Campus Connection

Les Roches Conquers Another Continent

Preparing to open the much anticipated Les Roches Chicago Branch Campus

By Elena Parker, Global Director of Marketing & Business Development, Les Roches

The long awaited branch campus you've been hearing about is coming this summer to an amazing U.S. metropolitan city near you... Chicago! This new location joins Marbella, Jin Jiang, Raca, and of course, the main Bluche campuses of Les Roches International School of Hotel Management, and has the unique honor of being the first institution to offer Swiss hospitality management education programs to students and industry leaders at a campus location in the U.S.

“Les Roches is a pioneer in bringing together innovative teaching methods and unique global experiences to ensure students have an advantage when they enter the workforce,” said Sonia Tatar, CEO of Les Roches Worldwide. “Because Chicago is a leading center for business, finance and hospitality in the U.S. and internationally, it is also the perfect U.S. location for Les Roches students seeking successful careers in these sectors.”

Les Roches’ entry into the U.S. and its commitment to prepare students for global and diverse careers in hospitality management aligns with the projected growth of the U.S. travel industry, an estimated increase of 20 percent by the year 2020 which will result in 17,157,000 total jobs in 2025, including jobs indirectly supported by the travel and tourism industry. It also supports the City of Chicago’s goal to grow its tourism and hospitality industries, projected to reach 55 million visitors and to add more than 30,000 jobs by 2020. As a result, industry leaders are celebrating the Les Roches announcement.

"On behalf of the many Hyatt properties and our colleagues around the world, we welcome Les Roches to the United States and more specifically to our home town of Chicago. We look forward to our continued relations and look forward to expanding with greater placements in the US." Kristy Seidel, Director of Talent Acquisition- Americas, Hyatt Hotels.

New hospitality sectors are constantly emerging and global markets shifts and technological innovations form an integral part of any global business today. As leading educators in the area of hospitality management, Les Roches Chicago faculty will track industry developments, update curricula accordingly and equip the next generation of hospitality leaders with the skills to succeed in what has become one of the world’s most dynamic, diverse and competitive industries. The U.S. campus will expand Les Roches’ footprint, which will ultimately make it easier for employers to find and hire top-tier talents.

“Rosewood and Les Roches enjoy a long and successful relationship. We are therefore thrilled to support Les Roches Chicago in the launch of their new campus which will bring world-class standards of excellence to the U.S.,” said Radha Arora, Les Roches alumnus and President, Rosewood Hotels & Resorts, a Los Angeles-based international luxury hotel and resort company operating 18 properties in 11 countries such as The Carlyle in New York or the Anasazi in Santa Fe.

Les Roches Chicago will initially offer a Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) in International Hotel Management beginning in July 2016. Les Roches International School of Hotel Management has received necessary approval from the Illinois Higher Education Board and from its accreditor, the New England Association of Schools and Colleges to accept qualified U.S. students to the Chicago campus for programs beginning in the summer of 2016. Les Roches will accept international students to its Chicago location once it receives appropriate approval from the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to issue visas. For more information about Les Roches, please visit www.lesroches.edu.

Take a quick tour of London

Falling in Love with London...Again

Returning to London after 20 years and visiting the Glion London Campus

By Joe Monastero, Executive Director, Global Field and LIU Enrollment Strategy

The first time I visited London was nearly 20 years ago as a tourist with my family. I saw it through the filter of my expectations – a city hundreds of years old that was the capitol of one of the world’s first global powers and preserved like a museum for all time – and given that we did all the things a tourist does, that is exactly how I found it. We saw Buckingham Palace, the Tower Bridge, Big Ben, and rode around on old fashioned double decker red buses. It was like traveling back in time to visit King Arthur and The Knights of the Round Table.

This past Friday I had the opportunity to take an extended layover in London and not only rediscover this ancient and epic city, but be totally surprised by what seeing London through adult eyes revealed to me. London still has all the charm and antiquities that make it such a magical city, but has evolved into a blend of the best of the old world and the modern. The double decker red buses are still there, but redesigned to have a futuristic style to them. The historic landmark buildings are intermingled with new towering skyscrapers. You can find any cuisine, culture, music, shopping, or entertainment you desire. One moment you feel like you’re standing in history and the next you might as well be in downtown New York City. English pubs that have stood for hundreds of years owned by generations of the same family serve fish and chips and right next door you can pick up your Starbucks.

Just how big is London? One of the things I started doing traveling so much for work is look at how one city compares to another as a matter of size, to easier comprehend where I am. London is three times the size of Chicago and twice the size of New York City, and while just slightly larger than São Paulo, Brazil, it is about exactly the same size as Bangkok. On the other hand, London is only one quarter the size of Shanghai and one tenth the size of Beijing.

Obviously I couldn’t come to London and not visit our Glion London campus. A quick 45 min tube ride (the metro) from my hotel and I was at the University of Roehampton campus meeting Georgette Davey, Glion London’s Dean of Faculty and Campus Manager. If you’ve never been, you must plan a trip to see Glion London. GIHE UK combines all the best that London has to offer and the experience of an expansive college campus experience with the Swiss academic experience that is Glion. The students had just switched classes when I arrived at the Whitelands building. I had the opportunity to meet a few of them who had just returned from doing their CBL in Switzerland. They were excited to partake in a welcome home party that the students were throwing that weekend. The students have started a tradition of progressive themed dinners in the dorms, where you start on the first floor apartment for appetizers, second floor for entrée, and top floor apartment for dessert. I don’t recall but the theme this weekend is either Greek or Italian.

Georgette toured me through the campus and ended our walk through the beautiful grounds of Roehampton with a stop at the site of GIHE UK’s new campus facility. Downshire House, a historic landmark building near Roehampton’s border with Putney, one of the most exclusive and expensive residential areas of London, is being remodeled and will open in April to welcome the Spring intake of students (for scale, Roehampton’s campus is over ten times the size of Les Roches Bluche’s campus). In addition to new classrooms and additional housing, the new building also provides closer access to Richmond Park, one of London’s largest nature preserves, where students can golf, go horseback riding, have picnics, and play sports. Speaking of sports, the student formed Glion London Futbol Club I’ve been informed is the team on Roehampton’s campus this year to beat.

I’m so glad I made the time to rediscover London and visit my colleague Georgette Davey at Glion London. One of the amazing advantages we provide our students is that each one of our ten – soon to be eleven – campuses around the world provide the same rigor and excellence in hospitality education, but a world of opportunity to choose the college experience or combination of experiences that fits their personality and goals. For the student who is independent, wants to live in a cosmopolitan city with access to an array of culture and cuisine, and have the rich academic experience of Glion, perhaps focusing on luxury brand management or events, sports and entertainment management, Glion London is the perfect campus for them.

OTher articles

February 2016

Campus connection