UW students in their professional semester for the outdoor recreation and tourism
management degree pose with Gov. Mark Gordon at the Governor’s Conference for Tourism
and Hospitality in March. From left are Taylor Davis, of Wylie, Texas; Emma Dixon,
of Lawrence, Kan.; Sarah Reed, of Buffalo; Rachel Post, of Kansas City, Mo.; Tianna
Edison, of Prescott, Wis.; and Olivia Palaschak, of Idledale, Colo. (UW Photo)
Students nearing completion of outdoor recreation and tourism management degrees at
the University of Wyoming are completing projects around the state for their professional
semester capstone class.
This year, there are six projects from three project sponsors, all supporting Wyoming’s
No. 2 industry. The 2022 project sponsors are the Wyoming Office of Tourism, Visit
Laramie and the Wind River Visitors Council.
“We are very fortunate to have such great project sponsors this year who helped students
connect with stakeholders across the state,” says Dan McCoy, the degree program’s
professional semester coordinator. “The projects will be impactful to the organizations
sponsoring them and to the communities that benefit from the work of the students.”
For the Wyoming Office of Tourism, four groups of three to four students are completing
tourism asset assessments -- main attractions, hidden gems and local recommendations
for recreational, cultural, lodging and food options -- for 14 counties in the state.
Tourism assessments are occurring in Big Horn, Campbell, Converse, Crook, Goshen,
Hot Springs, Johnson, Lincoln, Niobrara, Platte, Sublette, Uinta, Washakie and Weston
counties.
Students traveled to these counties, met with local stakeholders, visited sites and
are compiling their findings. The students’ findings will help guide the Office of
Tourism’s 2022 destination development program for each county, including elevating
Wyoming’s hidden gems and under-the-radar experiences to key travelers.
Students working with Visit Laramie are researching and developing a tourism ambassador
training program to enhance front-line tourism and hospitality employee knowledge
of Laramie history, culture, recreation and other attraction information. One of the
primary outcomes of the training program is to better support visitors to maximize
their experience in Laramie.
In Fremont County, students are working with the Wind River Visitors Council to seek
the Continental Divide Trail Gateway Community designation through the Continental
Divide Trail Coalition for the city of Lander. Students presented to the Wind River
Outdoor Recreation Collaborative, Fremont County Commission and the Lander City Council;
sought support for the designation; submitted the application; and are awaiting the
results from the coalition. Their final report will help local businesses support
Continental Divide Trail users.
Students will present their findings to in-person audiences and through Zoom April
21, 26 and 28. Students’ project reports will be finalized and submitted to project
sponsors May 8.
For more information, or to attend the presentations either through Zoom or in person,
call McCoy at (307) 766-5009 or email dan.mccoy@uwyo.edu.
Student project groups, their presentation dates and times, along with members and
their hometowns, are:
Continental Divide Trail Gateway Community Designation (presenting Thursday, April
21, from 9:35-10:05 a.m.)
Duluth, Minn. -- Seth Kemp.
Lander -- Bowen Reber.
Parker, Colo. -- Cooper Reisbeck.
Visit Laramie, Tourism Ambassador Training Program (presenting Thursday, April 21,
from 10:10-10:40 a.m.)
Laramie -- Gracie Sossaman.
LaSalle, Ill. -- Maggie Craven.
Wylie, Texas -- Taylor Davis.
Tourism Assessments of Converse, Niobrara, Platte and Goshen Counties (presenting
Tuesday, April 26, from 9:35-10:05 a.m.)
Cheyenne -- George Nykun.
Glenrock -- Piper Steinmetz.
Kansas City, Mo. -- Rachel Post.
Prescott, Wis. -- Tianna Edison.
Tourism Assessments of Big Horn, Hot Springs and Washakie Counties (presenting Tuesday,
April 26, from 10:10-10:40 a.m.)
Idledale, Colo. -- Olivia Palaschak.
Lawrence, Kan. -- Emma Dixon.
Omaha, Neb. -- Andrew Wollenburg.
Tourism Assessments of Lincoln, Sublette and Uinta Counties (presenting Thursday,
April 28, from 9:35-10:05 a.m.)
Anaheim, Calif. -- Dalton Cole.
Bismarck, N.D. -- Erin Barnhardt.
Horseshoe Bay, Texas -- Mick Bailey.
Tourism Assessments of Johnson, Campbell, Crook and Weston Counties (presenting Thursday,
April 28, from 10:10-10:40 a.m.)
Alta -- Zach Ward.
Buffalo -- Kyler Muffett and Sarah Reed.
