Tourism Award in Education and Training goes to North Coast Institute

Tuesday, 31 August 2004

The North Coast Regional Tourism Awards for 2004 were presented in Taree on August 26 and TAFE NSW- North Coast Institute’s International School of Hotel, Catering and Tourism Management won the award for ‘Tourism Education and Training’.

The North Coast Regional Tourism Awards recognised excellence in tourism in a wide range of categories throughout the region extending from Port Stephens to Coffs Harbour. The judging of the Awards was conducted by a panel of industry peers appointed by Tourism New South Wales and comprised a cross-section of tourism industry experts, selected for their knowledge and experience.

The North Coast Institute’s success was due to excellence in aspects like product, innovation, business and marketing strategies and successful placement within the tourism industry of graduates from the Institute’s programs. The award also recognised the effort put in by the International School into environmental sustainability, cultural and social environment and general involvement in the tourism industry.

In accepting the award, Faculty Manager Geoff Baldry said that the School’s highest priority was ensuring that their students received education and training that was “completely relevant to today’s tourism and hospitality industry.” Mr Baldry said “It’s a very competitive business, and any organisation that takes on a graduate who is job-ready and can hit the ground running is immediately at a competitive advantage.”

“To achieve this, we work closely with the Tourism and Hospitality industry throughout the North Coast to ensure that our courses meet industry demands for workforce skills. Add to that, our state of the art facilities, including simulated tourism and hospitality workplaces, and we’re confident that we are truly meeting industry’s needs.” said Mr Baldry.

Anyone interested in commencing a course in Tourism and Hospitality should contact their local campus, or log onto www.nci.tafensw.edu.au. Applications for courses in Semester 1, 2005 close on October 29, 2004.

Mr Geoff Baldry, Tourism and Hospitality Faculty Manager and Wendy Gillies, Part-Time Teacher in Event Management, Taree and Great Lakes Campuses accepting the Award

Contact:
Neil Brown, Manager Media and Public Relations
North Coast Institute of TAFE NSW
6586 2224 0438 624 804