UMS proposes creating tourism research center

LEWISTON – The state’s tourism industry is expected to get a boost from a new research center proposed by the University of Maine System.

Vice-Chancellor Elsa Nunez told the UMS board of trustees Monday that the system has proposed creating a Center for Tourism Research and Outreach that would be a collaborative effort between the University of Maine and the University of Southern Maine.

Based at the Orono campus, the center would conduct research to enhance tourism and determine the academic programs necessary to train a new generation of entrepreneurs, managers and skilled employees to work in the industry.

UM business professor Kevin Boyle will be director of the center, while USM business professor Charles Colgan will be associate director, visiting the Orono facility several times a week, Nunez told trustees during a meeting at Lewiston-Auburn College.

Other campuses would participate in an advisory capacity, she said. Any faculty member who wanted to be involved in tourism research could obtain a fellowship to work in the center.

More details will be available in January when the board of trustees is expected to vote on the plan.

The tourism initiative was precipitated by Gov. John Baldacci who pointed out in his state of the state address two years ago the contributions that the university system could make to Maine’s tourism industry, Nunez said.

Also participating in the new tourism efforts will be the Maine Office of Tourism, Maine Department of Economic and Community Development, representatives from tourism industry associations and the Maine Community College System.

No new money from UMS is necessary for the initiative, according to Nunez who said the idea is to “redeploy existing resources.”

The new tourism initiative could gain funds through a bill that the governor and lawmakers have said they are interested in developing to support research efforts, said Nunez. In addition, the tourism industry has indicated it could dedicate a portion of the state’s food and lodging taxes.

As part of the initiative, three new academic focus areas are in the works, according to Nunez. They are: art and tourism for the creative economy, which will be offered at USM, a graduate level tourism program and an undergraduate environmental science and tourism program at the University of Maine.

Since the Maine Community College System currently offers culinary arts and food preparation programs, UM would not need to offer those types of classes, but would concentrate instead on management, marketing, research and outreach aspects, Nunez said.

Among other things, the center would encourage the development of new tourist destinations, products and services; improve the economic contribution of tourism in all regions of the state; develop programs and strategies to enhance the role of tourism in the economy; and develop new and improved information sources and reports for the industry and the state to better inform and guide planning and business development.

Last summer, when the hotel industry was confounded by the lack of tourists, a center such as the one being proposed could have helped by offering analysis and information about trends, Nunez said.

The initiative is the first to use the recently adopted strategic plan as a guide, Nunez said. The restructuring plan says the university system will develop programs that respond to the economic needs of the state.