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30 I n 2016, Caitlyn Stearns en- rolled in the general stud- ies program at Southern Maine Community College in South Portland. The program required her to take an elective, so she took an introductory course in the school's hospitality manage- ment program. "I absolutely fell in love with it and decided that's what I wanted to do," she says. Today, at age 24, she's a food and beverage coordinator for four of the city of Portland's events venues. "It's really cool," she says. "My day can go from the el- egance of Merrill Auditorium and clients like Bill Murray and Jay Leno, to the Portland Expo buzzing with fans, to the sta- dium with high school sports and championships. It's quite a fun job." Fast-growing industry Stearns is one of a growing number of people looking for careers in Maine's hospitality and culinary industries. They can get training through dedi- cated programs at institutions throughout Maine. Southern Maine Community College's two-year Culinary Arts and Hos- pitality Management program, for example, offers an associate degree that provides students with a foundation in theory and practices of the industries as well as a core of liberal arts and science courses designed to prepare students for flexible career development. SMCC owns its own events venue, offering further training. "We do a lot of hands-on ap- plication of what we're learning in the classroom," says Maureen LaSalle, chair of SMCC's Culinary Arts and Hospitality Manage- ment program. "In the event management class, students plan and execute live events. If you don't have the chance to experience what you're learn- ing, how do you make sure it's the right fit for you? We expose them to as much of the industry as we can." The hospitality and culinary fields are not just about restau- rants and hotels, she explains. The business and "people" skills taught in the program are ap- plicable across industries. Paid internships have taken place at companies like American Airlines and Disney World. 100% placement SMCC enrolls 45 students in its hospitality program and 90 in culinary arts. About 85% are from Maine. The split between high school graduates and old- er, non-traditional students is 50/50. H o s p i t a l i t y The friendly industry Caitlyn Stearns, age 24, is food and beverage coordinator for four of the city of Portland's events venues, a job she got directly out of college. Lydia Lane enjoys the self-driven path of owning her own wedding and events business, fern & flair. P H O T O / T I M G R E E N W A Y P H O T O / C O U R T E S Y G R E T A T U C K E R P H O T O G R A P H Y 30 W O R K F O R M E / S P R I N G 2 0 2 0 Hospitality is a 'people' career across a surprising array of applications B Y L A U R I E S C H R E I B E R