The Hospitality and Tourism Management Department of Virginia Tech's Pamplin College of Business will be hosting 10 executives of Hilton Hotels Corporation on Thursday, Sept. 13.

The executives, led by Hilton Senior Vice President Patrick Terwilliger, will give lectures on various aspects of the hospitality industry, lead class discussions, listen to student presentations, and interact informally with the department’s faculty and students at a reception and lunch.

The visit, dubbed “Hilton Day” by Hospitality and Tourism Management Department Head Rick Perdue, offers “a great opportunity for our faculty and students to learn first hand from one of the most respected names in the hotel business,” Perdue said.

The executives will be participating in courses related to hospitality sales, food purchasing and production, lodging management, food and beverage management, finance, and human resource management, in addition to introductory courses on business and hospitality and tourism management. The group includes two area vice presidents, a senior sales manager, a recruiter, and directors of various programs.

“Our Hilton Day is an extension of our deep relationship with the Hilton Hotels Corporation, which includes joint teaching of our lodging and food and beverage management laboratories at the Inn at Virginia Tech, active involvement by Hilton executives on our HTM advisory board, numerous internships, and frequent campus visits by recruiters,” Perdue said. “A number of our alumni are Hilton executives.” The Hilton visit is a rescheduled event from April. The department organized a similar visit from Marriott International last fall, he said, and is planning future events with other industry partners.

Hilton Hotels Corporation is the leading global hospitality company, with more than 2,800 hotels and 490,000 rooms in more than 80 countries and 150,000 team members worldwide. The company owns, manages or franchises a hotel portfolio of some of the best known and highly regarded brands, including Hilton®, Conrad®, Doubletree®, Embassy Suites Hotels®, Hampton Inn®, Hampton Inn & Suites®, Hilton Garden Inn®, Hilton Grand Vacations™, Homewood Suites by Hilton®, and The Waldorf=Astoria Collection®. The corporation also manages the Virginia Tech-owned Hotel Roanoke and Inn at Virginia Tech and Skelton Conference Center.

Virginia Tech’s nationally ranked Pamplin College of Business offers undergraduate and graduate programs in accounting and information systems, business information technology, economics, finance, hospitality and tourism management, management, and marketing. The college emphasizes the development of ethical values and leadership, technology, and international business skills. A member of its marketing faculty directs the interdisciplinary Sloan Foundation Forest Industries Center at Virginia Tech. The college’s other centers focus on business leadership, business diversity, electronic commerce, organizational performance, and services innovation. The college is committed to serving business and society through the expertise of its faculty, alumni, and students. It is named in honor of alumnus Robert B. Pamplin, the former CEO of Georgia-Pacific, and businessman, philanthropist, and alumnus Robert B. Pamplin Jr.

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