Hospitality Management

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Program Overview

The Hospitality Management program prepares you for supervisor and manager positions in hotels, resorts, restaurants, institutions, and clubs. You will learn to understand and apply the administrative and practical skills to manage food and lodging operations, including:

Hospitality principles
Restaurant and hotel management
Food and bar operations
Food safety and prep skills
Human resources
Nutrition
Marketing
Point-of-sales systems
Budgeting and finances
Event planning
Pool safety and maintenance

Learn from instructors who bring real-world experience from their education and professional lives. Instructors have a variety of certifications from the National Restaurant Association and the State of Iowa.

Hands-On Learning Opportunities

Learning Labs: Hospitality Management students get hands-on experience and learning opportunities running the Main Campus RedTail Café.
Field Trips: Visit a variety of hotels, restaurants, event centers, and food service facilities to learn how your skills and knowledge can be applied in a variety of work environments.
Community Classroom: Hawkeye has partnered with local businesses to give you experience with large-scale restaurant, dining, and catering operations.
Internship: Gain 320 hours of real-world work experience ensuring you have the skills you need to succeed in your future career.

Certifications

You may take National Restaurant Association certification exams and earn the ServSafe Manager, Food and Beverage Management, Purchasing and Inventory, and Dining Room Management certifications.

Transfer Information

The University of Northern Iowa's Department of Applied Engineering and Technical Management has a documented pathway between Hawkeye's Hospitality Management AAS degree program and UNI's Technology Management Bachelor of Arts degree. Check out UNI's transfer guide to learn more.

If you plan to transfer, work closely with a program advisor to ensure courses transfer and you meet program requirements.

At A Glance
Award	Associate of Applied Science
Length of Study	2 years
Tuition-Free Eligible	This program qualifies for the Future Ready Iowa Last-Dollar Scholarship and will pay up to 100% of your tuition. Students must apply for and be awarded the Last-Dollar Scholarship.

Faculty Spotlight

Ashley Gracia

Ashley worked in the hospitality management industry for more than 15 years and held various management positions in hotels, restaurants, and country clubs. She was an adjunct instructor at Hawkeye for three years prior to becoming full-time faculty in 2017. In addition, she is a Serv Safe Instructor and Proctor and has a CPO license. She resides in New Hampton with her husband and two daughters. Ashley enjoys everything about the rewarding field of food and beverage, and her passion is evident in her teaching. As she often tells her students, "I am changing the world of food every day."

"Only a life lived to the service of others is worth living." — Albert Einstein

Graduate Spotlight — Torkelle Sumerall

Torkelle Summerall likes helping people, which is why she became a certified nurse aide (CNA) after high school and considered a career in nursing. However, healthcare wasn't the right fit for Torkelle, so she looked elsewhere. She didn't have to look far.

Her father had started his own barbeque business, so the Waterloo East graduate pivoted to Hawkeye's Hospitality Management program.

"I'll still be able to help people and I can actually help him and just make it a whole family affair," she said. "That's when it really drew me in."

Everything about her Hawkeye experience has been about family, from her sister who encouraged her to go back to school, to her four-year-old son, who enjoys doing homework with his mom.

"He actually thinks it's cool because he sees me with my backpack," Torkelle said. "He's a little more eager to get up and go to school."

Program Pathway