In an effort to attract qualified Caymanians into the tourism industry, the Department of Tourism took 11 students under its wing this summer giving them insight into the industry and a chance to gain experience at the same time.
‘Internships shouldn’t be about photocopying and making tea,’ said Pilar Bush, Director of Tourism. ‘They’re about getting real experience to support your classroom education and career goals. These interns are the future of the tourism industry and it’s essential that we give them as good a grounding as possible.’
The students are all at different stages of their education, said a DoT press release.
‘Tourism is very important to the economy of the entire region and DoT has given me the opportunity to learn more about it,’ said Donovan Kellyman, a student who has worked in every unit at DoT over the past two summers. He is interested in national and regional politics and hopes to major in Caribbean Studies or Political Science at Trinity College School in Ontario, Canada.
Kimberly Fellman is attending the University of Tampa in Florida. An accomplished student and President of her Sorority, Kimberly is majoring in Performing Arts with a minor in Government and World Affairs. Kimberly hopes that the experience she gained from DoT’s HR Unit will help her to realise her goal of working in Hospitality Management. ‘My most memorable moments at DoT were travelling to Cayman Brac to do a special Sister Islands Sea School, and working with some great people.’
DoT’s Marketing Unit made full use of Abishai Watson who worked on updating the Travel Planner. Abishai is majoring in Hospitality Management at the University College of the Cayman Islands and hopes to one day soon put the experience he gained at DoT to good use.
‘The DOT offers interns a unique opportunity to view, interact and learn more about the Cayman Islands and its tourism industry,’ said Kamaal Connolly who is majoring in Management with a minor in Tourism at the St Leo University in Florida. Kamaal enjoyed the diversity of working with the PR Unit and feels that his experience at DoT, combined with his education, holds the key to his success, says the release.
Ashely Frazier hopes to have a career in marketing after completing her degree at the Johnson & Wales University in Denver, Colorado.
The release reads, ‘She prides herself on being awarded a Ministry of Tourism Scholarship and is focused on maintaining good grades in order to retain her eligibility. Ashely also excels outside the classroom – she was crowned Miss Cinderella Teen 2003/2004. Day-to-day duties at DoT included performing visitor surveys at the Cruise Ship Dock and Airport – an activity that underpins every decision that DoT takes – and helping the statistics team to code and input survey data.’
Wendy Adam started her Senior Year at Triple C at the end of August. Her career interests lay in both sales and marketing and accounting. Wendy said she would like to continue working with the PR Unit during school breaks this year. ‘Working at DoT has exposed me to the working world and given me the opportunity to experience and understand the many different aspect of the tourism industry.’
Insight
Colleen Cummings, 27, a senior at the Johnson & Wales University in Providence, RI, is majoring in Hospitality Management and hopes to come back to work at DoT and eventually manage her own condominiums, says the press release. Working at DoT has given Colleen a true insight into the workings of the tourism industry. ‘I spent most of my time in the Finance Unit,’ said Colleen who now understands how DoT operates its budget and where the money is spent.
A student of John Gray High School, Chantell Range hopes to one day have a career in either business or arts drama. An ambitious young lady, Chantell was voted Best Talent in the Miss Cinderella contest where she went on to represent the Cayman Islands in Las Vegas, and attended the Global Youth Leadership Conference in Washington and New York. ‘I particularly enjoyed teaching local children as well as young visitors about the maritime heritage of the Cayman Islands at Sea School,’ she said.
‘Tourism was something I didn’t really appreciate or understand the importance of until I worked at DoT,’ said Trisha Cuffy, a young student who is pursuing an associate degree in Business Administration at the University College of the Cayman Islands. Trisha worked in many DoT units over the summer including helping the Marketing Unit to craft Fam trip itineraries for visiting travel agents.
In his second year at John Gray High School, Patrick Beersingh says that he learnt many useful skills which will translate into valid experience when the time comes to look for a job. Patrick worked in the Statistics Unit of DoT and is interested in a career in Computer Technology.
Tonie Chisholm, a sixth former at St. Ignatius, was able to get an insight into her dream career when she accompanied a BBC film crew during their filming of a major four-part TV series called ‘The Secrets of the Caribbean’. The series covers all aspects of Caribbean wildlife from the marine environment through to the coastal and forest habitats. Tonie would like to study film when she leaves school.
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