The world is yours
The next generation of Baxter Student Ambassadors are here!
ASHLEY ROCHEFORT
From a generation often criticized for being lazy and entitled, this year’s Baxter Student Ambassadors are proof that they are anything but. Ambitious, determined, and organized,
this group of recent graduates is hungry for opportunity and ready to work. “I always put 110% into whatever I am pursuing,” said Hayley Johnson-Skinner, the 20-year-old Baxter Ambassador from Ryerson University. “Whether it’s school, work, or my BSAP presentation, I love the reward that comes from hard work.”
The only program of its kind in Canada, the Baxter Student Ambassador Program (BSAP) was built to identify and encourage the very best emerging talent from travel, tourism and hospitality programs across Canada. Talent like Dani Berezowsky, who is this year’s Ambassador from Georgian College, winner of the Baxter Media internship, and the definition of cool, confident, and coordinated, “I am always ahead of deadlines, am known for organizing everything, and dress for the job I want, not for the job I have.”
Based on a combination of academic success, community involvement, leadership skills, and a skill-testing webinar presentation, one student from each of this year’s 15 participating colleges and universities is selected as the Baxter Student Ambassador to represent their school.
“With the help of our sponsors and industry partners, we’re able to empower these elite graduates with life-changing travel, internship, and networking opportunities to give them the head start they deserve,” explains Wendy McClung, Executive VP at Baxter Media and BSAP Director.
BSAP’s industry sponsors are each contributing to student success in their own unique way: Contiki is once again offering a coveted internship at its headquarters in Toronto; Transat, a BSAP sponsor from the beginning, is sending one very lucky winner on an all-inclusive trip for two to Lisbon, Portugal; WestJet is not only flying students from out-of-province schools to Toronto to attend the awards luncheon, but is also presenting one Ambassador with a flight for two; Israel and Jamaica are generously supplying one Ambassador each with a $500 bursary; both Carlson Wagonlit and Merit are offering hands-on internships at travel agencies throughout Canada; and Elmhirst’s Resort, Goway, ACTA, and Collette are all offering incredible internships. On May 1, Skål Canada is generously hosting the BSAP Networking Reception, and earlier in the day, all Ambassadors will be treated to a sightseeing flight around the Toronto skyline courtesy of Fly GTA. Plus, there are integral program supporters like Niagara Helicopters, Coventry Transportation, DoubleTree Downtown Toronto, Manulife, and Big Bark Graphics, without whom the program wouldn’t be possible. As well as industry associations like TIAO who are offering free memberships and/or networking opportunities to winning Ambassadors.
So, it is with a solid education behind them, a growing network around them, and their whole careers in front of them, that these Ambassadors are now ready to take on the travel industry. Watch out world, here are your 2019 Baxter Student Ambassadors…
More To Come
This year marks the fifth anniversary of BSAP and, with more winners than ever before, the program shows no signs of slowing down. Professors and sponsors will be invited to a roundtable discussion lead by Charlotte Bell, President & CEO of TIAC, to discuss how BSAP stakeholders can work to improve and expand BSAP moving forward.
Baxter Student Embassador Program
Val Routledge
Tourism – Travel Services
Algonquin College
Kylee Peters
Tourism Marketing Management
British Columbia Institute of Technology
Michele McIntosh
Tourism Management Cooperative Education
Capilano University
Chintan Limbachiya
Tourism – Travel Services Management
Centennial College
Katelyn Fancy
Hospitality and Tourism Management
Conestoga College
Ayrielle Dijkstra
Tourism – Travel and Eco-Adventure
Confederation College
Rhonda Cowderoy
Tourism and Travel
Fanshawe College
Justine Davies
Tourism – Global Travel
Fleming College
Sherry Ton
Honours Bachelor of Business Administration (Hospitality)
George Brown College
Danielle Berezowsky
Tourism – Marketing and Product Development
Georgian College
Lori Gibb
Tourism – Travel Services Management
Humber College
Julie Perrett
Tourism Management
Red River College
Hayley Johnson-Skinner
Hospitality and Tourism Management
Ryerson University
Natalia Mũnoz Cuevas
Tourism – Services Management
Seneca College
Camila Beluco
Travel and Tourism
Southern Alberta Institute of Technology