New hotel to provide learning opportunities for students

Completion of the 126-room Courtyard by Marriott hotel located adjacent to the Clayton Hall Conference Center is anticipated in September.

3:33 p.m., April 28, 2004--The opening of a new hotel on the Laird Campus, scheduled for October, will give UD’s hotel, restaurant and institutional management students a rare, hands-on opportunity to participate in starting up and managing such a facility.

“It’s going to be a wonderful addition to our curriculum,” Fred DeMicco, Aramark Chair and chairperson of the Department of Hotel, Restaurant and Institutional Management (HRIM), said.

DeMicco said about 50 students will be involved, working in several areas of the hotel, from the front office to accounts and engineering, sales and marketing.

“The students will have total immersion in the hotel industry,” DeMicco said, “and will be able to apply their theory courses to managing the hotel and providing solutions to problems they encounter.”

Completion of the 126-room Courtyard by Marriott, a four-story, business class hotel located adjacent to the Clayton Hall Conference Center off New London Road in Newark, is anticipated in September, and the opening is planned for October, UD Executive Vice President and University Treasurer David Hollowell said.

“We are making excellent progress toward completing the project,” Hollowell said, and the earlier delays are “now behind us.” Interested persons can watch project progress at [www.udel.edu/hotel] by clicking on Webcam.

UD Executive Vice President and University Treasurer David Hollowell: “We think the hotel has the potential to draw more groups to Clayton Hall particularly during the academic year when residence halls are not available to house conference guests, and local businesses will benefit from that.”

“Clayton Hall can hold hundreds of people,” Hollowell said. “We think the hotel has the potential to draw more groups to Clayton Hall particularly during the academic year when residence halls are not available to house conference guests, and local businesses will benefit from that.”

For this project, UD has partnered with the Shaner Hotel Group, which is also managing Conference Services operations, providing key marketing and management support.

Under the terms of the partnership, the University is the majority owner of the hotel.

University Conference Centers include the 40,000-square-foot Clayton Hall in Newark, Arsht Hall and the Goodstay Center in Wilmington and the Virden Retreat Center in Lewes.

Shaner Hotel Group (www.shanerhotels.com) is one of the nation’s premier private lodging and management companies. Founded in 1983 by brothers Lance and Fred Shaner, the State College, Pa.-based company owns and/or operates 23 hotels in 15 states, with assets totaling $260 million. Twelve well-known brands are represented in the Shaner Hotel Group portfolio, including Marriott, Hilton, Radisson and Holiday Inn.

Article by Martin Mbugua
Photos by Kathy Atkinson

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