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SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico– Caribbean tourism industry professional Stacy Cox has been elected president of the Caribbean Society of Hotel Association Executives (CSHAE) for the next two years.

Cox, who unexpectedly took the top job early last year following an unscheduled leadership change, received a full two-year mandate at the association’s annual general meeting, which preceded this month’s 36th annual Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association (CHTA) Caribbean Travel Marketplace event in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

CSHAE is an independent organization aimed at advancing professional development and strengthening networking among Caribbean hotel and tourism association executives.

The association’s 2018-20 Executive Board will be chaired by Gilda Gumbs Samuel, Executive Director of the Anguilla Hotel and Tourism Association, while Brian Frontin, CEO of the Trinidad Hotels, Restaurant & Tourism Association, will serve as Vice President. Miles Mercera, President and CEO of the Curaçao Hospitality & Tourism Association, will serve as Treasurer, while Clarisa Jimenez, President and CEO of the Puerto Rico Hotel & Tourism Association, has been appointed Secretary.

Other elected CSHAE Board Directors include Avril Alexander, Executive Director of the British Virgin Islands Chamber of Commerce & Hotel Association; Tessie Duran Tonaco, Marketing Director of the Belize Hotel Association; and Lisa Hamilton, President of the U.S. Virgin Islands Hotel & Tourism Association.

Cox asserted her mandate includes increased engagement on issues such as education and training, advocacy, airlift capacity, disaster management and the sharing economy: “It is an honor to continue to serve the region’s hotel and tourism associations and their members and focus on the many pressing issues facing the Caribbean’s sustainability.”

While in San Juan, hotel association executives attended their annual leadership conference, sponsored by American Resort Development Association – Resort Owners’ Coalition (ARDA-ROC) and facilitated by Adriana Serna, ASAE (The Center for Association Leadership) Facilitator and Communications Manager of CHTA.