2023 for the seventh consecutive year, the SHTM is a symbol of excellence in the field, exemplifying its motto of Leading Hospitality and Tourism.

The School is driven by the need to serve its industry and academic communities through the advancement of education and dissemination of knowledge. With a strong international team of 90 faculty members from 20 countries and regions around the world, the SHTM offers programmes at levels ranging from undergraduate to doctoral degrees. Through Hotel ICON, the School’s groundbreaking teaching and research hotel and a vital aspect of its paradigm-shifting approach to hospitality and tourism education, the SHTM is advancing teaching, learning and research, and inspiring a new generation of passionate, pioneering professionals to take their positions as leaders in the hospitality and tourism industry.