THROUGH its commitment to sustainable tourism, the Sandals Corporate University (SCU) has again partnered with the Jamaica Centre of Tourism Innovation (JCTI) to host more than 100 high school students for a six-week internship programme.

This falls under JCTI’s Hotel and Tourism Management (HTM) programme, a two-year certification in tourism available to high school students who are placed at various industry organisations and forms part of the Ministry of Tourism’s human capital development strategy.

For this year, students from Newell, Nain, Frome Technical, and St Elizabeth Technical high schools were placed at Sandals South Coast in Westmoreland, while students from St Mary, Iona, Oracabessa, Brown’s Town, Ferncourt, and Marcus Garvey Technical high schools were placed at Sandals Ochi Beach Resort in St Ann.

Students from Anchovy, Green Pond and Muschett high schools were assigned to Sandals Montego Bay, the group’s flagship resort in St James.

General manager of Sandals Montego Bay Christopher Elliot shared his joy at being able to host a new group of students each year.

“We are happy to partner with the JCTI to nurture students at this stage of their lives, which is crucial to decision making for the future. We partner with the learning and development team to ensure they truly are immersed in the operations and are being guided by team members and managers in the day-to-day tasks that are required to give our guests the best experiences.

“We believe that this period serves as a time to expose them to what it takes to work in the industry with the hope that they will be inspired enough to venture into the field,” said Elliot.

In the meantime, Tevin Campbell, learning and development manager at Sandals South Coast, said that his team has 36 vibrant interns that are immersed in the Sandals experience.

According to Campbell, as an educator, it is a joy for him to see the students grasp information quickly and enthusiastically.

“They are not just learning, they’re shaping the future of hospitality and paving their way to becoming the industry’s next leaders,” said Campbell.

Meanwhile, Daniel Hosang, upper sixth form student at Ferncourt High School assigned to Sandals Ochi Beach Resort’s sales department, highlighted his joy at being a part of the programme.

Hosang said he is quite familiar with the tourism industry as his stepfather worked with the Jamaica Union of Travellers Association (JUTA) and he would tell him about the wonderful guests he spoke to and the experiences he had daily.

“I am thrilled to have been allowed to be at Sandals. To be given this opportunity to get hands-on experience, shadow senior leaders and learn more about the culture and what the resort has to offer is truly amazing.

“I am also getting more exposure, meeting guests from across the world and learning about providing service excellence. I chose to study hospitality and tourism because it is our country’s fastest-growing sector. I hope to be a manager in the industry, training interns like myself one day,” said Hosang.