West Georgia Technical College’s Customer Service and Hospitality Integrated Education and Training (IET) program achieved a 100% pass rate on the Certified Guest Service Professional (CGSP) exam. Pictured from left are Brandon Poague, Workforce Training Coordinator for WGTC, and students Soon Ju Jo, Viviana Rojas Hernandez, Graciela Mendoza Rodriguez, Ren Furong, and Becker Hollewell.
All eight students enrolled in West Georgia Technical College’s (WGTC) Customer Service and Hospitality Integrated Education and Training (IET) program passed the Certified Gold Standard Professional (CGSP) exam, earning a 100% pass rate for the class.
The Customer Service and Hospitality IET program is offered through WGTC’s Adult Education division. The two-to-three-week course is designed to help students develop skills in communication, interviewing, team building, and customer service, while also receiving industry-specific training. This combination of foundational and industry-specific skills helps adult learners prepare for the workforce and pursue career opportunities.
After passing the CGSP exam, Furong Ren, Ikran Harrati, Becker Hollewell, Soon Ju Jo, Patricia Keller Faustino Margoni, Graciela Mendoza Rodriguez, Viviana Rojas Hernandez, and Jonida White earned their guest service certification through the American Hotel & Lodging Educational Institute (AHLEI).
“These students are learning about essential skills that are needed to provide quality guest service, such as how to solve multi-step problems,” said Brandon Poague, Adult Education Workforce Training Coordinator for WGTC. “Along with taking the exam, they had to apply those essential skills into a presentation. That seemed to be a big hit with the class because they were able to apply those standards in actual workplace settings.”
The Customer Service and Hospitality IET program is part of WGTC’s Learn-2-Earn program, which connects short-term education and training with opportunities for individuals to earn a livable wage. Through WGTC’s Adult Education Program, participants receive targeted, contextualized instruction designed to help individuals successfully pass the GED exam, align with short-term industry recognized training, and be successful in the workforce.
In addition to Customer Service and Hospitality, WGTC offers six other Learn-2-Earn programs: Welding, Commercial Truck Driving (CDL), Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA), Entrepreneurship – Small Business, Childcare and Manufacturing Basics.
“Our Learn-2-Earn programs provide adult learners with the unique opportunity to earn a nationally recognized workforce credential while pursuing their GED or English language learner goals,” said Rebecca Wheeler, Dean of Adult Education at WGTC. “This combination builds confidence, creates employment opportunities, supports career advancement, and opens pathways to further education, making a lasting impact on students and their families.”
To learn more about WGTC’s Customer Service and Hospitality IET program and other Learn-2-Earn opportunities, please visit https://www.westgatech.edu/adu
West Georgia Technical College, with campuses in Carroll, Coweta, Douglas, Haralson, and Troup counties and class sites in Heard and Meriwether counties, offers more than 120 associate degree, diploma, and technical certificate programs of study. A unit of the Technical College System of Georgia, West Georgia Tech is one of the largest of the state’s 22 technical colleges. For more information, please visit www.westgatech.edu.
Author: Douglas Salter
