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| President Michael Ortiz and Jim and Carol Collins share a laugh after signing the resolution to rename The Collins School. |
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| The change to The Collins College of Hospitality Management goes into effect July 1. |
The Collins School of Hospitality Management will become the university's eighth college, effective July 1. University President Michael Ortiz commemorated the new designation during a signing ceremony on June 13 in the President's Dining Room at the Restaurant at Kellogg Ranch.
The college status will change the name of the program to The Collins College of Hospitality Management and places the program in a small, select group of hospitality management colleges nationwide. Notably, the new status positions The Collins College of Hospitality Management to be the first hospitality management college in California.
“I would like to thank Carol and Jim Collins. Without their support throughout the years this program would not be where it is today,” President Ortiz said just before signing the ceremonial school-to-college resolution.
Ortiz was joined at the signing table by Carol and Jim Collins, Dean Andrew Feinstein, Interim Provost Herman Lujan and Associate Dean Joseph Casey.
“The real impetus for this change came in 2006 when Ed Merritt, John Self, BJ Bruin, Ben Dewald, Sandy Kapoor and Joe Casey created the school-to-college task force,” Feinstein said. “They did a tremendous job researching and getting feedback from people about becoming a college.”
The college designation would provide the necessary infrastructure to grow in the coming years, according to the findings of the task force's comprehensive study and survey of faculty, staff, administrators, key alumni and other key individuals. This growth, which is an expectation of the Chancellor's Office, could include a graduate studies program and more facilities. The task force also found that the designation would increase the prestige of the program; increase the ability to recruit high-caliber faculty and students; and is the natural progression for the school.
When Feinstein became dean in December, he restarted the efforts to have the college status approved. This spring, the task force's report was submitted as a recommendation to the Academic Senate, which represents the Cal Poly Pomona faculty. The senate passed the recommendation unanimously on May 14 following a formal review process. The measure was also supported by the Cal Poly Pomona Dean's Council and Interim Provost Lujan. The final step was approval by President Ortiz.
“It's a natural fit that The Collins School becomes The Collins College,” Ortiz said. “This program has a national reputation and a proven track record for providing excellent hospitality management education.”
For more information about the college, visit https://www.cpp.edu/~cshm/collins_school/index.shtml.