After two decades of training students in the hospitality and tourism sectors, the Barbados Community College’s Hospitality Institute (BCCHI) and Hotel PomMarine will bear a new name.
The Institute, which officially opened on Saturday, February 8, 1997, will be renamed during a ceremony on Monday, March 23, at its Marine Gardens, Hastings, Christ Church location, beginning at 4:00 p.m.
The BCCHI functions as a purpose-built facility comprising classrooms, laboratories, and a fully functioning 20-room hotel – Hotel PomMarine.
It is the only hotel training school of its kind in the Eastern Caribbean, where students are given the opportunity to work in a fully operational hotel and restaurant, both of which are open to the public.
Over the years, more than 7,900 students have graduated from the BCCHI and work across the hospitality and tourism sectors locally, regionally and internationally.
Hotel PomMarine functions as a training facility for students, with a business component that generates income through the hotel, conference and meeting centre, and the Golden Apple and Muscovado restaurants.
The renaming seeks to celebrate the work of two icons, Dr. Jean Holder, and his late wife, Norma Holder, in the field of culture, education, hospitality and tourism.
Dr. Holder served as Secretary-General of the Caribbean Tourism Organization before his retirement in 2003. He then acted as the Chairman of LIAT until his retirement in 2016.
Mrs. Holder started her tenure at the Barbados Community College on January 11, 1969, as an Assistant Tutor, and would retire as Principal in 2004, following her appointment to the post in 1988.
She was actively involved in the development of the Hospitality Institute, following the College’s inheritance of the Barbados Hotel School. As Principal, she was instrumental in the development and design of the Hospitality Institute.