(MVA) – Students took the slogan “Tourism is Everybody’s Business” to heart last weekend, buoyed by tourism educational presentations by the Marianas Tourism Education Council (MTEC) and the Marianas Visitors Authority.
School MYWAVE (Marianas Youth Welcome All Visitors Enthusiastically) Club members lined the course of Saturday’s (Dec. 6) Hell of the Marianas century cycle to cheer for participants. The race attracted 110 registrants from eight countries and territories. Cheering students along Beach Road represented Garapan Elementary School, Admiral Herbert G. Hopwood Middle School, Marianas High School, Oleai Elementary School, and Saipan Southern High School.
MYWAVE is a close partner of MTEC and the MVA, who visit public schools annually with interactive presentations and activities that spotlight tourism as the Marianas’ leading economic driver, show how the industry impacts students’ daily lives, and share ideas on how youth can contribute to its success, even at a young age. Most recently, the MTEC-MVA team visited Garapan Elementary last Wednesday (Dec. 3).
“The importance of students learning about tourism is for them to know and understand that tourism is more than just about travel and generating income. It opens them up to explore different cultures and encourages them to appreciate cultural diversity and respect for other cultures as well,” said 4th grade teacher Evelyn Alarcon, whose students participated in the presentation. “It also helps them identify themselves as being global citizens with the understanding that the world is interconnected. Also, students need to know that tourism supports thousands of jobs from hotel services, travel agencies and tour guides. By understanding the economics of tourism, our students can grasp the concepts of supply and demand, cultural and regional economic development, and the global flow of capital and labor.”
Alarcon has been a MYWAVE Club advisor for 20 years, first starting at Tinian Elementary School before transferring to Garapan Elementary in 2010.
“I realized early on the importance of a program that would promote both economic and environmental awareness to our students,” she said. “After spending some years teaching on Tinian since 2002, I’d come to truly appreciate the beauty and potential of our islands. When I found out about MYWAVE Club through my then principal Mr. Julian Hofschneider, I immediately grabbed the opportunity to be a coordinator…This is a great platform for our students to learn about their own island culture, connect with their community, and become responsible leaders in tourism and conservation.”
Alarcon added that several parents of her club members, organized as the Singing Momshies, joined the cheering squad at Saturday’s event.
This school year’s presentation by MTEC and the MVA also introduces students to the new Marianas global brand, “Far From Ordinary,” and aims to help them see how their Marianas community is distinct as a travel destination.
MTEC is a nonprofit organization whose mission is threefold: to foster community understanding and support of the visitor industry; to educate the public, especially school students, about the value, social benefits, and economic contributions made to the community by the visitor industry; and to instill, improve, and promote the “Hafa Adai-Tirow” hospitality spirit throughout the island community
