‘Butch’ Stewart tourism school ‘may open next year

A UWI school of tourism, to be built at its western Jamaica campus and named for the founder of the iconic Sandals hotel brand, could be up and running by the next school year, it was revealed Monday, as officials tout the new institution as an industry game-changer.

The Gordon “Butch” Stewart International School of Hospitality and Tourism, to be established in Jamaica’s tourism capital, Montego Bay, is a UWI partnership with the Jamaica-based, all-inclusive resort chain and Florida International University’s (FIU) Chaplin School of Hospitality and Tourism Management.

UWI Vice Chancellor Professor Sir Hilary Beckles signed the agreement to establish the school with Stewart’s son, Adam, who took over as chairman of Sandals Resorts International upon his death in January.

Sir Hilary told the gathering for the signing of the agreement that the school was coming at a time when the region must reimagine, reinvent and reenergise Caribbean tourism.

He said: “What we are witnessing here is the preparation for a post-COVID takeoff, we know how this pandemic has severely damaged our tourism industry and the consequences of that. This region has lost 80 per cent of its GDP. What we are looking at here is a strategy, that moves us into the future at a higher level of performance.

“Ideally the industry is best served by the mobilisation of the research potential around tourism, around teaching and learning, of course, it’s a global project. If you don’t integrate your academic practice with those entrepreneurial leaders, those people who are bringing the economic value, unless you integrate those two processes, you will never meet your full potential. And this is what this is all about bringing the entrepreneurs, bringing the visionary corporate leaders into the same space with those who teach it, those who research it.”

Adam Stewart said there was no better way to celebrate his father’s legacy than by working with the UWI and FIU to ensure the sustainable development of the region’s tourism through training and investment in young talent. 

“I know this project would have made him so happy and we cannot wait to cut the ribbon and officially welcome our first cohort of students,” he said of the school which is also in recognition of Sandals” 40th anniversary.

“Creating opportunity through education is fundamental to our organisation and to the successful future of the Caribbean, as it is to all people seeking a better life for themselves and their families.  This conviction, so deeply held by my father, was fostered by experience and in long conversations begun so many years ago with… Professor Sir Hilary Beckles.

“This partnership is so deeply meaningful and the work ahead extremely vital.  Sandals has proven that what is born of this region can successfully compete against any brand on an international stage.  Now, together with powerhouses The UWI and my alma mater FIU – two world-leading academic institutions, we embark upon building the world’s premier institute for tourism, the Caribbean’s economic engine.  This is truly, a dream come true.”

He told the ceremony that tourism, the single most powerful industry across the Caribbean, and its ability to connect with and affect wider industries and economies is often under-appreciated.

“This partnership and this school is an obvious investment in the education of Caribbean people but beyond that it is also an investment in Caribbean tourism and the many other critical industries that we support,” said Stewart.

“This investment will go a far way towards mapping the pathway for the survival of the region. Hundreds of thousands of Caribbean nationals depend on tourism, whether directly or indirectly. This school is an investment in our young people, in the future of the Caribbean and represents our understanding of the critical role of tourism in the future of the region.”

FIU President, Dr. Mark B. Rosenberg said: “Offering even more students, the opportunity to study, learn and live in two hospitality destinations learning and working from iconic leading institutions and brands like Sandals, UWI and FIU, is historic.

“This partnership will create a perfect avenue for students looking to advance their hospitality education in two of the top tourist destinations in the world, resulting in a new generation of hospitality leaders.” (SD)