Page 1256 - Week 04 - Thursday, 21 April 1994
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It is clear that the Government has been thoughtful about the establishment of the Australian International Hotel School. While recognising the differences between the Canberra Institute of Technology and the hotel school, the Bill gives their synergies focus by having the director of the Canberra Institute of Technology as the director of the hotel school. The necessary separate focus is given to the hotel school by creating the position of dean with the responsibility for its day-to-day management.
The Bill also establishes both a Management Advisory Board and an Academic Advisory Board for the hotel school. These boards are charged with the responsibility of giving advice to the dean and reporting to the director. The Management Advisory Board will also be an integral part of the hotel school's management process. Importantly, the Bill also requires the Australian International Hotel School to operate on a full cost-recovery basis. In support of this goal, it is expected that the principal advanced by the Government to set up the hotel school will be repaid by the year 2005.
Considerable care has been taken to keep the affairs of the Canberra Institute of Technology separate from the Australian International Hotel School. In 1994 the Canberra Institute of Technology will be delivering nearly 300 courses provided by nine teaching schools operating on six different campuses in the ACT. With nearly 17,000 enrolments, over 450 full-time teachers and several hundred part-time and casual teachers, the Canberra Institute of Technology is the largest tertiary institution in the ACT. The hotel school, on the other hand, is intended to be an elite institution with a limited enrolment and a specific focus. As a self-funding organisation providing degree level training, it needs to be flexible and responsive to market pressures. It must be able to hire the best staff and compete with equivalent institutions on an international basis.
I have been aware of the development of the hotel school for some time. Some months ago I received a briefing on how the establishment of the hotel school was progressing. I have gained further information about the operation of the hotel school from the responses given to questions raised by Mrs Carnell during the Estimates Committee process of last year, which Mr Cornwell has referred to. I was pleased to attend the signing of the memorandum of understanding with Cornell University at the Hotel Kurrajong, and I look forward to visiting the Hotel Kurrajong when the hotel school opens later this year.
In conclusion, I believe that the establishment of the hotel school is an important initiative for the ACT. The Bill is based on a solidly researched proposal and is the result of a lengthy process of deliberation to get the structure right. This augurs well for the future of the Australian International Hotel School, and I support the Bill in principle.
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