‘Hurst graduates making mark in hospitality industry There were fewer than 20 students when Mercyhurst launched its hospitality program in 1972. Today, the Statler Department of Hospitality Management enrolls more than 150 majors. From the start, the program has recruited instructors with extensive experience in food service and hotel management. Also a hallmark of the program is its emphasis on hands-on experience for its students, on campus (in the Grotto Dining Room and more recently in the Marriott Café) and of-campus in internships and part-time jobs. Over 45 years, Mercyhurst’s hospitality management program has earned a reputation for excellence and created an alumni network that spans the country and reaches around the world. From Erie, where ‘Hurst alums run two of the most prominent hotels in the area, to Vietnam, where two recent grads have opened their own restaurant, Mercyhurst alumni can be found in every hospitality job imaginable. Read just a few of their stories in the pages that follow.
Did you know the pineapple is the international symbol for hospitality?
Peter Zohos ’97 Peter Zohos got his frst taste of the hospitality industry in his teens, logging lots of hours at his uncle’s restaurant. He was good at it, but never planned to join the family business. Instead he majored in nutrition. When he decided medical school wasn’t the best ft for him, he realized he could put his training to work in hospitality. So he transferred to Mercyhurst where he was impressed by faculty members who brought their industry experience into the classroom and truly cared about their students. He got lots of hands-on experience through internships and part-time jobs, leading to 13 job ofers from big hotel companies when he graduated in 1997. He chose Hyatt Hotels, working as a management trainee at its fagship property, the Over the next few years, Peter explored every aspect of the hospitality industry, frst in New York City and later back in his hometown of Cleveland. Throughout those jobs, he says, “I was always the manager who focused the most on training, on developing human resources. The people who work for you take care of your customers and you have to take care of them frst before you can be 2,000-room Hyatt Regency Chicago.
After Mercyhurst, he worked as a senior food and beverage manager with Marriott International, which he calls a “roll-up-your-sleeves type of company.” Mercyhurst produces managers who are not afraid to jump in, he says, adding
proudly, “It’s very well respected in the industry.”
Today he’s doing sales, consulting and training for food distributor Maplevale Farms, where his experience as an operator makes him valuable both to the company and to his customers. Peter says he’s always had a second job within the hospitality industry. Today it’s Candlelight Desserts, his own business that creates custom Greek desserts. Deeply proud of his Greek heritage, he’s active with Greek churches in both Erie and Cleveland and volunteers at both of their annual festivals.
successful.”
So it’s not surprising that, in 2003, he came back to join the ‘Hurst faculty. He stayed through 2012, teaching everything in the hospitality curriculum except
Peter and his wife, Karen, have been married for 12 years and have three kids:
engineering and law.
Billy, 9; Toula, 6; and Gracie, 4.
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