Goals for the 17th annual Travel & Dining Auction, planned and implemented entirely by students, are 450 attendees and a net profit of $31,000.
The event will begin at 6:30 p.m. Friday, April 26, in Manhattan’s Conference Center adjacent to the new Hilton Garden Inn. It has outgrown three previous locations. Tickets are $25 in advance and $35 at the door.
Last year, the record-breaking auction featured more than 600 items donated by merchants, faculty, alumni and friends of the department.
Hard-working students who have a passion for event planning or think they want to be an event planner apply to take the three-hour credit auction course. “This major endeavor allows the students to see the nuts and bolts of event planning and all the details needed to make an event like this a success and then get their hands busy and produce the event,” said Nancy Hansen, instructor in hospitality management and dietetics who teaches the class.
The leaders of the coordinating team are usually past auction students who are taking the course for a second time to coordinate and lead one of the major areas of the auction. Those areas are front of house, marketing, food and beverage, and donations.
Students spend hours developing and planning the details of the event. “It takes a special student to be part of the action,” Hansen said. “They have to be very dedicated to be successful. Many hours outside the classroom are spent to gather donations, sell tickets, and work out the logistics of each area of the evening’s activities.”