US hospitality and tourism professors don’t mirror the demographics of the industry they serve

Nearly three-quarters of tourism professors are white, a recent analysis found, and nearly half are white men.

By: Michael D. Caligiuri, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona; Miranda Kitterlin-Lynch, Florida International University, and Phil Jolly, Penn State, The Conversation

Outlets: The Conversation

Published: January 26, 2026

Words: 850

Last Updated: 1 month, 2 weeks ago

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By Michael D. Caligiuri, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona; Miranda Kitterlin-Lynch, Florida International University, and Phil Jolly, Penn State

White and male professors continue to dominate U.S. hospitality and tourism education programs, our new research has found, even as the industry is growing increasingly diverse. This imbalance raises questions about who shapes the future of hospitality and whose voices are left out of the conversation.

Our analysis of 862 faculty members across 57 of the …

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