Since coming to JWU in 1978, Caroline Cooper has been the recipient of numerous JWU faculty Merit Awards, including Outstanding Dean. In 2009, she received the American Hotel & Lodging Educational Institute's prestigious Anthony G. Marshall Award in recognition of her significant long-term contributions to the hospitality industry.As a former dean of the Hospitality College, her progressive style of leadership is credited with making The Hospitality College the nation’s largest hospitality educator, with 11 programs, more than 2,700 students and national ranking in the top 10 programs in the U.S. Prior to joining the staff at JWU, Cooper held a variety of positions in the food service industry including Food Service Administration, Research & Development, New Product Development, New Product Marketing, and was president of her own food service consulting company. She is also a Certified Hotel Administrator. In 1995, the White House recognized Cooper’s international reputation as a leading tourism educator by naming her to several national committees charged with guiding the future of the United State tourism industry. She was selected to serve as a delegate to the White House Conference on Travel & Tourism and was instrumental in the leadership of the Rhode Island White House Conference on Travel and Tourism. Cooper is the past chair and president of the International Council on Hotel, Restaurant and Institutional Education (CHRIE), a past president of both the CAFÉ society and the New England Region of CHRIE. She has served on the Board of Trustees, the Executive Committee, the Nominating Committee and presently Chairs the Certification Commission for the Educational Institute of the American Hotel & Motel Association (AH&MA). She also served on the advisory board for the National Academy Foundations for the Academy of Travel and Tourism. Additionally, she has been an evaluator for the Accreditation Commission for Programs in Hospitality Administration and was one of the founding members and chair of the RI “Rooster Awards”.Cooper has lectured extensively throughout the United States, as well as in Canada, Egypt, Iceland and Israel, and has published in the Journal of Dietetic Software, Introduction to Hotel and Restaurant Management, and Trans World Education Magazine.