Meet the Dick Pope Sr. Institute for Tourism Studies Visiting Research Fellows
UCF Rosen College provides many opportunities for research and scholarship, among them is a program from the Dick Pope Sr. Institute for Tourism Studies that invites Visiting Research Fellows (VRF) to the college to engage with faculty and students on courses, presentations, projects. The Institute invites a scholar established in his or her field to conduct research here is Central Florida. The research is funded by external or personal sources. This program started approximately a year ago and was in response to the demand by a significant amount scholars who wished to study at Rosen College. Visiting scholars are not compensated, however, Rosen College may provide a stipend of up to $10,000 per year. As such, the VRF must have a source of financial support from outside the University of Central Florida.
A VRF is typically selected from multiple regions around the world, this year Rosen College is proud to welcome scholars from Egypt and China. Meet our current VRFs:
Dr. Elham Fouda
Dr. Elham Fouda has been working in the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism since 1996. Fouda has approximately 22 years of experience in the field. Fouda’s experience in the Ministry of Tourism has allowed her to work in projects with the Green Sharm Steering Committee and Green Star Hotel Program Steering Committee. She has also been involved with multiple projects pertaining to ecotourism. Holding a Bachelor of Arts from Ain Shams University, a Diploma in Tourism, a Master’ Degree and Ph.D. from the Faculty of Tourism and Hotel Management at Helwan University, Egypt, Fouda is currently collaborating on studies involving Green Hotels and Green Destinations, and will be a VRF at Rosen College until the end of February 2019.
Mostafa Selima
Mostafa Selima is the assistant to the Minister of Tourism in Egypt. He has held that role since the Summer of 2017. Selima has an extensive background working in environments such as Tourism Development Authority and the Egyptian Aviation Incentive Program, he is also Technical Secretariat of the Committee for marketing of the Egyptian tourist destinations worldwide, and participates in the Regional Conference and meeting of the Middle East Committee of the World Tourism Organization. Selima’s latest achievement was being selected to be in the Presidential Leadership Program, where only 500 participants are selected from more than 70,000 applicants. This program is designed for leaders from diverse backgrounds that share a commitment to facing society’s challenges. In this Leadership Program, Selima has taken multiple courses, participated in workshops, work groups, and simulations, and partaken in events such as the World Youth Forum.
Jiaxan Wang
Dr. Jiaxan Wang earned her Ph.D. in Management from Tianjin University. Wang has worked on multiple research projects in the area of employee behavior, consumer behavior and service marketing and management. She has shown productivity in her quest for understanding how service firms/organizations can better improve their service quality, productivity and performance. Wang’s dedication to the continuation of research projects in the specific context of employee behavior and service marketing has contributed to theory development, industry practices, and public policy-making pertaining to these markets, which is important to the global travel industry. Wang has been active in research and research dissemination and has had her work in press/print 20 times. Currently, Wang has two papers being prepared for and targeted at top-ranked academic journals. She has finished four external and internal grant activities as an applicant and also engaged in four external grant activities as a participant in China. Her work has been recognized with multiple awards by publishers, journals, and international conferences.
###
–Joseph Sardone, PR Intern