Tourism lessons an eye-opener

BY NANCY KELLY

Kings County Register

Three student tourism ambassadors from West Kings represented Nova Scotia at the recent Canadian Academy of Travel & Tourism (CATT) international conference held in Winnipeg, Manitoba.

The academy is part of a global effort to introduce and promote careers in the travel and tourism sector among high school students. High schools can be involved in the program at three different levels: as an affiliate local, affiliate provincial and gold CATT graduate. Students receive graduation certificates when they fulfill criteria set out for each level. West Kings is one of a handful of schools in Nova Scotia offering high school tourism courses, and one of only two schools in the province taking part in CATT’s level two certification.

Wayne Lincoln teaches the Tourism 11 and 12 courses. “Being involved with CATTS is a huge opportunity for students - especially those who have an idea they want to purse a career in the hospitality or tourism industries.”

Brianna Deveau, Aysha Currie and Aaron Phinney agree their tourism courses and exposure to national-level tourism issues have provided a unique learning experience. “It was an amazing experience,” said Phinney of the conference and the chance to “meet people from all over Canada.”

As part of the conference, schedule students learned about hotel management, tourism professionalism, airport security and experienced visits to Oak Hammock Marsh, Lower Fort Garry, a paddlewheel river cruise and a ballroom bootcamp. The conference concluded with a gala banquet on the final night.

Lincoln first approached students about attending the mid-October national conference last spring, when they were enrolled in Tourism 11. “At first we considered it a joke, ‘cause it was going to cost about $1,500 for each of us,” said Currie. But, with Lincoln’s encouragement and financial assistance from the students’ council, Kings West MLA Leo Glavine and a variety of fundraising activities, the students were able to cut their costs to $350 each.

For Deveau, who “definitely” wants to pursue post-secondary studies in tourism management, attending the conference presented her first opportunity to travel on a plane and venture further than Ontario. “It was an eye-opening trip on many levels for me.”

All three agree attending the conference made them appreciate what Nova Scotia has to offer as a tourism destination. “Until we got involved in this course, we never really considered home to be that interesting,” said Phinney. Introducing their home province to other students in Winnipeg changed that view. “Now we know Nova Scotia has a lot to offer,” said Deveau.

When the students returned from the conference, they created a movie and slideshow about their travels. Their project, submitted to CATTS, generated an invitation to present their work to the 2007 Tourism Industry Association of Nova Scotia (TIANS) conference in Halifax in late November. “They were recognized for their interest and efforts by CATTS and their presentation to the TIANS conference was very well received,” said Lincoln.

Aside from the travel and presentation experience they have gained, each of the students has appreciated the “extras” that have come with studying tourism at the high school level. They completed SuperHost and WHMIS training in Grade 11 and are looking forward to more certification opportunities when they take the Grade 12 course in the winter semester. Lincoln has also asked them to assist with the Grade 11 class as teaching assistants and to plan field trips for that class. “We have all really enjoyed the course,” said Currie, who credits the enthusiasm of the instructor for the trio’s achievements so far. “Mr. Lincoln is really dedicated to the course and he puts a lot of time into making it a good experience.”