While we celebrate our 60th Anniversary as the gold standard in travel education, we want to spotlight how we deliver on our promise and commitment to advancing agent professionalism and success through high-quality education.
Last month, we noted that quality education for yourself and your team is a necessary investment. To help us provide such education to as many advisors as possible, we explored the ways in which you can give back via a monetary donation to The Travel Institute as a non-profit, charitable institution under the U.S. Tax Code and via a time donation as an author, ambassador, proofreader, and so on.
But let us share how we use your generous donations.
Scholarships
- In the last 10 years, The Travel Institute’s Certification Fund has awarded over one million dollars in Scholarships to nearly 5,000 travel professionals! Yep, you read those numbers correctly. Our goal is to make these education programs accessible to all. Why? Better-educated professionals are more efficient, sell more, earn more and enhance industry professionalism. Listen to a few messages from industry superstars who have benefited from their credentials: Scott Moore, CTC, Director, Key Accounts & Partnerships, Celestyal Cruises, Evan McElligott, CTA, President, Longer, Vacations, and Laurie Bohn-Isaure, CTIE, Sr. Director National Accounts, Silversea Cruises.
- Certification is not the only area where we help. In January 2024, over $55,000 was awarded in Scholarships toward the award-winning TRIPKIT program! That’s right, you read those numbers correctly again. Our goal is to provide an all-encompassing foundational program for individuals looking to start a professional travel career.
- But we don’t stop there. We know there is no one-size-fits-all in education. So, in May 2024, we offered $60 assistance toward the industry’s most resourceful library—The Premium Access Library, which houses over 3,000 hours of education, including Specialist courses, such as Group Travel, Luxury Travel, Paris, Vietnam, and so much more.
Educational Content This is the pinnacle for The Travel Institute! Every person here—from volunteers to presidents—has the same mission: to provide quality education. Throughout the years, we’ve adapted to the industry, the learning behaviors, new technology, and necessary skills. Each time, we aimed to develop and deliver education YOU can use immediately. For example, don’t miss tomorrow’s power session The Do’s and Don’ts for Working with Suppliers/Travel Partners, hosted by The Travel Institute’s Travel Career Advancement Manager, Kim Specht, CTIE. And we’ve created numerous programs over the last 60 years. Here are highlights of a few we’ve developed in the last few years.
- Certifications: These programs are constantly being revised to ensure professionals have the most current skills to do their jobs. The latest CTA® update included new modules on marketing and accepting payments. With updates in topics like negotiating and Travel Agency Finances, managers/leaders studying the CTC® and CTIE® courses will receive the content needed to grow their teams and businesses.
- Textbooks: The Travel Institute continues to shine with the Travel Career Development and Exploring the Worldtextbooks, used at many universities and colleges nationwide. Both textbooks are updated biyearly to always stay consistent with industry changes, trends, and knowledge, focusing on travel professionals’ future growth.
- Destination and niche market courses: In the last eight years, The Travel Institute team has launched 15 new destination and lifestyle/niche market specialization courses, including Luxury Travel, Group Travel, Vietnam, and so much more.
- TRIPKIT: As the industry continues to evolve, and more new talent joins, it is imperative to stay current on the knowledge these new professionals need.
The Travel Institute has been the industry’s educational gold standard for the last 60 years, and we look forward to 60 more. We want to thank all of our amazing supporters and volunteers who are always willing to share their time, knowledge, and donations to make quality education a priority in our industry.
Our mission is YOUR success!
