Recognizing her longstanding support for programs which bring business and education together, Bahamas Hotel and Tourism Association (BHTA) President Stuart Bowe, joined by Prime Minister Perry Christie, presented educator Ruth Gardiner with its annual Business-Education Partnership Award. The award was announced at BHTA's recent 60th Anniversary Celebration Ball. According to Bowe, "Education has been a key part of BHTA's work since the late 1970s, when Brendan Foulkes became the first recipient of our scholarship program.

Since that time several hundred Bahamians have received scholarships and have gone on to make their mark in our industry. Our various education and training programs are made possible thanks to industry support and the dedicated work of many of our partners in education. "This year we literally had hundreds of industry volunteers working in the schools and on various education and training projects," states Bowe.

"Ms. Gardiner is a standout volunteer who has worked on many initiatives for a number of years to bridge the education and industry needs gap. She exemplifies the true spirit of partnership - serving on our awards selection committees, as a founding member of our workforce development committee and a reliable resource for numerous projects."

Presently, she is a lecturer at The College of The Bahamas Culinary and Hospitality Management Institute (CHMI) and recently was appointed as the workforce development director on the board for the Caribbean Tourism Organization. Gardner is the third recipient of the award, following former Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Education Elma Garraway (2010) and Ministry of Education Career and Technical Education Officer Sharon Ferguson (2011).

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