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College of Hospitality, Retail and Sport Management

  • HRSM November 2023 news and notes graphic with headshots of Silvia Chinellato, Jackson Owings, Kellie Taylor and Hwang Yongjin

November 2023 HRSM student, faculty, staff and alumni notes

Posted on: November 2, 2023; Updated on: November 2, 2023
By Allen Wallace, awallace@sc.edu

In the News

Student Notes

  • Maria Amelia Vale de Gato (Hospitality Management) completed the ServSafe Manager certification from the National Restaurant Association.
  • Jackson Gobeil (Sport and Entertainment Management) began an internship as the gameday production manager for the Adelaide Giants, the reigning Australian Baseball League champions.
  • Jackson Owings (Hospitality Management) accepted a position as a rooms corporate management trainee at the Hyatt Regency Huntington Beach Resort & Spa to begin after graduation in December.
  • Zachary Moore (Sport and Entertainment Management) started a new position as transport specialist at GoHammerhead.
  • Brandon Vereen (Sport and Entertainment) was crowned Mr. Black University of South Carolina.
  • Ryann Wiltsie (Sport and Entertainment Management) completed the Schwinn Indoor Cycling Instructor Classic Certification through USC Campus Recreation.
  • The USC student chapter of the National Retail Federation toured Belk’s corporate headquarters and flagship store in Charlotte, meeting with executives and with HRSM alumni who now have careers with Belk.
  • The Women in Sport and Entertainment Club student organization, founded by Maddi McLean and Madelyn Miller, co-hosted a Women in Sports Night with Gamecock Women’s Volleyball, honoring all the impactful women who have made incredible strides within the industry.

Faculty Notes

  • Tarlan Chahardovali co-authored "How do low-paid athletes in the United States understand the meaning of the word 'professional' in 'professional athlete'?" The article was recently published in the journal Sport in Society.
  • Rich Harrill was a keynote speaker at the International Tourism and Retail Service Management Conference (TRMC2023) held at the Macao Institute for Tourism Studies (IFTM).
  • Yongjin Hwang co-authored "The impacts of social needs and game playing type on esports consumers' positive eWOM sharing: applying the FIRO theory." The article was published in the International Journal of Sports Marketing and Sponsorship.
  • Marketa Kubickova and PhD student Swechchha Subedi co-authored the chapter "The impact of government policies on hotel performance during Covid-19 pandemic: The case of Caribbean countries" in the newly published book Interdisciplinary perspective on Covid-19 and the Caribbean.
  • Md. Rafiqul Islam Rana completed the grant writing certificate program offered by the USC Office of Continuing Education.
  • Armen Shaomian visited Universidad Anáhuac Mexico Norte and spoke to master's students in the development and management of the entertainment industry program in the school of communications there.
  • Scott Smith's paper, "Public Policy Challenges and the Lodging Shared Economy," has been accepted for publication by Cornell Hospitality Quarterly. In addition, Smith presented at the SCRLA conference in Greenville this month on the state of the SC lodging industry.

Alumni Notes

  • Michael Barrett (Sport and Entertainment Management, '21) started a new position as senior coordinator, partnership and commercial strategy with the Boston Celtics.
  • Joshua Behringer (Sport and Entertainment Management, '18) started a new position with LEARFIELD Amplify as director of ticket sales for Bradley University.
  • Alyssa Bilkovski (Master of Sport and Entertainment Management, '23) started a new position as event coordinator at IMG Academy.
  • Madison Blevins (Sport and Entertainment Management, '20) was sworn in as a practicing attorney yesterday and became a member of the North Carolina State Bar.
  • Thomas Calhoun (Sport and Entertainment Management, '22) started a new position as assistant, brands and properties with William Morris Endeavor Brands and Properties division in Dallas, Texas.
  • Silvia Chinellato (Tourism Management, '19, Master of International Hospitality and Tourism Management, '21), now men’s and women’s tennis coach at Mt. St. Mary’s University, earned her first win as an NCAA tennis head coach.
  • Grace Engle (Hospitality Management, '19) was promoted to travel experience manager III at Aya Healthcare.
  • Bethany Ferguson (Sport and Entertainment Management, '08) started a new role as vice president, field and client development at Colonial Life.
  • Christine Fletcher (Sport and Entertainment Management, '18) was promoted to social media content manager at McCormick and Company.
  • Patrick Flynn (Master of Sport and Entertainment Management, '17) was promoted to director of digital strategy for the Division of Student Affairs and Academic Support at USC.
  • Allyson Frame (B.S. Tourism Management '18, Master of International Hospitality and Tourism Management, '22) started a new position as Academic Relations Associate at SAI Programs.
  • Audrey Karas (Hospitality Management, '19) was named a 2024 recipient of the Sally Burns Rambo Scholarship by the Club Management Association of America.
  • Regan Matthews (Sport and Entertainment Management, '23) started a new position as media advertising coordinator with the Carolina Hurricanes.
  • Kenzie McCarter (Sport and Entertainment Management, '22) served as a red carpet interviewer at the Gospel Music Association Dove Awards.
  • Mary Liza McDonald (Retailing - Fashion Merchandising and Digital Innovations, '23) was promoted to assistant buyer at Belk.
  • Sara Morgan Randolph (B.S. Retailing: Fashion Merchandising and Digital Innovations, '19, Master of Sport and Entertainment Management, '20), now a services account executive at Circuit of the Americas, helped welcome more than 430,000 fans to Circuit of the Americas for the 2023 Lenovo Formula 1 United States Grand Prix.
  • Michael Rapp (Sport and Entertainment Management, '18) started a new position as sports development sales manager at Visit Charlotte.
  • Jack Raskopf (Sport and Entertainment Management, '18) started a new position ​​as lead development representative at ServiceNow.
  • Jenny Rojek (Hospitality Management, '14) accepted a new position as events specialist with the Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin team.
  • Catherine (Snyder) Roten (Hospitality Management, '18) accepted a new position as meeting and events manager at Proforma.
  • Jeff Simons (Sport and Entertainment Management, '15) started a new position as building services manager at the Peace Center in Greenville, South Carolina.
  • Rachel Sims (Hospitality Management, '22) started a new position as corporate recruiter at UES.
  • Blair Snider (Retailing - Retail Management, '21) started a new position as account executive at Goosehead Insurance Agency.
  • Ross Sutton (Sport and Entertainment Management, '20) passed the New York Bar Exam.
  • Kellie Taylor (B.S. Sport and Entertainment Management '22, Master of Sport and Entertainment Management, '23) started a new position with BSE Global as account executive of membership sales. BSE Global is the parent company of Barclays Center, the Brooklyn Nets, New York Liberty, Long Island Nets, and NBA 2K League affiliate NetsG.
  • Jordan Wall (Hospitality Management, '22) started a new position as event manager with Patrick Properties Hospitality Group.
  • Christian Wilkes (Sport and Entertainment Management, '22) accepted a new position as ticket sales account executive with LEARFIELD Amplify at the University of Alabama.

 

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