Salt School Celebrates Graduation Of 110 Students: 60 To Receive Employment At The New Asbury Hotel

Free Hospitality School in Asbury Park Hires for Various Roles at The Asbury, The Shore Town's First New Hotel in More Than 50 years

News provided by

iStar

Apr 27, 2016, 10:16 ET

ASBURY PARK, N.J., April 27, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Salt School, a 10-week hospitality training program created and led by renowned hotel innovator David Bowd of Salt Hotels, held its graduation on Saturday, April 23^rd at the Asbury Park Yacht Club in Asbury Park, NJ.

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Salt School Class of 2016 graduates pose with David Bowd, Operator of The Asbury, Asbury Park Mayor John Moor, and iStar Senior Vice President Brian Cheripka

David Bowd awards a Salt School student her diploma

David Bowd closing the award ceremony with a farewell speech to the Class of 2016

Executive team behind Salt School, hospitality training program in conjunction with The Asbury Hotel, Asbury Park, NJ

60 of the 110 graduates will be hired for The Asbury Hotel, the 110 unit hotel owned by waterfront redeveloper iStar (NYSE: STAR), due to open next month, which Bowd is operator for. 90% of new hires are estimated to be Asbury Park residents.

Bowd awarded the degrees. Asbury Park Mayor John Moor and Deputy Mayor Amy Quinn were in attendance, as well as Brian Cheripka, Senior Vice President of Land and Development, iStar.

"My motto has always been, hire the attitude and train the skill," said Bowd. "The students were enthusiastic from day one, so it was deeply gratifying to watch them progress through the program and be able to hire them for The Asbury."

Motivated by his own humble beginnings, Bowd called upon leading executives in the hotel industry to teach Salt sessions. Topics included hospitality and the guest experience; sales and marketing; food and beverage service and trends; revenue management; finance and legal; social media and design; industry marketing and hospitality trends; rooms operations; and human resources.

Alumni without secured positions at the new hotel will be considered for "The Crew," an ambassador training program created by iStar that teaches employment skills and community outreach as it coaches locals on welcoming visitors to the shore town. Other Salt School students will also be considered for positions with Madison Marquette, the company behind establishments on the Asbury Park boardwalk.

"iStar's commitment goes far beyond its robust pipeline of developments," said Cheripka. Through hospitality training programs like Salt School and our Summer Experience Crew — we are bringing together a community."

Asbury Park Mayor John Moor also commented: "Asbury Park is a destination that thrives on the livelihood of the community. Salt School was such a success because it tapped into the collaborative spirit that has always existed in this 'can do' and 'will do' city."

Hiring for the Asbury Hotel is ongoing, and will likely expand as the summer season progresses into July and August. Those interested in jobs at The Asbury Hotel can email [email protected].

About iStar:
iStar (NYSE: STAR) finances, invests in and develops unique properties as a multi-strategy investment REIT—bringing new ways of thinking to real estate ventures in the pursuit of strong risk adjusted returns. Fully integrated across all disciplines, in-house expertise includes loan origination, loan servicing, asset management, architecture and construction, sourcing capital and legal. iStar's balanced portfolio is well diversified by property type, asset type, geography and obligor, with a focus on larger assets located in major metropolitan markets. Additional information on iStar is available on the Company's website at www.iStar.com.

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SOURCE iStar