LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT_>>
• Colleges generally are struggling . In the case of VSU’s concentration (which has two tracks, one in mountain oper- ations and the other in resort manage- ment), the enrollment numbers reflect the general enrollment struggles of small New England colleges, not a flag- ging interest in entering the ski busi- ness, says Doll. Plus, the name change to VSU eliminated the name recogni- tion for the well-known Lyndon State program. “We’re in rebuild mode,” he says of the program getting back on its feet under the new name. •Choosing work over education. CMC also had a smaller-than-usual program enrollment last year. “Mod- ern students want to get into the work- force,” says Cairns. And many students have jobs in the ski business already. “Students are saying, ‘if I have a job, why am I staying in school?’” he adds. Rather than compete with mountains for students, Cairns has worked with resorts, who want—and, in many
and a new used lift, which students will be assembling on CMC’s own hill, the revitalized Dutch Henry ski area, which will be student run. At VSU, Doll has added a technology component in response to widespread changes in the industry. “One day we’re covering POS systems, and the next day LIDAR,” he says. “We cover SNOWsat, and more. Everything is becoming more automated.” UMF’s Price adds that resort busi- nesses want people with writing skills and the ability to manage developing technology, such as AI models. Programs have also developed cur- riculum around summer operations. “We know resorts emphasize career pathways and people who will be able to stick around, so we have emphasized that seasonality,” says Cairns. Knowledgeable instructors. The peo- ple who teach these programs have a deep understanding of the industry, and many of them are technical and regulatory
Map building class at Gogebic Community College.
experts. Vander Spoel, for example, serves on the board of the Midwest Ski Areas Association, as an advisor to the state of Michigan Ski Area Safety Board, on the ANSI B77.1 committee that writes ski lift safety standards, on the National Tram- way Safety Board, and on the ASTM com- mittee F27 on Snow and Water Sports. Enrollment Challenges Despite the modernized coursework and strong industry partnerships, every pro- gram director we spoke with reported decreased enrollment in 2025. The rea- sons for the decline vary. Among them:
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