Center for Professional Excellence
About Us
Center For Professional Excellence (CPE)
Who We Are
The purpose of the Center for Professional Excellence in Hospitality, Recreation and Tourism (CPE) is to provide specialized training and promote research to enhance individual and organizational excellence in hospitality, recreation, recreation therapy and tourism. The University Center supports educational opportunities for students and professionals throughout the East Bay community to promote high quality, effective and sustainable professional practices.
Events, seminars and workshops are provided on topics such as customer service, innovation, budgeting, financial management, professional preparation, etiquette, written/verbal communication, safety, risk management, trends, HRT and Health, and sustainability. Providing preparation for students to become certified industry professionals is another goal of CPE.
Last, but not least, the HRT Center for Professional Excellence organizes the annual HRT Career Building Expo to facilitate and establish connections between reputable HRT organizations and all AVÀÇ students and the community. Students get to connect with organizations and learn about the latest career opportunities and trends in their preferred fields.
Want to get involved? Email hrt@csueastbay.edu to ask about the Center activities.
Events
Resume Building and Interviewing Skills Workshop
Thursday, February 5, 2026 (6:00 p.m.-7:30 p.m.)
HRT Career Building Expo
Thursday, February 19, 2026 (11:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m.)
AVÀÇ, Hayward Campus. New Union Building – Multipurpose Room.
REC University (REC U)
A series of workshops designed for industry professionals to build skills and knowledge about important issues in recreation management. Some topics include budget management, marketing, building teams, programming, risk management, sustainability and government operations. CEUs are provided by the California Parks and Recreation Society.
Board Members
Dr. Saehya Ann
Dr. Jaesung An
Dr. Mary Fortune
Dr. Zach Hallab
Mr. Elie Khoury
Dr. Sarah Nielsen
Dr. Linda Smetana
Ms. Elisa Valadez
For more information contact:
Donations to the center are appreciated. To make a donation, click the link below for the AVÀÇ Educational Foundation site. To designate your tax-deductible donation for CPE, choose the “Center for Professional Excellence in HRT” in the drop-down menu or choose “Other” and write in the name of the Center