When Mary Jo Dolasinski, an associate professor at the School of Hospitality and Sports Business, thinks back on her 30+ years of leadership and service with the Council on Hotel, Restaurant, and Institutional Education (ICHRIE), one theme springs to mind: the importance of connections.
“I think it’s important for people to be able to network in person, even in an increasingly digitized world,” she said. "There’s still a lot of value in getting together with a group of people who are sometimes interested in the same things as you — and sometimes have differing opinions you can learn from! You’re able to interact with one another in ways that don’t always happen online.”
ICHRIE recently honored Dolasinski with their Medal of Honor: one of their most prestigious awards, bestowed only occasionally and designed to recognize exceptional contributions to the professional organization. It’s a testament to Dolasinski’s track record of creating spaces where in-person networks and connections can flourish; the organization has also given her accolades as an industry partner, a researcher, and a teacher.
The journey from industry to academia
The way Dolasinski sees it, her work with ICHRIE is her way of giving back.
“It’s done a lot to help me over the years,” she said. “It’s done a lot to expose me to a world that is so much bigger than I would have had otherwise.”
Dolasinski’s involvement with ICHRIE started in 1993 while working for a lodging management company. Over the years, she took on a number of leadership positions within the organization. She founded and ran an interest group for industry within ICHRIE. She served as a board member for 15 years; most recently, she spent three years as the director of conferences.
At the same time, Dolasinski was considering her own career trajectory. She loved her role as VP of Talent but sought a change of pace from the long hours and intense travel schedule.
“I met a lot of lifelong educators through ICHRIE,” she said. “As I talked with them, and learned more about higher ed from them, I started thinking that this was what I needed to pivot into.”
Dolasinski earned her PhD while still working full-time. As late as the end of 2015, with her degree conferral approaching, she had no immediate plans to move out of industry.
Then, on Christmas Eve, she got a call from DePaul.
Her connections to educators helped her take the leap.
“I wouldn’t have gotten the call from DePaul if it wasn’t for ICHRIE,” she reflected. “I’m just now realizing that. My colleagues at the School of Hospitality and Sports Business now — I met them at ICHRIE.”
Leadership, research, and a global perspective
At DePaul, Dolasinski is Vi
ce President of Faculty Council. She served for four years as a member and then chair of DePaul’s Committee on Curriculum and Programs (CCP). As a leader within DePaul, Dolasinski regularly draws on her industry experience. It helps her see the university’s operations as a business, she said; it helps her take a pragmatic approach to making decisions. As for the connections Dolasinski has made through ICHRIE? They are more valuable than ever.
The organization’s members, who number more than 2,400, are spread out across the world.
“I’ve been able to collaborate with colleagues and share research findings through conference presentations across the U.S., as well as in places like Dublin, Manchester, and Paris,” Dolasinski said.
“Just last fall, I presented on technology in hospitality in Vienna,” she continued. The city’s cultural context, she said, gave her the opportunity to hear new perspectives on how technology gets integrated into day-to-day life. “The opportunity to attend conferences abroad — to share information, to hear what questions get asked: that’s really valuable.”
As Dolasinski reflects on her own journey, the interplay between technological advances and human connections emerges as a theme. Technology and connection are not mutually exclusive — far from it, Dolasinski stresses. But if her experience has taught her anything, it is that there is no substitute for face-to-face connections: for the kind of connections that can’t be predicted or engineered in advance.
“I know that a lot of clubs and organizations are going by the wayside as the world changes,” she said. “And some of them probably should. But I still think it’s vital to have professional organizations. That’s how you meet people, that’s how you grow, that’s how you learn – and that’s also, sometimes, how you progress in your career. I mean, I’m a case in point. I wouldn’t be at DePaul without ICHRIE. And I didn’t know it at the time. It’s just because I knew people. And because they saw the work I was doing.”