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OPENING A NEW CHAPTER: KENDI ROOT

By Dr. Bill Hendricks, Professor & Department Head, RPTA

As you likely know by now, Professor Kendi Root is retiring from Cal Poly this summer, and she will be returning to her hospitality roots as the Director of Sales and Marketing for the Inn at Morro Bay. We will miss her a great deal, but we also wish her all the best in her latest career endeavor. Please join me in thanking her for her dedication to students and RPTA.

I would like to mention a top 10 list of Professor Root's career highlights over the past several years.

1. Her role as the CEO of the annual auction and dinner has provided funding for, among other activities, students and faculty to attend conferences, purchases of our iconic yellow water bottles, and our awards program.  She has also mentored numerous students on the intricacies of how to plan a fundraiser.
2. She has taken the Event Planning and Management concentration to new heights with the development of classes, field trips, and Learn by Doing experiences.
3. She has fostered relationships with countless industry professionals who hire RPTA students, seek out our students as volunteers, and offer internship opportunities to RPTA students.
4. She has taken "boatloads" of students to the CalTravel Summit where she has introduced them to industry leaders.
5. She has served as an advisor to the RPTA Club multiple times offering her guidance and leadership to the club's successes.
6. She has helped RPTA begin to carve out a niche in hospitality management and she developed our resort and lodging operations class and hospitality customer service class.
7. She led a planning team of Cal Poly students to plan the 2011 Ecotourism & Sustainable Tourism Conference at  Hilton Head, SC.
8. She received the CAFES Outstanding Lecturer award.
9. She led efforts annually with a team of students to create one amazing RPTA display for Open House.
10. Perhaps most importantly, she brought a sense of fun and laughter to her classes and to RPTA everyday.

Professor Root's eight years of full-time employment and several years part-time at Cal Poly will leave an indelible mark on all of us.  Nobody comes close to her passion for events, enthusiasm, and sincere joy in sharing her knowledge and expertise with her students. Thank you, Kendi! You will always be an integral part of our RPTA family.

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