Grand Challenge

Tennessee Center for Rural Innovation’s Andrea Kruszka has been elected to the Southeast Tourism Society’s Board of Directors. The Southeast Tourism Society (STS) was created on September 14, 1983, when a small group of industry leaders shared the belief that regional promotion of tourism would create a powerful alliance throughout our country. Andrea describes STS as “a non-profit that connects tourism professionals across the Southeast region of the United States through networking and educational opportunities” focusing on the idea that travel and tourism improves the lives of residents and visitors alike. Their mission is to empower “a diverse network of tourism professionals through Education, Advocacy, Recognition, and Networking.” The STS covers fourteen regions including Alabama, Arkansas, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virgina.  
Andrea’s specific role on the Board of Directors entails promoting the STS mission and vision as well as guiding strategic initiatives and annual plans for the organization. Additionally, part of her job involves serving on one of the planning committees that support the four pillars of the organization–Education, Advocacy, Recognition, and Networking. She will primarily serve on the education committee, which is meant to provide learning opportunities to members throughout the year.  
The largest program provided by the STS is the Marketing College, which is a 3-year continuing education program that grants those who complete it their Travel Marketing Professional certification. Regarding the Marketing College at STS, Andrea says, “I will be finishing my third year in 2023 as part of the Center for Rural Innovation’s rural tourism branding initiative.” Our goal at TCRI is to establish companies and build economic development by providing services such as rural tourism and branding to main street businesses and entrepreneurs throughout the state. The Southeast Tourism Society complements TCRI’s mission to culturally and economically transform rural communities. We are excited to continue partnership and collaboration with the STS to further rural tourism and branding in our service area. 
Andrea is excited to start this new chapter and states, “I’m honored to be elected as one of the Tennessee representatives on the board and look forward to using my knowledge of higher education to explore new partnerships between the STS and the higher learning institutions in the service area.” 
For more information on the STS, visit their website: https://www.southeasttourism.org/