People
Dean
A Conversation With Dean Stamas
James T. Stamas has long been a leader in the hospitality industry. In addition to his responsibilities as dean, he is also president of Stamas Partners, a management consulting firm he founded in 1988 to provide human resources and organizational planning services to the hospitality industry.
Dean Stamas enjoyed a fifteen-year career with Omni Hotel, culminating in his last position as Senior Vice President and Chief Administration Officer. He also has held senior management positions with Sonesta International Hotels and Raytheon Company. Prior to becoming dean, he served for three years as head of the School of Hospitality Administration Advisory Board. He is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts in Amherst, Massachusetts.
Why should a student choose to attend Boston University's School of Hospitality Administration?
Students choosing to attend Boston University's School of Hospitality Administration can expect an excellent hospitality management education grounded in the liberal arts. They're going to be challenged academically, and will also have very interesting work experiences that will prepare them well for the future. Their classes here will be in a small, intimate setting with close relationships between students, faculty and staff. They're going to enjoy Boston. And finally, they're going to get good jobs.
Why does this School require students to participate in two 400-hour professional internships?
We feel that hands-on experience is so critical to the students' success in their coursework and as professionals that we do require two internships. This training really is a very important part of their education. It's a place where they can experience and put to work the theory that they hear about or learn in the classroom. It's a way of testing what they've learned and identifying their own interests. And it's a way of acquiring experience that gives them an attractive résumé when they're ready to graduate.
Why do you also require an international component in your curriculum?
Hospitality is a multibillion dollar worldwide industry, so our objective is to give our students the opportunity to live and work in a different culture and to gain a more global perspective of our industry. Usually, students will spend a semester abroad on a Boston University international study abroad program where they'll take courses, participate in an internship arranged for them, and take a bit of time to travel in the region. It's a wonderful, maturing experience, and I think it's one of the points that distinguishes us from other hospitality programs. The students love it.
What else do you think sets your School apart from other hospitality programs?
Certainly the breadth of our curriculum and the way we integrate work experiences into curricular requirements. Certainly the accessibility of our faculty and staff for academic counseling, job counseling, or special help. Certainly that we are a small school where relationships between the faculty, staff and students are very close.
You've mentioned that this program is not just a professional hospitality training program. How do the liberal arts play an integral role in your curriculum?
The first thing I tell people is that we are a management school that is part of Boston University. We make full use of the University to give our students the breadth of education they will need to be successful managers in our industry. We are not a culinary institution, we are not a trade school, and we are not a vocational school. Our students are traditional full-time students who must meet all of the requirements of a very competitive University.
Why is there such a mix of both full-time and part-time faculty here?
The vast majority of our required courses are taught by full-time Boston University faculty, and that is important because - in my view - quality control is what goes into the degree and the degree requirements. These are faculty members who have been selected because they teach well and they have vital industry experience.
We do have adjunct professors teaching elective courses, and it's exciting for our students and faculty to work with these professionals. In Boston, there is no shortage of industry leaders who are great candidates qualified to offer classes here. Again, these people must be effective in the classroom and must want to work with students. The students love these courses; they're learning from industry leaders who are teaching because they find it personally rewarding.
What is the School of Hospitality Administration Advisory Board?
The Advisory Board provides the staff, the faculty, and me with strategic advice on the curriculum, counsels us as to what we should be preparing students to do, and helps us help our students find jobs. We suggest the Advisory Board when students have a special interest and are looking for a mentor; we ask Board members to meet with students who share their interests. Last but not least, they provide financial support, which we use mostly for student scholarships and enhancing student services. The Advisory Board is very important and one of the strengths of the School.
As Dean, what do you think is the most important thing you can do for students?
Probably the most important part of my job is to be available to students. One of the fundamental things I believe is that students must have access to their faculty and administrators. We are committed to an environment where students have that access. It really is the crux of what we're teaching here, and that's service.
What type of jobs do your students get outside of the traditional hospitality venues of hotel and restaurant management?
We have students who go to work for technology companies that provide hardware and software services to the industry. We have students who go to work for convention and visitors bureaus, others who work for consulting companies to the industry, and still others who focus on travel and tourism. Students also go on to graduate school for management, law, education, and - of course - hospitality.
As a hospitality professional and educator, what excites you about your field?
The opportunities. Hospitality is one of the largest and fastest-growing industries in the world. The borders are down everywhere in the world. The growth has been great, and with it has come a lot of opportunities for talented young people.
What do you like best about working at the School of Hospitality Administration?
I love interacting with the students. Each one of them has a different set of expectations and different reasons for coming here. Our job is to make sure those expectations are met. The real joy of my job is to see students come here and watch them learn, grow, and become successful, motivated young professionals well prepared to be leaders in the hospitality industry.
James T. Stamas, Dean of the School of Hospitality Administration, was the senior vice president of the Omni Hotels chain and the Sonesta Hotels chain. He also founded his own hospitality consulting firm.