Hospitality Majors Earn Seven-Year Reaccreditations
Published 02.25.2005
All three of the associate-degree majors offered by the School of Hospitality at Pennsylvania College of Technology have been granted reaccreditation through 2011.
The College's Baking and Pastry Arts and Culinary Arts Technology majors were given renewed accreditation by the Accrediting Commission of the American Culinary Federation. The Hospitality Management major earned reaccreditation from the Commission for Accreditation of Hospitality Management Programs.
"Having accreditation means that we meet and exceed industry expectations," said Frederick W. Becker, dean of hospitality at Penn College. All three degree programs were given seven-year accreditations, the maximum granted by the two organizations.
"It's a real affirmation that we're doing things right," Becker added.
Becker noted an additional benefit for students. Graduates of American Culinary Federation-accredited programs are put on a fast track for pursuing professional certifications through the ACF.
Accreditation from the ACF Accrediting Commission and the Commission for Accreditation of Hospitality Management Programs is voluntary.
ACF's Accrediting Commission requires that curriculum, faculty, facilities, resources, support staff and organizational structure all substantially meet certain standards. The standards are set by industry leaders in culinary arts and culinary-arts education and are monitored constantly by the commission.
The Commission for Accreditation of Hospitality Management Programs is recommended by the International Council on Hotel, Restaurant and Institutional Education, and it sets high standards for two-year hospitality-management programs.
Before reaccreditation was granted, the two accrediting organizations made a joint visit to the College to ensure that those standards were being met or exceeded.
The academic majors offered by the School of Hospitality feature small class sizes with a 12-to-1 student-to-faculty ratio in labs and many classes, state-of-the-art classrooms and labs, and an award-winning restaurant (Le Jeune Chef) where students serve fine food to the public.
For more information about the programs offered by the School of Hospitality at Penn College, call (570) 327-4505, send e-mail or visit online.