Columbus, GA (April 13, 2010)  LaTivia Rivers, Vice President of Visitor Center Operations at the Columbus Convention & Visitors Bureau (CVB), has earned certification as a “Travel Marketing Professional” (TMP) after completing the three-year program of the Southeast Tourism Society (STS) Marketing College. STS Marketing College started in 1992, and 563 people have earned TMP certification.


Ms. Rivers was one of 50 new TMPs recognized at the STS spring meeting in Nashville, Tenn.  She joins a list of 4 staff members at the Columbus, GA CVB to earn this accreditation.  It is the mission of the Columbus, GA CVB to encourage staff to pursue continuing education and program development concerning the tourism industry.

The STS Marketing College is a professional development program held at North Georgia College and State University in Dahlonega, Ga. to teach tourism marketing.

Instructors are working professionals in the travel industry such as convention and visitors bureau executives, public relations practitioners, sales and marketing consultants and research experts.

“This is not another program like ours in the country; we are the envy of travel professionals in other regions,” said Bill Hardman, president and chief executive officer of STS.

Tourism ranks as the first, second or third-largest industry in the 12 STS states that stretch from Virginia to Louisiana.

Course topics include marketing, media relations, tourism advertising, vacation research, crisis management, heritage tourism and community/rural tourism. After the classroom work, students also must complete a project that relates to their employment.

“Our curriculum is practical. What students learn can be put to use as soon as they get back to their workplaces,” Hardman said.

About Southeast Tourism Society (STS) 
Founded in 1983, the Southeast Tourism Society (southeasttourism.org) promotes and develops tourism in its 12 member states of Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia. Its headquarters are in Atlanta. The membership includes state travel offices, attractions, convention and visitors bureaus, and other travel-related organizations.

Tourism remains the second largest industry in Georgia generating over $34 billion. Conventions and tourism brought an economic impact of $359 million to Columbus along with 1.5 million visitors, and employing some 6,900 people according to economic studies provided by Columbus State University’s Abbott-Turner College of Business.

For more information, contact the Columbus CVB at (706) 322.1613 or visit the website at visitcolumbusga.com.