Nominations are now open for the 2026 Stars of the Industry Awards! 🌟 Each year, AHLA and the AHLA Foundation recognize the hotel industry's top talent across the following categories: 🏆 North Star Award: Lodging Employee of the Year 🏆 Stevan Porter Emerging Hospitality Leader of the Year 🏆 ForWard Paving the Way Award (recognizing female trailblazers) 🏆 Scholar of the Year Award (recognizing outstanding hospitality student achievement) 🏆 Hotel Hero Award Winners will be announced at the N

8 years ago, we opened our doors to the first Akilah Institute class: 50 Hospitality Management students, sharing two classrooms. Today, nearly 500 students are finishing up our 8th school year and preparing for final presentations and exams. Three classes of Hospitality Management, Business Management & Entrepreneurship, and Information Systems students fill the hallways and classrooms of our four-story campus in downtown Kigali. Our recruitment team is preparing for next week's orientation ses