Lifetime Academic Achievement Awards at Michigan State University

Dr. Michael Olsen and Professor John Drysdale

• 
  SAVE
• 
  SHARE
• 
  TEXT SIZE
• 
  PRINT
• 
  COMMENT
• 
  PDF

. July 30, 2009

EAST LANSING, MI, July 29, 2009 - The School of Hospitality Business Alumni Association at Michigan State University will honor two outstanding academicians as recipients of its 2009 Lifetime Academic Achievement Award at the International Council on Hotel, Restaurant and Institutional Education (I-CHRIE) Conference in San Francisco on July 30. The Award is given to alumni whose lifetime careers in the academy have had a lasting and significant impact on hospitality education and those who study and teach it. This year's honorees are Dr. Michael Olsen (BA '67, MBA '73) and Professor John Drysdale (BA '63).

Dr. Michael D. Olsen is an emeritus professor of Strategic Management in the Hospitality Industry in the Department of Hospitality and Tourism Management, Pamplin College of Business at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, and Chairman of the Olsen Group, Inc., a firm providing strategic visioning leadership to the global hospitality industry. He earned his Bachelor's Degree from the School of Hotel, Restaurant and Institutional Management (HRI) and MBA at MSU, and his Ph.D. at Virginia Tech.

Professor Drysdale, who earned his Bachelor's Degree from the School of Hotel, Restaurant and Institutional Management (HRI) at MSU and his Master of Science Degree in Administration from Central Michigan University, is a professor emeritus at Johnson County Community College, where he taught in the Hospitality Management Department and he is the Chief Executive Officer of Hospitality Publishing, LLC.

This year's honorees reflect the desire of The School's Alumni Association to recognize the work of an academician from both a four-year, research institution as well as a two-year institution whose emphasis is applied learning. Both men have distinguished themselves among their students and their peers in education.

Individuals chosen for the Lifetime Academic Achievement Award must have a minimum of ten years of teaching and/or administrative experience in a post-secondary program; are MSU graduates (with preference for graduates of The School); are accomplished leaders in industry or academic organizations such as the International Council on Hotel, Restaurant and Institutional Education (I-CHRIE), the American Hotel & Lodging Association's Educational Institute (AH&LA EI), or the National Restaurant Association's Educational Foundation (NRA EF); have already received recognition from one of these organizations or their own educational institutions; and must be able to attend The School's award ceremony at the annual I-CHRIE Conference.

School alumni across the globe, including thousands of leading academicians and industry executives, further the fine reputation of their alma mater with their own successes and contributions to hospitality education and businesses. The School is proud to recognize their achievements, in part through awards such as the Lifetime Academic Achievement Award.

We congratulate Dr. Michael Olsen (BA '67, MBA '73) and Professor John Drysdale (BA '63) on their Lifetime Academic Achievements.