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<\/a><\/p>\nAfter earning her Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and Marketing from the University of Detroit \u2013 Mercy, Stephanie began her career at one of the world\u2019s largest advertising agencies. \u201cThis is where I experienced racism for the first time in my life, and this is when I realized more than ever that I wanted to be in a position where I would never have to work for anyone else ever again.\u201d<\/p>\n
But Stephanie is much more than an entrepreneur. She\u2019s a leading cultural heritage tourism thought leader who has introduced award-winning innovations and sustainable tourism initiatives that leverage cultural heritage as an economic driver in underserved communities. She\u2019s the founder of some of the most innovative tourism initiatives that are designed to create diversity, equity, and inclusion in the travel industry, such as the Cultural Heritage Economic Alliance (CHEA)<\/a>, Culture OnShore<\/a>, the National Blacks in Travel & Tourism Collaborative<\/a>, and the National Cultural and Heritage Tourism Summit.<\/a><\/p>\n [perfectpullquote align=”full” bordertop=”false” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]\u201cCultural heritage is everywhere in this country and the U.S. Travel & Tourism industry has an incredible opportunity to do a better job promoting it.\u201d[\/perfectpullquote]<\/p>\n Stephanie also started the Cultural Heritage Alliance for Tourism (CHAT)<\/a>, an organization that creates tangible opportunities for minority business owners and entrepreneurs to access the multibillion-dollar Travel & Tourism industry. CHAT\u2019s mission is to ensure inclusion and diversity thrive in the industry. \u201cOften, when a person travels overseas, they visit establishments where the locals go so that they can have authentic local experiences. Cultural heritage tourism highlights the different cultures within destinations through its people, food, music, and art. For example, Miami is a cultural heritage melting pot. Haitian, Bohemian, Cuban, and Black cultures coexist throughout the city and they can be experienced through their history, heritage, music, food, and conversations with locals about their experiences.\u201d<\/p>\n Stephanie’s cultural heritage work has afforded her a spot on the United States Travel and Tourism Advisory Board.<\/a> She\u2019s very clear on the point that \u201cthis is not just my seat at the table. I\u2019m there to represent not only Blacks in the Travel & Tourism industry. I\u2019m representing Hispanic Americans, the LGBTQ community, and the many multicultural audiences that typically don\u2019t have seats at the table where public policy for the Travel & Tourism industry is being made. I will advocate very strongly for public policy that removes barriers against minority-owned businesses in Travel & Tourism. I will also advocate strongly to leverage cultural heritage tourism in the U.S. to drive tourists into underserved communities in destinations throughout the country. Cultural heritage is everywhere in this country and the U.S. Travel & Tourism industry has an incredible opportunity to do a better job promoting it.\u201d<\/p>\n Her work to create diversity, equity, and inclusion in the Travel & Tourism space led her to see that the industry still has much to learn about minority-owned businesses. To address this, she spearheaded the National Blacks in Travel & Tourism<\/a> collaborative, which is dedicated to ensuring Black Travel & Tourism businesses are full participants in the industry and to helping build more diverse and inclusive destinations. \u201cThere\u2019s power in numbers,\u201d Stephanie remarked, \u201cand National Blacks in Travel & Tourism is a collaboration that\u2019s designed to implement sustainable change in this industry and advance opportunities for Blacks. It\u2019s all about how we create opportunities on our own, and how we partner with industry allies to create opportunities that will advance Blacks in Travel & Tourism.\u201d<\/p>\n