Kumi Taylor wins NSW Tourism Minister’s Student Achiever Award

Presented by Tourism Minister Stuart Ayres in a ceremony at Parliament House in Sydney today, Kumi was excited to share the moment - and the NSW Tourism Minister’s Student Achiever Award - with her parents.

“I commend each student who has shown dedication and passion for the industry during their studies and they can proud of their efforts, which help to ensure our NSW tourism industry continues to thrive,” Mr Ayres told the gathering of students and their families.

Kumi, a former Byron Bay High School student, said she was keen to play her part.

“After almost two years of study at Southern Cross I have become particularly interested in the sustainable aspect of tourism management. This is a rapidly increasing issue in our society and is important to me as an individual raised in the generation leading to make a change for our future.

“I am so grateful to have been nominated by the University. Words cannot describe how blown away I am. It's all very exciting and definitely not what I would have ever expected to achieve through my studies,” Kumi said.

Since 1990, the NSW Government has acknowledged academically high-achieving tourism and hospitality students at an annual Minister’s Student Achievers Awards ceremony.

Dr John Haw, the course coordinator of the Bachelor of Business in Tourism and Hospitality Management degree, described Kumi as an outstanding and exemplary student.

“While Kumi is enrolled at the Lismore campus, she has really embraced the Southern Cross University learning approach and our multiple campuses. She has studied units in her tourism major on-campus at Lismore, on-campus at the Gold Coast and also online, all the while achieving great grades,” said Dr Haw.

“Adaptability and flexibility are in-demand skills for many tourism organisations. Kumi demonstrated in her first year she possesses both academic and essential life skills. This will place her well ahead of tourism graduates from other universities.

“This adaptability and flexibility that’s embedded in the curriculum at Southern Cross University I think gives our students the edge over more traditional institutions.”