Collins College of Hospitality ManagementContact: Lisa McPheron
Director of Communications and External Relations
The Collins College of Hospitality Management
(909) 869-3151, lcmcpheron@csupomona.edu
Collins1016
Harvest Celebration 2009:
Honoring Hospitality Industry Leaders
While Raising Funds for Collins College Students
The Collins College of Hospitality Management at Cal Poly Pomona will host Harvest Celebration 2009 on Saturday, Nov. 21 to honor top leaders in the hospitality industry while raising money for students inside and outside the classroom. The celebration will take place at the Renaissance Hollywood Hotel & Spa.
The Collins College is pleased to announce that Jay Rasulo, Chairman of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, will receive the Hospitality Leader of the Year Award; Steve Slater, Vice President & General Manager of Southern Wine & Spirits of Southern California, will be honored with the Robert Mondavi Wine & Food Award; and Margaret Bailey, Senior Vice President of Government Services for Capital Hotel Management, will receive the college’s Distinguished Alumni of the Year Award.
“We are delighted to have the opportunity to honor these three individuals,” said Collins College Dean Andrew Hale Feinstein. “Jay Rasulo, for his pioneering leadership at Disney; Steve Slater, for his instrumental influence in the California wine and spirits industry; and Margaret Bailey, for embodying the success we hope all our alumni achieve in their careers.”
Guests of Harvest Celebration 2009 will have the opportunity to bid on items that have a direct impact on students, such as scholarships and classroom equipment. The event will also feature a live auction with exclusive hospitality packages.
The Collins College of Hospitality Management is grateful to corporate sponsors: Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, Panda Restaurant Group Inc., Marriott Hotels, Patina Restaurant Group and Southern Wine & Spirits of Southern California. Additionally, the college is pleased to announce that longtime supporters of the college Carol and Jim Collins, and Hae, Shina and Eugene Park are Presenting Sponsors.
“The cost of a college education is higher than ever before. In just the last year, student fees in the California State University system have increased 32 percent because of the state budget crisis,” Dean Feinstein said. “I am deeply grateful for these sponsors and guests of Harvest Celebration 2009 for investing in the education of students, who will be future leaders in the hospitality industry.”
Jay Rasulo is currently Chairman of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, where he presides over a family vacation business that spans three continents and includes five world-class vacation destinations, a top-rated cruise line and the most popular resort locations in North America, Europe and Asia. Rasulo, who will become CFO of the Walt Disney Company in January, is the architect of the long-term global growth strategy for Disney Parks and Resorts’ business. He oversees a broad range of businesses that help make Disney the leader in the vacation destination industry.
Steve Slater is responsible for managing the day-to-day sales and operations of Southern Wine & Spirits and American Wine & Spirits divisions in Southern California. Past recipients of the prestigious Robert Mondavi Wine & Food Award include: Margrit and Robert Mondavi, Julia Child, Alice Waters, Carol and Jim Collins, Richard N. Frank, and Leslie and Bob Spivak.
Margaret Bailey, a 1986 graduate of The Collins College of Hospitality Management, is Vice President for Capital Hotel Management’s Government Services group. CHM is the largest independent hotel investment management company operating in the U.S. today, actively overseeing hotel portfolio and single-asset investments. Bailey’s clients include the U. S. Forest Service Recreation Program, National Park Service Concession Program, Department of Defense and various state park agencies. She brings private sector best practices and adapts them for public agencies managing visitor services in natural, cultural and historic environments.
Tickets are $200 per person. For further information, please contact Joan Wrede at (310) 574-3663 or e-mail jwrede@jwevents.com.
Press inquiries may be directed to Lisa McPheron of The Collins College at (909) 869-3151 or lcmcpheron@csupomona.edu.
About The Collins College - Founded in 1973, The Collins College of Hospitality Management is the first and largest four-year hospitality management degree program in California and the only hospitality management college on the West Coast. Approximately 1,000 undergraduate students receive a superior education in the state-of-the-art Collins College facilities, where they learn to apply hospitality management theories and concepts to real-world settings. Part of this unique academic experience includes managing and operating the full-service Restaurant at Kellogg Ranch.
