{"id":76658,"date":"2026-01-05T09:31:19","date_gmt":"2026-01-05T16:31:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/?p=76658"},"modified":"2026-01-05T09:31:19","modified_gmt":"2026-01-05T16:31:19","slug":"next-generation-of-hospitality-pros","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/next-generation-of-hospitality-pros\/","title":{"rendered":"Cooking up the next generation of hospitality pros"},"content":{"rendered":"

In an industry where trends shift overnight and innovation has become the\u00a0standard,\u00a0NAU\u2019s School of Hotel and Restaurant Management (HRM) is reinventing how it prepares the next generation of hospitality leaders.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"NAU<\/a>No longer confined to the traditional classroom, students are now immersed in a dynamic learning environment designed to mirror the fast-paced world they are about to enter. Through career-readiness training, hands-on classes, immersive field trips and direct connections with industry professionals, the school is shaping graduates who are not just prepared for today\u2019s hospitality landscape but ready to lead its future transformation.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

John Hattab<\/span><\/b>,\u00a0assistant\u00a0professor of\u00a0practice at HRM, said he recognized the need for this transformation before he began working at NAU, when he recruited students for summer jobs at the country club where he was employed.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThrough my years staffing students and training them, I noticed that a lot of them leave school without really knowing what to expect\u00a0post-graduation,\u201d Hattab said. \u201cTheory is great and necessary, but they also need to get real-world\u00a0experience and practice. When I was hired\u00a0at\u00a0HRM, my\u00a0first approach was to find a way to help students be more prepared for what the actual working\u00a0world\u00a0is\u00a0and give\u00a0them\u00a0innovative\u00a0experiences\u00a0to prepare them for the changes in the industry.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Adapting\u00a0and changing<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In his first year at NAU,\u00a0Hattab\u00a0started learning the operations and\u00a0became involved in the\u00a0HRM Curriculum\u00a0Committee,\u00a0learning how the academic process works and looking at current courses to evaluate if they need to be revamped,\u00a0eliminated\u00a0or just combined.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"HRM<\/a>\u201cWe look at what classes are still\u00a0relevant\u00a0and which ones might be outdated and need to be combined into something else,\u201d Hattab said. \u201cHousekeeping,\u00a0for example,\u00a0will\u00a0now\u00a0be\u00a0part of facilities management;\u00a0by combining\u00a0both\u00a0classes, we\u00a0will be\u00a0able to\u00a0free\u00a0space for a new class.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Some of the new classes they are considering will incorporate AI into the curriculum, since it is now part of this ever-changing industry. Hattab said that after\u00a0the\u00a0COVID\u00a0pandemic\u00a0more processes\u00a0were\u00a0automated,\u00a0and\u00a0now\u00a0there is\u00a0a need to incorporate AI strategies into\u00a0hospitality\u00a0such as\u00a0hyper-personalized guest experiences, labor efficiency, cost controls,\u00a0menu\u00a0engineering\u00a0and operational analytics.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cYou’ll still need to have some personalized touches around, but for the most part, the daily\u00a0monotonous things can be automated now,\u201d he said.\u00a0\u201cWe’re currently designing four or five\u00a0master\u2019s-level\u00a0hospitality\u00a0courses, one of\u00a0which\u00a0focuses on\u00a0digital strategies. However, HRM is already incorporating AI in the classrooms so students can embrace AI in leadership roles to streamline their operations. Students in trade programs, especially in culinary arts, will soon have new opportunities to bridge the gap from technical training to leadership roles.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Show\u00a0and\u00a0not tell<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

An important part of Hattab’s\u00a0strategy to\u00a0prepare the next generation of hospitality professionals\u00a0consists of giving them\u00a0practical\u00a0experiences\u00a0and\u00a0connections that will follow them after graduation.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Group<\/a>\u201cMy philosophy has always been: I can tell you about it, or I can show you, which do you think would be more impactful?\u201d Hattab said. \u201cI am fortunate to have worked in the area for many years and have great connections, so when I call my friends to see if I can take my students to see their operations, they are always happy to welcome us.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

His wine class, Wines of the World,\u00a0has\u00a0traveled\u00a0to Cottonwood\u00a0the last\u00a0two fall\u00a0semesters\u00a0to visit Merkin Vineyards\u00a0Trattoria, where they\u00a0experienced\u00a0the winemaking process and what goes on behind the scenes at a winery.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe have an American viticultural area just 45 minutes away in the Verde Valley,\u201d Hattab said. \u201cIf I am going to teach about wines, why\u00a0not\u00a0see an actual winery?\u00a0Have\u00a0students walk around, pick a\u00a0grape\u00a0and eat it straight from the vine and let them add this experience to their portfolio. To me, this is more impactful and something that the students will remember.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Hattab\u00a0has also taken his class to different\u00a0restaurants, campus dining outlets,\u00a0breweries\u00a0and country clubs\u00a0in the Flagstaff area to see how they\u00a0operate.\u00a0But he is not the only one who believes in\u00a0experiential\u00a0learning for his students:\u00a0he said\u00a0<\/span>c<\/span>hef<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>Travis Bradford<\/span><\/b>\u00a0and\u00a0hospitality\u00a0expert<\/span>\u00a0James Drake<\/span><\/b>\u00a0have taken their\u00a0<\/span>casino class<\/span><\/a>\u00a0to Las Vegas to get a look behind the scenes,\u00a0and\u00a0hospitality management faculty member\u00a0<\/span>Darwin Mann<\/span><\/b>\u00a0takes\u00a0students to conferences and invites\u00a0industry experts to the\u00a0classroom\u00a0to provide students\u00a0<\/span>with\u00a0inside information on how the industry is changing and what they should expect after graduation.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"NAU<\/a>\u201cI’m all about experiences,\u201d\u00a0he said.\u00a0\u201cI have created experiences in all my work\u00a0environments,\u00a0and I\u00a0want to do that for the students. I want to show them how they can create experiences and start thinking outside of the box. How they can apply something they learned\u00a0in\u00a0the future.\u201d\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Creating experiences for students while also covering the theory is something Hattab believes will equip them with the\u00a0tools\u00a0they need to apply the concepts they learn in their future jobs.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

“Every class we offer at HRM is a potential career,\u201d Hattab said. \u201cBecause in hospitality it is not just about hotels and restaurants, it\u2019s\u00a0about finance, human\u00a0resources, marketing, etc. That is the benefit the students get from this program. We connect your soft skills, your\u00a0negotiation\u00a0skills\u00a0and\u00a0your marketing skills,\u00a0and incorporate them\u00a0into\u00a0what we do. We create a tool belt for each student, offering many certificate programs in a school that is really\u00a0operations-focused. We\u00a0equip\u00a0students to\u00a0not just graduate with a bachelor\u2019s degree, but with everything they need to be successful in the workforce.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Northern<\/a>Mariana Laas | NAU Communications
\n(928) 523-5050 | mariana.laas@nau.edu<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In an industry where trends shift overnight and innovation has become the\u00a0standard,\u00a0NAU\u2019s School of Hotel and Restaurant Management (HRM) is reinventing how it prepares the next generation of hospitality leaders.\u00a0\u00a0 No longer confined to the traditional classroom, students are now immersed in a dynamic learning environment designed to mirror the fast-paced world they are about…<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":100,"featured_media":76680,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-76658","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-research-academics"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/76658","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/100"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=76658"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/76658\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/76680"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=76658"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=76658"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=76658"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}