AH&LA TAPS SENIOR COMMUNICATIONS PROFESSIONAL TO DIRECT PUBLIC RELATIONS INITIATIVES

The American Hotel & Lodging Association (AH&LA) announces the appointment of Rosanna Maietta as senior vice president and department head of communications and public relations. In this role, Maietta will drive the strategic planning for all of the association's internal and external communications and strengthen outreach to mainstream, trade, and political outlets.

"Rosanna is an outstanding addition to our team and brings a tremendous level of expertise that will be crucial to telling our industry's compelling story to policymakers, the media and other key stakeholders across the country," said Katherine Lugar, AH&LA president/CEO. "There are a significant number of important issues impacting hoteliers and their employees, including workforce, travel and tourism, and technology. Rosanna's work in both the media and agency realms has given her a strong vision for what is entailed in crafting effective messaging plans for the media and key stakeholders, and this experience will be instrumental as the lodging industry continues to drive its message as a major driver of economic growth and job creation."

Maietta comes to AH&LA following almost nine years at the Washington, D.C. public relations and strategic communications firm FleishmanHillard, having served the majority of that time as senior vice president. She was a senior strategic counselor and manager responsible for developing communications strategies and education public education campaigns. She previously served as media relations manager for Newsweek Magazine, and from 1993 to 2000 was a radio anchor and reporter for major outlets in Rome including Vatican Radio, Market News Service International, and Bloomberg News. Maietta is a graduate of Ryerson Polytechnic University in Toronto, Canada and holds a bachelor's degree in broadcast journalism.