Washington, D.C. (November 7, 2014) - The American Hotel & Lodging Educational Foundation (AH&LEF), the not-for-profit affiliate of the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AH&LA), awarded 338 scholarships totaling $558,000 through its 10 scholarship programs this year.
The Annual Scholarship Grant Program, the Foundation's biggest program, is co-administered with 85 universities and colleges. In 2014, 232 students, nominated by AH&LEF-affiliated schools, received $334,500 in funds. The program is funded from proceeds of the Americas Lodging Investment Summit (ALIS), the Foundation's Annual Giving Campaign, previous AH&LEF capital campaigns, annual special events, and the following scholarship funds:
- Melinda Bush
- John Clifford Memorial
- Cecil B. Day Memorial
- Handlery Foundation
- Conrad N. Hilton Memorial
- Hilton Worldwide
- Creighton Holden Memorial
- Hospitality Asset Managers Association
- Steve Hymans Memorial
- Richard Kelley
- Richard Kessler
- J. Willard Marriott Memorial
- Joseph McInerney
- Curtis C. Nelson
Other core programs include the Incoming Freshman scholarship, which awarded 25 scholarships totaling $46,000, and the Graduate scholarship, which disbursed $50,000 to 10 graduate students.
AH&LEF also administers three scholarships on behalf of industry suppliers and partners American Express, Ecolab, and PepsiCo, totaling $44,000.
- The American Express Scholarship Program awarded seven scholarships totaling $13,000. Founded in 1994 by American Express, it is designed specifically for current hotel employees and their dependents. The fund has awarded more than $331,000 in scholarships to 288 students and hotel employees. The program also offers professional development scholarships for distance learning and certification offered through the Educational Institute (EI). The complete list of American Express scholarship recipients is available here.
- The Ecolab Scholarship Program awarded 11 scholarships totaling $22,000. Established by Ecolab in 1997, the program has awarded more than $376,000 to 251 hospitality management students and hotel professionals. The program also supports scholarships for professional certification offered through EI. The complete list of Ecolab scholarship winners is available here.
- The Pepsi Scholarship awarded six alumni of the Hospitality High School in Washington, D.C., a total of $9,000 to continue their hospitality management studies in college. The PepsiCo Foundation established this fund with a $250,000 gift to provide perpetual scholarships to graduates of this school. The complete list of Pepsi scholarship winners is available here.
The Foundation also provided three scholarships totaling $10,000 through the Arthur J. Packard Memorial Scholarship Program, the Foundation's oldest scholarship award. This program, started in 1974 to honor third-generation hotelier Packard's numerous accomplishments in the lodging industry, is awarded to three students at AH&LEF-affiliated four-year educational institutions. Each school nominates their top student to compete.
Scholarships are awarded based on academic performance, hospitality work experience, financial need, and other requirements based on specific criteria of the scholarship. This year, AH&LEF is projected to distribute more than $1 million to prepare promising college students for a career in hospitality, attract and retain quality industry professionals, and fund valuable research for lodging properties.
"These scholarships ensure that the lodging industry has the talent to fuel its future growth with a strong pipeline of future employees," said Joori Jeon, CPA, CAE, AH&LEF president/COO. Funded solely by contributions from the hospitality sector, the Foundation's mission for preparing hospitality future leaders would not be possible without the financial support of these great industry partners."
For more information about AH&LEF scholarships and other programs, contact Michelle Poinelli, senior vice president, foundation programs, at (202) 289-3181 or mpoinelli@ahlef.org, or visit www.ahlef.org.