Hospitality Business Management: - College of Business ...

that means staying after class to
discuss the intricacies of pricing
heuristics, suggesting interviewing
approaches, or helping to sort out
the advantages of various internship
possibilities, bonds formed in Todd
Hall often remain strong over the
years and over the miles.
While everyone wants to maintain
those face-to-face relationships, the
School of Hospitality Business Management
is looking forward to a new
chapter in its history, Reynolds said.
“We’re the third oldest program
in the country, but we have a lot of
room to grow.”
Umbreit, who taught six different
courses—at the same time—in his
early years at WSU marvels at what the
school has accomplished with a relatively
small faculty. There are currently
seven full-time faculty members in the
program teaching and doing research,
but they consistently rank near the top
of the most published scholars in their
field. In a 2002 study in the Journal of
Hospitality and Tourism Research, WSU
had three faculty members in the top
42 most-published authors in four
hospitality journals.
With the smallest faculty of leading
university hospitality programs, WSU
nevertheless continues to be wellrespected
by its peers. In a 2000–2001
ranking, WSU came in sixth overall,
and first in career services. Indeed,
WSU has a placement rate for graduating
seniors of more than 90 percent.
“That’s what’s important,” Umbreit
said, smiling, “I’ll take it!”
Still, he said, he would like to see the
school grow. Not as big as the University
of Nevada at Las Vegas, with 60
faculty members, but maybe closer to
California Polytechnic State University
or Northern Arizona University, with
15 to 18 faculty members.
“I’ve always felt a dozen faculty
would help us keep our national
presence,” he said.
While additional faculty members
depend on future funding, the school
is advancing on two fronts right now:
graduate education and international
education.
Starting in fall 2007 students will
be able to earn a doctorate in business
administration with an option in
hospitality and tourism. And, at the
undergraduate level, Umbreit and his
A Half-Century of Service
Lifelong business partners, WSU grads look back
Countless Northwest sports fans have
been customers of 1956 hotel and
restaurant administration graduates
Al Aronica and Jerry Burtenshaw.
Their business partnership was born at
Washington State University and has
continued for five decades, through the
leadership of the international foodservice
company Alpine-Burtco. The company has
provided concessions service to Washington
landmarks including the Kingdome,
the Tacoma Dome, Joe Albi stadium in
Jerry Burtenshaw and Al Aronica together in
Pullman 50 years after their graduation.
Spokane, and Spokane Coliseum, as well
as Sullivan Arena in Anchorage, Alaksa.
Aronica and Burtenshaw didn’t
know one another when they arrived
at Washington State University. Both
were busy with work, school, and family
obligations, and despite a small hospitality
program—11 students graduated
in their class—the two did not become
friends until a senior class trip to California
in 1956. As graduation approached,
their attentions turned to employment,
and they drove together to Bellingham,
Washington, to interview with Alpine
Cafeterias, a growing northwest restaurant
chain owned by Jerry’s father
Denver Burtenshaw.
What seemed like an entertaining
road trip was actually the beginning of
a lifelong affiliation. After graduation,
Aronica and Burtenshaw worked together
to open an Alpine restaurant in Everett,
and opened restaurants in Seattle and
Tacoma in the early 1960s. In the
meantime, they found themselves doing
a lot of catering and concessions business,
and a few years later they switched their
focus to Alpine-Burtco.
At WSU’s annual Diamond and Golden
Graduate Reunion in April, both men
were quick to smile as they recalled career
highlights from five decades of partnership.
While both Aronica and Burtenshaw
served as past presidents of the Washington
Restaurant Association and received
numerous other accolades, their shared
professional experiences provide the richest
memories. “Opening the Kingdome
was a thrill,” says Burtenshaw. “That was
our first big contract.”
Campus life was different in the 1950s,
Aronica recounts. “We used to go to the
dorm cafeterias and help out during lunch
or dinner to get hands-on experience,” he
says. “The facilities students have today
are amazing.”
Former Director Joseph Bradley
was the cornerstone of the program
during their years in Pullman, they said.
“When we arrived, there weren’t many
hotel programs on the West Coast,”
says Burtenshaw. “Bradley and the other
directors, and now Terry Umbreit, have
created an outstanding small program
with very few faculty or other resources.
The program’s leaders through the years
are responsible for our national reputation
for quality and excellence.”
Although he was president of the
hospitality honorary Sigma Iota, Aronica
didn’t spend his entire time at WSU in
kitchens and classrooms. “The summer
before I graduated, it cost $5 to golf
for the entire summer at the WSU Golf
Course,” he recalls. “I got in a lot of golf
that summer!”
WSU College of Business