During the Spring 2018 semester, the event management students in the Business Event Coordination class partnered with Konza United Way to produce a series of six events across Manhattan in the month of April and to conduct research for them on the community awareness of United Way. The first five events were localized awareness events for the United Way and occurred in the Walmart plaza, Westloop plaza, Downtown area, Aggieville area, and on Kansas State University’s campus. These awareness events culminated in a large community event to recognize all partners, programs, and the community, which took place in City Park on Thursday, April 26. Across the five promotional events, there were over 600 students and community members exposed to the Konza United Way and the Kansas State University Hospitality Management program. At the culminating event, there were over 430 attendees at the event and many high level invited speakers and sponsors. Additionally, the Hospitality Management department received recognition for this partnership in several radio station ads and marketing efforts. The research was conducted across all events by one our graduate students and will be presented to their Board of Directors in May. All of the students did such a fantastic job for the Konza United Way that a donation was made to the Hospitality Excellence Fund in recognition of the event management students hard work.
The Travel and Dining Auction class was also hard at work planning the 22nd Annual Travel and Dining Auction which occurred on April 21, 2018. This year’s theme was “Midnight in Manhattan” and for the first time in many years, the event was held on campus at the Kansas State University Student Union.
There were over 210 attendees, over 100 unique gift packages, and the event raised over $25,000 to support student clubs and scholarships. In addition to our annual favorites, the wine wall that began last year expanded to include beer and wine and a fun new game was added.
The Food and Beverage Management capstone class catered all of the food for the event which was a unanimous hit with everyone in attendance.
Please save the date for the 23rd annual Travel and Dining Auction on Friday, April 26, 2019 at the Kansas State University Grand Ballroom. Next year’s theme is “Little Italy in the Little Apple.”