Carrying the Torch in Cape May

The breezy, welcoming porch of The Virginia Hotel in the historic seaside city of Cape May, New Jersey, is a far cry from a law office, which is where Jordan Rowan ’12 initially thought he’d find himself upon graduating from Lehigh. Instead, as The Virginia’s general manager, Rowan greets guests on the porch and within the 24-room hotel situated in a landmark building a half-block from the beach.

Unaware of the path he’d eventually take, Rowan, a self-described “people person,” interned at a law firm the summer after his first year at Lehigh.

“I loved that opportunity and had a lot of fun that summer,” he says. “And I totally realized that I didn’t want to do law.”

Rowan, who double-majored in political science and sociology/anthropology, returned to campus and to courses he says pushed him to think critically while expanding his creative and persuasive writing abilities. He learned to present an argument, communicate his thoughts and effectively resolve issues. These skills serve him well at The Virginia.

At the hotel, Rowan says, communication and compromise are critical: “I have to provide resolutions and persuade guests that the resolution is good for them and good for us. ... I write responses to guests and post responses on TripAdvisor. I have to be very diplomatic and aware of my audience.”

It’s an audience with which Rowan is acutely familiar. He has worked in customer service since he was 14, beginning with a job as a dishwasher. At Lehigh he worked briefly at the Goosey Gander and for four years as a house assistant at the Zoellner Arts Center. In the summer following his sophomore year, Rowan headed to Cape May, where his parents own a home, and worked as a banquet server at Congress Hall, America’s oldest seaside resort. The next summer he returned to Congress Hall and had the opportunity to take on a management role for weddings and other events.

“I found that I loved management,” Rowan says. “I seemed to have a knack for it.”

He approached the resort’s general manager about opportunities after graduation and was hired as the manager of the pool and beach department for the following summer. When the summer season and that particular contract came to an end, Rowan was asked to stay on, this time as manager of the resort’s restaurant, the Blue Pig Tavern. Four years later, at the age of 26, he’s managing The Virginia, another property of parent company Cape Resorts. The youngest general manager in the company’s history, Rowan takes his role seriously.

“We get so many people coming here to celebrate a special occasion and it’s such an honor to be trusted with that,” he says. “People work all year to be able to come here for a week. ... The Virginia has a long tradition and history and legacy, and I’m happy to carry on that torch.”

Another torch Rowan carries is for a certain South Bethlehem institution:

“Even being here, getting an opportunity to really see some of the highest ends of the industry and eat great food and work with great chefs and hoteliers, the best sandwich in the world is still at the Goosey Gander,” he says with a grin.