Optimum Announces Recipients of Optimum Management Scholarships

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. October 14, 2008

JANUARY 15, 2007. Optimum Hotel Brokerage has announced the recipients of its Optimum Hotel Brokerage Hospitality Management Scholarships. The Trustee Endowed scholarships were awarded to four students at the Pennsylvania State University's School of Hospitality Management, one of the country's leading hospitality management programs.

The Optimum Hotel Brokerage Hospitality Management Scholarships for 2007 are:

---|Lyndsie Kroll - A senior Dean's List student at Penn State, Lyndsie is also a teaching assistant and lab instructor. She has worked many summer internships with a Marriott franchisee based in Pittsburgh, rotating in numerous positions at a busy Residence Inn. Upon graduation, she plans a career in hotel operations management.

---|Laura Yi - A junior at the School of Hospitality Management, Laura maintains a high GPA and has worked for national casual dining chains and full service hotels near her home near Philadelphia. She is currently working at the historic Nittany Lion Inn and plans to pursue a career in conference center and special events management upon graduation in 2008.

---|Karen Marley - A second generation Penn State student, Karen grew up in Titusville, Pennsylvania. Currently in her Junior year, she has held management internship positions with Disney Resorts and also at the historic Nittany Lion Inn, where she works in the banquet department. Her goal upon graduation will be to work for a hospitality organization in accounting and financial management.

---|Adam Raleigh - Adam is a senior focusing on food and beverage management. He is also employed as head saut'e chef at the Hotel State College's Allen Street Grill. Upon graduation in 2007, Adam plans to continue his culinary education and pursue a food production management position in the fine dining segment of the industry.

"Penn State's School of Hospitality Management has a long and well-respected reputation in the hospitality industry, and the program has successfully prepared industry leaders for almost 70 years", explained McCann, himself a graduate of Penn State's program. "This year's recipients are actively involved in many different disciplines within the hospitality industry. They represent the depth and breadth of the Pennsylvania State University School of Hospitality Management's contributions to the hospitality industry's future leadership"

The Penn State School of Hospitality Management is home to the fourth oldest hotel, restaurant and institutional management program in the United States. From its humble beginnings in 1937, the program has grown to the point where it is now recognized as one of the most respected and distinguished hospitality management programs in the nation. By combining a broad educational foundation with specific courses designed to build strong leadership, business and communication skills - and by requiring undergraduate students to accumulate 1,000 hours of "real-world" experience in order to graduate - students gain the theoretical, managerial, quantitative, organizational and technical skills they need to become the next generation of leaders in the hospitality industry. The students' relationships with faculty (many who have extensive experience in and conduct research for the industry) and alumni (including many who are top executives in their chosen professions) only serve to bolster this learning experience. Penn State's program currently enrolls more than 800 students.

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania-based Optimum Hotel Brokerage is a full service hotel brokerage firm, and a member of Hotel Brokers International, the world's largest and oldest hospitality real estate organization, which has a rich heritage of experience and expertise in hotel real estate valuation, transactions and other essential services. Comprised of some 75 hotel real estate broker specialists, HBI provides the hospitality industry with the most powerful hotel real estate marketing force, creating greater visibility through a unified and inclusive advertising and marketing approach. Mr. McCann has earned the designation of Certified Hotel Broker, with distinction, from the organization, and was recognized as HBI's Broker of the Year for the Northeast Region in 2003 and 2004. HBI has also awarded McCann with the Portfolio Sale of the Year award in 2004 and Unique Deal of the Year award in 2004 and 2005. Most recently, Optimum Hotel Brokerage and Joe McCann were awarded HBI's prestigious Broker of the Year Award for 2005.