Recipient Organization
KANSAS STATE UNIV
(N/A)
MANHATTAN,KS 66506
Performing Department
Hospitality Management
Non Technical Summary
Hospitality and retail industries, which are consumer-facing sectors of the agricultural supply chain, have a profound negative impact on the environment. The amounts of energy and water used and the waste produced in these industries are significant. To address these challenges, hospitality and retail management (HRM) baccalaureate programs must prepare their graduates to advocate sustainable business practices. However, preliminary studies indicate a lack of sustainability emphasis in HRM programs and increase in desire for sustainability education among HRM educators and students. To enhance the quality of sustainability instruction for baccalaureate HRM programs, this project aims to develop and disseminate sustainability education modules. Deliverables are indexed, easy-to-use instructional support materials including 360-degree virtual videos and interactive case studies, which yield differential outcomes to demonstrate the impact of business decisions on environmental sustainability. Specifically, we aim to (a) expand environmental sustainability knowledge of HRM educators; (b) augment HRM educators' capabilities for improving students' exposure to sustainable management of energy, water, and waste; (c) advance faculty preparedness and teaching competency; and (d) indirectly, advance HRM undergraduate students' sustainability knowledge and self-efficacy to implement sustainable practices in hospitality and retail industries. Key outcomes include (a) increased sustainability knowledge of HRM faculty and students; (b) increased frequency and duration of sustainability education in HRM programs; and (c) improved self-reported preparedness of HRM educators. The project will extend beyond the funding period through continuation of the resource website.
Animal Health Component
50%
Research Effort Categories
Basic
(N/A)
Applied
50%
Developmental
50%
Goals / Objectives
Goal: To enhancecurrent educators' environmental sustainability knowledge and ability to incorporate such complex and timely issues into hospitality and retail management programs across the U.S. By targeting HRM educators, we plan to reach future HRM professionals and ultimately benefit the hospitality and retail industries.Specific objectives:1. Enhance HRM educators' foundational knowledge on environmental sustainability by creating education modules with a systems perspective on energy, water, and waste management in the consumer-facing operations of HRM businesses;2. Strengthen HRM educators' capabilities for improving students' exposure to and competency for sustainable management of energy, water, and waste by developing educational support materials that can be easily incorporated into multiple functional topics and/or industry segment-related courses.3. Advance faculty preparedness and teaching competency through effective, current, and interactive instructional tools (i.e., 360-degree virtual tours, interactive choice-based simulation activities with differential choice outcomes, and teaching modules) to teach principles of energy, water, and waste management utilizing a systems approach.
Project Methods
Phase I. Development of Sustainability Education Modules and Supporting Materials Identification of Sustainability Education Priorities and Preferences: To identify specific concerns and preferred formats of instructional supporting materials, upon receiving the grant, the project team will conduct a series of HRM educator interviews (n=30) and a national survey of HRM educators. HRM educators in a variety of programs will be recruited through the PD and Co-PDs' professional associations for online interviews and a national survey. Data from the interviews and the survey will be used to refine content and formats of sustainability education materials to be developed. A variety of instructional support material formats will be developed, including 360-degree virtual videos, case studies,interactive simulations with different sustainability outcomes based upon student decisions,and other activities as deemed appropriate from educator interviews. Development of Sustainability Education Modules: Based on specific concerns about sustainability education, identified from interviews and the survey, educational modules will be developed including lesson plans, detailed resources, suggested presentation outlines, suggested assessment questions and answers, and discussion guidelines. Existing general sustainability education topics and hospitality and retail industry-specific concerns will be used as a basis for educational module development. Industry supporters (e.g., hotels, restaurants and industry-specific associations) have been committed to supporting this project, and more supporters will be sought for current and relevant content development upon receiving the grant. Producing 360-Degree Virtual Video Tours: Recording 360-degree virtual videos/tours will allow educators to show students a complete and immersive view of sustainable business practices. Based upon the notion that "seeing is believing", we expect these immersive experiences to be more effective, enabling students to fully see how sustainable practices are being implemented in the "real world". The PD and Co-PDs will work collaboratively recording the videos using this innovative technology. Creating Differential Outcome Simulation/Gaming Activities: To engage students more effectively, simulation activities will be created that provide differential outcomes, based upon inputs from the students. These differential outcomes will show the "what if" based upon their own decisions and choices. This will enhance engagement across the classroom and provide opportunities for students to see how choices and business decisions can affect sustainability in the big picture. Other Education Support Materials: Based on inputs from the HRM educator survey, additional education support materials will be developed. Efforts will be made to include a variety of topics to cover as many functional areas, specific segments within the hospitality and retail industries, and sustainability issues (i.e., energy, water, and waste management) as possible. Once developed, modules and all instructional supporting materials will be reviewed by HRM educators who have agreed to utilize sustainability education materials in their institutions. Sustainability education modules and supporting materials will be indexed with specific sustainability topics, functional topic areas (e.g., strategic management, financial management and cost controls, operations management, facilities management, and marketing), and industry segment (e.g., foodservice, lodging, and retail). Pilot Implementation at KSU and UofSC: Prior to finalizing the sustainability education materials, pilot implementation will be conducted using courses taught by the PD, Co-PDs, and other faculty members at KSU and UofSC. Pre- and post-tests will be developed for both course instructors and students to measure (a) sustainability knowledge, (b) attitudes toward sustainability challenges in hospitality and/or retail industry, and (c) attitudes including self-efficacy toward teaching sustainability (instructors) or implementing sustainable practices in students' future careers (students), before and after using education materials. Additionally, faculty and students will provide suggestions to improve the sustainability education materials and assessment instruments. Results will be used to revise the materials prior to implementing at other institutions.Phase II. Adoption and Evaluation of Sustainability Education Modules and Supporting Materials Development of Sustainability Education Resource Website: Once the sustainability education content is developed, a website developer from KSU will be hired to create the resource website. This website will be housed on the KSU server, and the PD and Co-PDs will maintain editing privileges. PD Kwon is capable of developing and maintaining websites using HTML language, and therefore, she will (a) update the contents as needed after the grant period ends and (b) monitor website activities and provide educators with access to password-protected, "instructor only" sections of the website. Recruitment of HRM Educators and Adoption of Sustainability Education Modules and Supporting Materials: As shown in the support letters, numerous teaching faculty members across the U.S. already support and are committed to adopting the proposed sustainability education materials. All resource materials will be indexed in three ways: Functional topic areas, industry segments, and sustainability education topic areas. These indices will make it easy for HRM faculty members to find and utilize specific materials that suit their classes. PD and Co-PDs will keep track of HRM faculty who adopt the sustainability education materials in their courses and inform them of evaluation procedures. Faculty Orientation and Evaluation of Sustainability Education Modules and Materials: Prior to adopting and evaluating baseline sustainability knowledge and attitudes, the project directors will offer online orientation for HRM educators to properly inform about the resource website and ways to evaluate the effectiveness of the education modules and materials. Formative evaluation will be done throughout the development of modules and materials by reviewing learning objectives, content, and engagement opportunities. For summative evaluation, a pre- and post-survey and short interviews with educators will be conducted before and after using education materials to measure: (a) sustainability knowledge, (b) attitudes toward sustainability challenges in the hospitality and/or retail industry, and (c) attitudes including self-efficacy toward teaching sustainability (instructors) or implementing sustainable practices in students' future careers (students). Online surveys of instructors and students will be created using the Qualtrics survey system to assess their knowledge and attitudes regarding environmental sustainability. Differences in knowledge and attitudes before and after sustainability education will be analyzed using paired sample t-tests and MANCOVA.Phase III. Dissemination and Ensuring Sustainability All sustainability education materials will be stored on a website, and the information for using education modules and supporting materials will be announced to HRM educators through professional networks, presentations, and publications.