[Washington, D.C.] On May 9 – 11, Florida ProStart teams competed in the National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation’s (NRAEF) 18^th Annual National ProStart Invitational held in Washington, D.C. This three-day event sees high school culinary students compete in both culinary arts and restaurant management competitions against students from across the United States. In the Culinary Competition, Leto High School from Tampa placed 5^th. In the Restaurant Management Competition, East Ridge High School from Clermont placed 2^nd.

“The Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association Educational Foundation (FRLAEF) is so proud of our Florida teams competing and placing in the National ProStart Competition,” says Laura Rumer, the Director of FRLAEF. “Throughout the school year, these students train and practice their respective crafts weekly. Getting the chance to compete and show off their skills on a National level is huge for them. All of the Florida teams were outstanding, and their work here is indicative of the bright future ahead for our state’s restaurant industry.”

For more information about Florida ProStart or FRLA’s Educational Foundation, contact Director Laura Rumer at [email protected]. For more information about the National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation, visit their website here.

[Tallahassee, Fla] Florida Commissioner of Agriculture Nicole “Nikki” Fried has asked Florida Restaurant & Lodging Association Senior Vice President of Education and Training Geoff Luebkemann to serve as an Industry Group-Retail representative for the Florida Food Safety and Food Defense Council.

“Since 2006, Geoff has guided FRLA’s statewide food safety training activity and has served in numerous state and national industry stakeholder groups,” remarks FRLA President and CEO Carol Dover. “He is the perfect representative for this council, and I look forward to continuing to strengthen our partnership with Commissioner Fried as we work to ensure food safety and defense for the state of Florida.”

Starting with 15 years in food and beverage operations, Luebkemann worked for local independents and opened national full-service restaurants across the southeast. In the public sector, Luebkemann served as Director of DBPR’s Division of Hotels & Restaurants, the statewide food and lodging regulator. While there, he oversaw eight offices responsible for more than 85,000 licensees and hundreds of thousands of sanitation and safety inspections annually.

As created by section 5000.033, Florida Statutes, the Florida Food Safety and Food Defense Council serves as a forum for presenting, investigating and evaluating issues of current importance to the assurance of a safe and secure food supply for the citizens of Florida.

The Broward Chapter of the Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association (FRLA) is hosting their 10^th Annual Excellence in Education Gala Thursday, May 23, at the Marriott Harbor Beach Hotel in Fort Lauderdale. The event celebrates and awards Broward high schools with culinary programs, and the teachers who oversee these programs. The evening will also honor Jack Sieler, former Mayor of Fort Lauderdale, with the 2019 Industry Ambassador Award.

This Gala benefits the FRLA Education Fund, which provides scholarship opportunities, curriculums, textbooks, supplies and support to local high school students in the ProStart Culinary Program and the Hospitality & Tourism Management Program (HTMP). A portion of the night’s proceeds will benefit Broward County’s public high schools and approximately 7,000 Broward students who are pursuing careers in the hospitality industry.

Tickets for high school staff cost $49, and individual tickets cost $139. Both ticket options are still available and can be purchased here.

For more information, contact FRLA Broward Chapter Director, Rozeta Mahboubi at 954-270-5814 or [email protected].

[Palm Beach, Fla] The Palm Beach Chapter of the Florida Restaurant & Lodging Association (FRLA) presented more than $25,000 in scholarships to local high school students last week. The money was raised at the FRLA Education and Agriculture Together Showcase (E.A.T.S.) event in January, and this is the fourth year FRLA Palm Beach has been able to award $25,000 to area culinary and hospitality students.

“FRLA is committed to the hospitality industry, and that includes supporting students who will one day run our restaurants and hotels,” said Jodi Cross, Regional Director for FRLA. “Our Palm Beach E.A.T.S. event was a wonderful success this year, and because of the community support, we were able to give away $25,000 to students. This will help pave the way for their success, and I could not be more hopeful about the future of hospitality in Palm Beach.”

The following students were honored at the May 1 FRLA board meeting and awarded scholarships:

• Freednie Meliscar (Palm Beach Gardens High School) received a $2,500 FRLA scholarship and the $4,000 Brian Fink Memorial Scholarship. Meliscar will attend the University of Central Florida.
• Jose Addly (Forest Hill High School) received a Hospitality and Tourism Scholarship and will attend Palm Beach State College.
• Jose Medina (Forest Hill High School) received a Hospitality and Tourism Scholarship and will attend Palm Beach State College.
• Abigail Gafter (Olympic Heights Community High School) received a Hospitality and Tourism Scholarship and will attend Florida Atlantic University.
• Zachary Becerra (Forest Hill High School) received a Hospitality and Tourism Scholarship and will attend Palm Beach State College.
• Yosimara Perez (Palm Beach Gardens High School) received a Culinary Scholarship and will attend Palm Beach State College.
• Dawyshawn Poe (Inlet Grove High School) received a Culinary Scholarship and will attend Palm Beach State College.
• Denasia Mann (Palm Beach Gardens High School) received a Culinary Scholarship and will attend Bethune Cookman University.
• Jaime Cooney received a Continuation Scholarship for second-year support at the University of Central Florida.

To learn more about the Palm Beach Chapter of FRLA, click here or contact Jodi Cross at [email protected] or 561-410-0035.

For more than 22 years, VISIT FLORIDA has operated as the marketing organization for the Sunshine State, attracting visitors from around the United States as well as travelers from other countries. Their efforts have proven to effectively draw in crowds from around the world. Year after year, we continue to see record-setting numbers of tourists coming for our beautiful beaches, awesome attractions and endless opportunities for adventure. In fact, last year, thanks to the work of the VISIT FLORIDA team, we had yet another record of 126.1 million visitors. These guests have a tremendous impact on the state’s economy and provide jobs for 1.4 million Floridians who work in hospitality.

VISIT FLORIDA’s carefully executed marketing plan for the state works well, and we see that in the steady increase in annual visitors. But there is another critical function of VISIT FLORIDA that perhaps many don’t know. VISIT FLORIDA works with local businesses and tourism councils to help communities market themselves with a variety of grant programs ranging from advertising matches to disaster recovery marketing. Because of VISIT FLORIDA efforts and grants, bed taxes in rural counties have grown nearly 50 percent faster than those in urban counties since 2012. Our small towns and cities benefit greatly from VISIT FLORIDA marketing assistance, and we must continue to support them by fully funding VISIT FLORIDA. However, the organization will sunset on October 1 unless our legislators choose to act.

Gov. DeSantis recognizes the value of VISIT FLORIDA and has recommended it be funded at its current level of $76 million, and we wholeheartedly agree. This investment is a wise one as the Legislature’s Chief Economist Amy Baker has noted that VISIT FLORIDA returns $2.51 to taxpayers for each dollar spent. I strongly urge our Senate to support Florida’s economy and jobs by ensuring VISIT FLORIDA does not sunset.

News release from Carol B. Dover, CEO & President of the Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association

Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer joined the American Hotel and Lodging Educational Foundation (AHLEF), the foundation arm of the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA), to announce a $75,000 grant to help Orlando community-based organizations – Second Harvest and After-School All-Stars – recruit and train individuals to join the growing and dynamic hotel industry.

In Orlando, more than 190,000 young adults are looking for employment.  Yet, the Orlando hotel industry has more than 7,600 job openings annually and nearly 400 positions open currently.  Grant funds will connect youth to employers in the hospitality industry and provide training to help them succeed.

As a result of the AHLEF grant, After-School All-Stars will be able to expand by at least two additional high schools in the Orlando area its after school training program, which will focus on developing job readiness skills to train youth for jobs in the hospitality industry.  Additionally, Second Harvest will host culinary focused trainings for job seekers.

Mayor Dyer and leaders from AHLEF and AHLA were joined for today’s announcement by representatives of the Florida Restaurant & Lodging Association, Grads of Life, After-School All-Stars, Second Harvest and local hoteliers.

Industry Leaders Weigh In

“The hotel industry supports more than eight million jobs across the United States and this Orlando grant is another step in our continued commitment to creating opportunity and economic mobility by investing in our workforce,” said AHLA President & CEO Chip Rogers.  “By partnering with Mayor Dyer and local community-based organizations, we are taking a meaningful step to close the jobs gap and provide individuals with the skills to launch long, prosperous careers in the hotel industry.”

The event is part of AHLA’s Hospitality is Working campaign, a national awareness effort to showcase career advancement opportunities, community commitment, and the economic importance of hotel and lodging businesses to every city and state across America.

“As one of the busiest travel destinations in the country, Orlando has a thriving hotel and lodging industry, and many more properties are being built to accommodate visitor demand,” said Mayor Buddy Dyer.  “I am proud to partner with AHLA, AHLEF, FRLA, and other hoteliers committed to creating jobs and investing in the lives of local individuals by providing the tools and resources needed to succeed.”

“One of the greatest challenges facing the hotel industry today is hiring associates to fill critical service positions,” said AHLEF President Rosanna Maietta. “AHLEF is committed to developing innovative, proactive programs in Orlando and across the country that invest in our workforce, from creative recruitment and retention strategies to launching innovative industry-wide programs to upskill our workforce and expand our talent pipeline.”

“The demand for exceptional talent in our industry is greater than ever and we know we must continue working hard to meet the anticipated growth,” said Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association President & CEO Carol Dover. “Our Florida hotels are proud to partner with community-based organizations, such as After-School All-Stars and Second Harvest, to develop and train the next generation of hospitality leaders.  We believe that this grant contribution will make a big difference in the lives of many local individuals who are ready to join this industry.”