Program Director
Instructional Associate Professor
Department of Sport Management
Ph.D. in Sport Management, University of Georgia (2013)
M.S. in Sport Management, University of Florida (2005)
B.A. in Business Administration, University of Florida (2003)
Office: FLG 306
Address: P.O. Box 118208, Gainesville, FL 32611-8208
Contact: (352) 294-1663
Email: atavor@ufl.edu
Biography
Alyssa L. Tavormina, Ph.D. is the instructional associate professor and program director of the online sport management master’s program at the University of Florida in the Department of Sport Management. She holds her Ph.D. from the University of Georgia, and her main research interests revolve around sport marketing, specifically sport branding and sport consumer behavior. Prior to rejoining the faculty in the Department of Sport Management in 2014, she served as a lecturer and the internship supervisor in the sport management undergraduate program, as well as the faculty advisor of the Gator Sport Management Club, from 2005-2008.
She is a member of the North American Society of Sport Management (NASSM) and the Sport Marketing Association (SMA). Dr. Tavormina has numerous presentations at national and international conferences related to the topics of sport branding and sport consumer behavior. Her work is published in journals such as the International Journal of Sport Management and Event Management. She has also co-authored multiple book chapters on sport branding.
Research Interests
Courses
Senior Lecturer
Department of Sport Management
M.S. in Hospitality and Tourism Management, University of Central Florida (2007)
B.S. in Health, Leisure, and Exercise Science, University of West Florida (1998)
Office: FLG 302
Address: P.O. Box 118208, Gainesville, FL 32611-8208
Social Media
Biography
Brian D. Avery is a seasoned professional with a career spanning over three decades in the events, venues, and attractions industry. His expertise lies in four vital areas: risk and safety management, event design and execution, attraction operations, and education.
Brian’s journey began at a young age, working as a midway operator at Boardwalk and Baseball amusement park, which sparked his passion for the industry. His career includes managing five restaurants at Universal Studios in Orlando, working as a SeaWorld and Discovery Cove safety specialist, and contributing significantly to post-Katrina tradeshow recovery efforts in New Orleans with GES Exposition Services.
Academically, Brian holds a Bachelor of Science in Health, Leisure, and Exercise Science, a Post-Baccalaureate Graduate Certificate in Industrial Engineering with a concentration in Human Factors and Safety, and a Master of Science in Hospitality and Tourism Management. He completed coursework for a Ph.D. in Hospitality Education, focusing on events, tourism, and attraction safety and risk management.
Brian’s commitment to education is evident through his roles as an instructor at the Rosen College of Hospitality Management at the University of Central Florida and as a lecturer at the University of Florida’s College of Health and Human Performance.
He has developed innovative curricula, including a minor in Live Entertainment Management and a Certificate in Legal and Risk Management, and introduced a Theme Park and Attraction Management course. His influence extends internationally, providing safety consulting and expert witness services across the United States, the United Kingdom, Dubai, Saudi Arabia, and the Caribbean.
Additionally, Brian is actively studying artificial intelligence and its applications in enhancing safety, efficiency, and management in his fields of expertise.
Research Interests
Courses
Director of Racquet Sports Specialization
Instructor
Professional Racquets Management
Department of Sport Management
M.S. in Education, University of Missouri (2017)
B.S. in Business Administration, University of Florida (1985)
Office: FLG 300
Address: P.O. Box 118208, Gainesville, FL 32611-8208
Contact: (913) 800-4616
Email: kimbastable@ufl.edu
Biography
Kim Bastable joined the College of Health and Human Performance as an adjunct lecturer in August 2019 and was named as director of the Professional Racquets Management program in January of 2020. She led the Gator women’s tennis team as captain in the early 1980s and was selected as an NCAA All-American in 1984 and All Southeastern Conference in 1983 and 1984. Kim has successfully served multiple roles within the tennis industry in her career, including tennis club professional, park and recreation tennis program director, junior league director for KC Junior Tennis League, high school coach for Kansas City Christian School, and a collegiate coach for the University of Kansas. Kim is an RSPA Elite-level and PTR Professional-level 2 certified pro. She is also certified as a Mental Toughness Specialist through Johnson and Johnson’s Human and Performance Institute, as a Mental Game Coach through Peak Performance Sports, and has completed the Executive Certificate in Leadership from University of Notre Dame. Kim is passionate about sports as a growth opportunity for life skills and character. She consults with athletic programs regarding use of the Athlete-Centered model, and she is interested in helping all coaches lead with a holistic approach and as transformational leaders.
Courses
Instructional Associate Professor
Department of Applied Physiology & Kinesiology
Ph.D. Biobehavioral Science, University of Florida (2015)
M.S. in Human Performance, University of Florida (2011)
M.Ed. in Curriculum & Instruction, University of Missouri (2007)
B.S. in Psychology, University of Florida (2005)
Office: FLG 140
Address: P.O. Box 118205, Gainesville, FL 32611-8208
Contact: (352) 294-1721
Email: gbeatty@hhp.ufl.edu
Biography
Garrett Beatty joined the College of Health & Human Performance as an instructional assistant Professor in August 2015. Garrett studied biobehavioral science under the mentorship of Dr. Christopher Janelle. Garrett’s research interests include studying the strategies individuals employ to regulate emotional experiences in order to improve human performance within emotionally charged environments. Garrett is also interested in investigating how social, psychological, pedagogical, coaching, and management principles can be leveraged to enhance the career and life development of athletes. As a lecturer, Garrett aims to disseminate knowledge garnered from cutting edge research to undergraduate and graduate students studying sport psychology, exercise psychology, and athlete development. Garrett is constantly seeking ways to incorporate technology into teaching strategies for on-campus, blended, and fully online courses.
Research Interests
Courses
Assistant Professor
Department of Sport Management
Ph.D. in Sport Management, University of Florida
M.A. in Sport Management, University of Florida
B.A. in Physical Education, Seoul National University
Email: yhchang@hhp.ufl.edu
Biography
Yonghwan Chang (Ph.D., University of Florida) is an assistant professor of sport management. Previously, Chang served as an assistant professor at the University of Minnesota and Texas Tech University from 2016 to 2020. For approximately three years, Chang worked at Kumho as a financial investment consultant. Chang has been named a North American Society for Sport Management (NASSM) Research Fellow. Chang has also been honored as an Emerging Scholar in Sport Marketing by the American Marketing Association’s (AMA) Sport and Sponsorship-Linked Marketing Special Interest Group.
Research Interests
Chang’s research interests are sport marketing and consumer behavior, with an emphasis on two lines of inquiry: (i) experiential consumption and (ii) sport sponsorship. Sport experiences are largely subjective, contextual, hedonic, and affective in nature, and thus he aims to provide an improved understanding of consumers’ decision-making processes as well as the benefits and values of sport experiences. He explores a variety of experiential consumption areas such as luxury services, spectator sports, and social media. The primary objective of his sport sponsorship research is to identify the complex network of brand associations stored in fans’ memory in order to optimize desirable consumption outcomes. He works toward expanding current sponsorship literature by integrating recent metacognitive accounts of consumers’ perception and assessment with the purpose of filling explanatory gaps in the existing research.
As a means to create innovative and impactful knowledge, Chang has a keen interest in adapting emerging technologies. He utilizes technologies in three ways: i) as a statistical tool, ii) as a measurement of consumer cognition and emotion, and iii) as a research context. He is proficient in the R programming language and open-source software for statistical analyses. Chang desires to improve and diversify existing methods in order to more accurately measure consumer cognition and emotions, thus overcoming response biases. In particular, he explores sport consumers’ unfiltered, natural, and real-life expression of their emotions by employing a combination of machine learning and Bayesian optimization techniques. Most recently, he utilizes entertainment technologies as research contexts in order to identify major industrial and academic trends. He explores the role of simulated environments in developing spectators’ emotional inertia and resilience.
Courses
Assistant Professor
Department of Sport Management
Office: FLG 250C
Address: P.O. Box 118208, Gainesville, FL 32611-8208
Biography
Molly Harry is an assistant professor in the Department of Sport Management. Prior to coming to UF, she was an assistant professor in the Department of Recreation and Sport Management (RESM) at the University of Arkansas.
Through predominantly qualitative and mixed methods approaches, her research explores ways to integrate “big-time” athletics into the American academy with a focus on two areas: (1) Understanding the relationship between the NCAA, institutions, and athletic departments, and (2) examining ways the NCAA, institutions and athletic departments can improve athletes’ developmental opportunities and experiences.
In 2024, Harry was named the College Sport Research Institute’s (CSRI) Emerging Scholar. She has served in roles as an assistant editor for the Journal of Higher Education and Athletics Innovation and an editorial board member for the Journal of Issues in Intercollegiate Athletics (JIIA).
Harry has several publications in JIIA , the Journal of Intercollegiate Sport (JIS), and Innovative Higher Education, with forthcoming works in both the Sociology of Sport Journal and Communication and Sport.
Harry was born in Gainesville and grew up in Tampa. She enjoys working out, hiking, cooking/trying new recipes, reading mystery novels, and watching sports with family and friends.
Research Interests
Courses
All my professors were very well-connected in the sport industry and offered real-world perspectives in each of my classes.
Matt LaCoille
Assistant Director, Athletics and Parent Giving
New England College
Professor
Department Chair
Department of Sport Management
Ph.D. in Park, Recreation, and Tourism Resources, Michigan State University (2006)
M.S. in Recreation Management, Loughborough University, Loughborough, England (2000)
B.S. in Physical Education and Sports Science, Aristotle University, Thessaloniki, Greece (1996)
Office: FLG 190A
Address: P.O. Box 118208, Gainesville, FL 32611-8208
Contact: (352) 294-1668
Email: kkaplanidou@hhp.ufl.edu
Biography
Kiki Kaplanidou is a professor and chair of the Department of Sport Management at the University of Florida, where she also serves as an affiliate faculty member of the Eric Friedheim Tourism Institute. She holds her Ph.D. from Michigan State University. Her main research interests revolve around mega and small scale sport event image perceptions; sport event consumer behaviors; sport events’ impacts on community development via legacy management programs; and interactions between event image, destination image, and event sponsors’ images. Dr. Kaplanidou has conducted research for the International Olympic Committee related to the legacy of the Olympic Games and a number of sport related organizations.
She is a member of the North American Society of Sport Management, European Association for Sport Management, Greek Association for Sport Management, and the Travel and Tourism Research Association. Dr. Kaplanidou has numerous presentations in national and international conferences related to the topic of sport consumer behaviors, sport tourism and mega event impacts. Her work is published in journals such as Journal of Sport Management, European Sport Management Quarterly, Sport Management Review, Journal of Sport & Tourism, Journal of Travel Research, Journal of Leisure Research, Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Research and Leisure Sciences.
Research Interests
Courses
Professor
Department of Sport Management
Ph.D. in Sport Management, Ohio State University (2000)
M.A. in Physical Education, Ohio State University (1996)
B.A. in Physical Education, Seoul National University (1991)
Office: FLG 186A
Address: P.O. Box 118208, Gainesville, FL 32611-8208
Contact: (352) 294-1665
Email: yongko@hhp.ufl.edu
Biography
Dr. Yong Jae Ko is a professor at the University of Florida.
His primary research interests are (a) service marketing and (b) sport consumer behavior. A particular research interest includes consumer socio-psychological constructs such as attitude, perception, and belief about sport organizations and their product brands; sport participation motivation/involvement; and commitment/identification of sport consumers. This line of research has been extended to a variety of segments in the sport industry such as sport sponsorship, college sport, sport e-business, and martial arts. The overriding goal of this line of research is to develop an improved understanding of sport consumers’ decision-making processes and provide sport organizations with managerial implications. Ultimately, his scholarly efforts will help communities improve quality of life for individuals and families through sport participation, with the added benefit of also improving their psychological and physical health. Many of his studies have been published in peer-reviewed sport management and marketing journals (e.g., Journal of Sport Management, Sport Management Review, International Journal of Sports Marketing and Sponsorship, and Sport Marketing Quarterly). He also published his research outcomes in the relevant premier journals related to these lines of research (e.g., Journal of Marketing Management, Journal of Business and Industrial Marketing, Asia Pacific Journal of Marketing and Logistics, and Annals of Tourism Research).
Dr. Ko is a member of the Sport Marketing Association (SMA) and the North American Society for Sport Management (NASSM). His professional service has been excellent as he routinely serves on various committees and advisory boards in national and international sport organizations.
Research Interests
Courses
Instructional Assistant Professor
Department of Sport Management
Address: P.O. Box 118208, Gainesville, FL 32611-8208
Research Interests
Assistant Professor
Department of Sport Management
Ph.D. in Sport Management, Florida State University (2017)
M.S. in Sport Management, Florida State University (2013)
B.S. in Physical Education, University of Otago (2012)
Office: FLG 306
Address: P.O. Box 118208, Gainesville, FL 32611-8208
Contact: (352) 294-1654
Email: mcleod.c@ufl.edu
Biography
Dr. Chris McLeod is an assistant professor with the Department of Sport Management at the University of Florida. He studies athletes’ work, development, and employment conditions with a focus on athlete-centric approaches. Based on research with new leagues in the United States, he created the concept of a human capital ecosystem (e.g., Major League Rugby, National Pro Fastpitch, National Women’s Hockey League, Premier Lacrosse League). He is currently leading a team of researchers that use a mix of analytics and qualitative methods to examine whether athletes overestimate their chances of “making it.” His goal is to create a theory helping athletes make excellent decisions about their careers, contracts, and human capital investments.
He has published research in top peer-reviewed sport journals such as Journal of Sport Management, Sport Management Review, Sociology of Sport Journal, Journal of Sports Economics, and Journal of Sport and Social Issues. He also advises More Than Baseball, an organization dedicated to improving minor league baseball players’ pay and working conditions. They have conducted research to better serve players’ needs and to help them flourish. He is interested in working with other athlete-led and worker-led organizations.
He is from Aotearoa/New Zealand and enjoys playing all sports.
Research Interests
Courses
Professor of Practice
Department of Sport Management
Office: FLG 308
Address: P.O. Box 118208, Gainesville, FL 32611-8208
Biography
Scott Nestler is a business analytics “pracademic” (practitioner-academic). He currently serves as a professor of practice in the Department of Sport Management, College of Health & Human Performance at the University of Florida.
He is also an affiliated professor in the Department of Information Systems & Operations Management in UF’s Warrington College of Business.
Previously, he was director of research and development, as well as a principal data scientist and optimization lead, at SumerSports; director of statistics and modeling at Accenture Federal Services; and associate teaching professor and academic director of the M.S. in Business Analytics program in the Mendoza College of Business at the University of Notre Dame.
Originally from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, Scott holds a B.S. in Civil Engineering from Lehigh University, where he also received his commission as an officer through the U. S. Army Reserve Officer Training Corps.
He earned a Ph.D. in Business and Management (Management Science and Finance) from the University of Maryland in 2007 and a Master of Science in Applied Mathematics and Operations Research from the Naval Postgraduate School in 1999. He also earned a Master of Strategic Studies from the U.S. Army War College in 2013.
He retired from the U.S. Army as a colonel in 2015. In his last Army assignment, Scott served as director of strategic analytics at the Center for Army Analysis, an internal Army think tank.
Scott’s other tours of duty include assignments as an assistant professor at the Naval Postgraduate School; director of the Center for Data Analysis and Statistics at West Point; chief of strategic assessments at the U.S. Embassy–Baghdad; force structure analyst in the Pentagon; and director of computer operations at West Point.
Scott won the Barchi Prize from the Military Operations Research Society in 2010 and was recognized by INFORMS with the Volunteer Award (Gold Level) in 2019.
Scott has earned and maintains the Certified Analytics Professional (CAP) and Accredited Professional Statistician (PStat) certifications. He has published numerous articles and is co-author (with Wayne Winston and Kostas Pelechrinis) of the book “Mathletics.”
Research Interests
Courses
Instructional Associate Professor
Department of Sport Management
Ph.D. in Business Administration, Temple University (2016)
M.A. in Education, Brooklyn College (2005)
B.S. in Latin, Vassar College (2003)
Office: FLG 304
Address: P.O. Box 118208, Gainesville, FL 32611-8208
Contact: (352) 294-2821
Email: christinewegner@ufl.edu
Biography
Christine Wegner, Ph.D. is an instructional associate professor with the Department of Sport Management at the University of Florida. Her research interests include sport for social change and marginalized populations in sport, particularly the role of organizations and organizing in the formation of identities in and through sport. She has also worked with several local and national non-profit sport organizations, providing program and membership evaluations as a means of strategic programming and fundraising. Dr. Wegner has published in the Journal of Sport Management, the Journal of Leisure Research, and the Journal of Applied Sport Psychology. She is a member of the North American Society for Sport Management (NASSM).
Research Interests
Courses
Instructional Associate Professor
Undergraduate Coordinator
Department of Sport Management
Ph.D. in Health and Human Performance, Specialization in Tourism, Minor in Sociology, University of Florida (2001)
M.S. in Recreational Studies, University of Florida (1994)
B.S. in Recreation, University of Florida (1993)
Office: FLG 308
Address: P.O. Box 118208, Gainesville, FL 32611-8208
Contact: (352) 294-1662
Email: willming@hhp.ufl.edu
Biography
Cynthia Willming, Ph.D., joined UF in 2009 as an adjunct faculty member. Willming came to UF from Bethune Cookman College where she was chair of the recreation administration program. Willming was also an assistant professor of marketing and leisure service delivery at California State University, Chico.
Willming’s area of research in tourism studies focused on the leisure travel behaviors of African Americans and their perceptions of racial discrimination while traveling for pleasure. The focus of this research has been to examine perceived racial discrimination based on sociological factors.
Research Interests
Courses
The faculty in the program was exceptional. The breadth of knowledge they shared is used daily in both my work and study. My instructors were very helpful in understanding brand new concepts in sport management. I was only ever interested in becoming a better coach; I got that and so much more. The program has driven me to keep learning more.David Wilson
M.S. in Sport Management
To learn more about the University of Florida’s online master’s in sport management and download a free brochure, fill out the fields below. You can also call (352) 662-3395 to speak to one of our enrollment specialists about the program.
The Athlete Development specialization qualifies students to pursue certification through the Professional Association of Athlete Development Specialists (PAADS).
