Hi there! My name is Zach King. I’m from Powell, Ohio, and am a first-year Hospitality Management major and Business minor. In my free time, I enjoy running, listening to music, and spending time with my friends and family. On campus, I am involved with BuckeyeThon, Cru, and the Hospitality Management Association. In my first year at OSU, I hope to become more social and meet new people, as well as establish myself in the Hospitality Management program.

I came to Ohio State in hopes of developing the skills to help other people and place a positive impact on the world. I have always cared deeply about others and have loved to help people. I hope that through my major curriculum and everything else that OSU has to offer, I will develop a Hospitality mentality and in all become a better person. In high school, I was most interested in my math, science, and digital art classes. While my major doesn’t necessarily focus around these disciplines directly, I hope to use the concepts behind them-logic, creativity, and flexibility, to name a few-towards my major-specific classes. I was heavily influenced by my film teacher during my senior year of high school, who encouraged me to focus less on the tools and technology I was using to create projects, and more on what I was aiming to create. I will aim to use this approach as I serve others in my career. As far as my goals academically, I aim to do the best I possibly can in my studies, while understanding that my “best” might not always equate to a high grade on an assignment or in a class.

In the Hospitality field, I am most interested in managing or working in a hotel or resort. More specifically, I’d enjoy working in the front-of-house in a position such as a front desk associate. In high school, I enjoyed working as a cashier and service desk associate at a retail store. Through helping guests with their requests and concerns, I was able to create positive experiences firsthand and put smiles on peoples’ faces, something I enjoyed greatly. Thus, I’d like to my career to revolve around making positive experiences for others. In this way, I hope to make a significant impact on the lives of many.

Beyond the Hospitality and Retail fields, I have always enjoyed serving others. In high school, I’d spend many Saturday afternoons helping those at a local “free store” find free clothing and a hot meal. Additionally, I’d go on a week-long mission trip each summer, traveling everywhere to the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota, to Phenix City, Alabama. Even though my work seemed insignificant to me, I was able to see the great impact it had on the communities I served. I hope to continue to serve others through mission work while at Ohio State, perhaps through an organization such as BUCK-I-SERV. I have already helped to better the Columbus community as an OSU student though Hospitality Listens, a special dinner for families with children on the Autism spectrum. I enjoyed working this event as I was able to see the positive impact I was able to put on the lives of children and their families. Therefore, I plan on assisting with this event in the future.