40 years for Guelph’s Hospitality and Tourism Management

Five professors from 1973, l to r, Elizabeth Upton, James LaDu, Tony Marston, Michael Haywood, and George Bedell

GUELPH, ON—It’s been four decades since the University of Guelph’s School of Hospitality and Tourism Management opened its doors as the School of Hotel and Food Administration (HaFA) in 1969.

And the school, which is the alma mater of many leading hospitality industry presidents, hoteliers, restaurateurs, consultants and educators, will be celebrating in style September 25-27.

Events include a networking social and a pancake breakfast cooked and served by the faculty and staff.  In what’s billed as a ‘teflon chef’ competition, teams of graduates from the school will compete to produce canapes based on the concept of the ‘hundred mile diet’.  There will also be a gala dinner on the 26th with the keynote speaker being Simon Cooper, president and COO of Ritz Carlton Hotels & Resorts. Other functions include golf at the Cutten Club, and individual class reunion activities.

U of G was established in 1964, but the three founding colleges date back over 100 years.  
“The change in name from HaFA to HTM came about at the turn of the millennium as the school began to diversify a little and began to encompass a bit more of the wider tourism industry,” says Kerry Godfrey, professor and director of the school.

“This also reflected an evolution in the program from its significant operations and administrative origins, to the more management focused syllabus that we offer today, and in recognizing a significant growth and development of the wider tourism industry in Canada. 

“The original program and indeed the school were created, demanded and supported by Canada’s hospitality industry.  There were and still are many College level diploma programs, but back then there wasn’t a degree program offered in Canada.  The Bachelor of Commerce degree in Hotel and Food Administration was the first university degree program focused on the hospitality industry to be offered in Canada,” Godfrey adds.

Although the school is separate from the Food Science program at Guelph, Godfrey says they are actively exploring the opportunities for new collaborative educational programs with colleagues across the campus in all aspects of food at Guelph.

“We are launching a new initiative this year which brings together HTM with the Ontario Agricultural College (OAC) and a local elementary school called Garden2Table,” he says. 

Geoff Wilson

HTM remembered

Geoff Wilson, now president of FS Strategy, a business strategy group for the hospitality industry, was a student at the school from 1972-76, and was part of the fourth graduating class.

“I was attracted to the degree-granting program—at the time it was the only one,” says Wilson.

“We all had grandiose visions of instantly becoming hotel managers—after we graduated, we realized we had to pay our dues.  I think that is still true today,” Wilson adds.

Wilson remembers George Bedell, the original director of the school, as a visionary, who kept the faculty focused. “He believed in keeping it simple—in teaching the basics of what people need to manage in this business.”

Other memorable professors include Tony Marston, who was food and beverage executive chef at what is now the Fairmont Royal York in Toronto.  “His lectures were unconventional, and his experience as a chef and an operator, and his time on the street meant he knew the business inside-out,” Wilson says.

Bill Braithwaite was another professor, “who could teach accounting to anybody in any sector.”

The hospitality/food/agriculture link was part of what made University of Guelph special back then too. Wilson spent his second year in East Residence, where 10 students shared a common area and kitchen. “Eight of the people in our suite were from the Ontario Agricultural College. It was just amazing what we learned about farming and rural life.  We had a great time, and learned from the guys who grow the food.”

Looking to the future

The University of Guelph School of Hospitality and Tourism Management before the addition of the atrium.

“I’m quite excited about the 40th,” says Godfrey, who took over as director in October 2008. “I was thrilled when I was presented with the opportunity to join Guelph on my return to Canada, and to do so as we gear up to celebrate this milestone is fantastic.  We are hoping that graduates will use this opportunity to host a class reunion, and we as faculty hope to welcome back many past colleagues as part of the celebration.

After the atrium.

“The 40th also represents an opportunity for us as a school to re-define and cement our position as a leader in hospitality education in Canada.  We have a number of exciting new ventures being planned, and although I wouldn’t describe this as a turning point, it does represent a perfect launch pad for us as we commence our 5th decade of premium university education focused on developing Canada’s next generation of hospitality and tourism leaders.”


Well known graduates

Bruce McAdams

Notable graduates of University of Guelph’s HTM can be found throughout the upper echelons of  the hospitality industry.

One well-known grad is Bruce McAdams, formerly VP operations at Oliver & Bonacini Restaurants and now a faculty member back in HTM. Bruce created the Top 30 under 30 awards presented each year by the Ontario Hostelry Institute, and he is the driving force behind the HTM’s Garden2Table initiative.

“There are many unit general managers out there, but these are some of the more corporate names,” says Godfrey, who compiled the preliminary list below.

“Most of these are also new Millennium grads. The school has over 3,000 Alumni who have completed their Bachelor of Commerce, MBA (Canada’s only MBA focussed on H&T), or our various management development courses over the years.”

Some of the graduates include:

o    Geoff Wilson of FS Strategy;
o    David Classen, director development, Four Seasons Hotels;
o    Craig Reaume, hotel manager, Royal York Hotel;
o    Ken Otto, Sr. VP Boston Pizza;
o    Martin Stitt, regional director, Delta Hotels;
o    Graeme Benn, regional director, Sales & Marketing Pacific Northwest, Fairmont Hotels and Resorts;
o    James Jesty, regional director, Starbucks;
o    Quentin Lewonas, regional manager, Jack Astor’s; and
o    Jerrett Young, operations manager, Oliver & Bonacini

o     Ryan Williams, general manager, Williams hotels and GM Best Western Belleville, HAFA 2003

o     Dianne Hounsome, general manager/shareholder, Bayview Wildwood Resort, The Cottages at Port Stanton and Port Stanton Developments Inc., HAFA 1986

o     Thomas Mayrhofer, about to join Pan Pacific Hotel Group, Singapore as vice-president, restaurants, bars and events, MBA from University of Guelph, 2008

Are you a graduate of University of Guelph Hospitality and Tourism Management school? Send an e-mail with your name, title and year of graduation to cisherwood@can-lodgingnews.com and we’ll list you on our website.