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College of Hospitality, Retail and Sport Management

  • headshots of Gabriela Beavers, Yongjin Hwang, Caroline Salisbury, Kayla Simmons

February 2025 HRSM student, faculty, staff and alumni notes

Posted on: February 10, 2025; Updated on: February 10, 2025
By Allen Wallace, awallace@sc.edu

In the News

Faculty and Staff Notes

  • Welcome to new HRSM Director of Human Resources John Sun and Department of Sport and Entertainment Management Executive in Residence Murray Cohn.
  • Mike Watson was honored by USC President Michael Amiridis and Provost Donna Arnett for his work in and with the Improvement Leader project in conjunction with The Office of Organizational Excellence.
  • The paper “Gotta take my avatar shopping: Impacts of interactive virtual shopping in esports” by Yongjin Hwang, Keshav Gupta and Deokkyung Ock was published in the journal Internet Research.

Student Notes

  • Meredith Aase, Brady Bocherer, Scott Senkowski and Isabella Maritato (Hospitality Management) represented HRSM as student ambassadors at the Americas Lodging Investment Summit (ALIS) 2025 in Los Angeles.
  • George Abdo (Sport and Entertainment Management) accepted a position as a field manager intern at Perfect Game.
  • Kieren Adams accepted a management trainee position with Circa Las Vegas.
  • The paper “FIFA World Cup as a catalyst for cultural change: A comparative analysis of host nations’ cultural transformation from East Asia to the Middle East (2002–2022)” by Saad Al Shamari (Ph.D., Sport and Entertainment Management) was published in Baltica Journal.
  • Olivia Ballweg (Sport and Entertainment Management) attended the Cleveland Sports Sales Workshop & Job Fair hosted by TeamWork Online and the Cleveland Cavaliers.
  • Alec Braun (Sport and Entertainment Management) started a ticket sales and operations internship with the Columbia Fireflies.
  • Jake Brown (Sport and Entertainment Management) accepted an internship with Bespoke Sports and Entertainment.
  • Doug Curtis (Sport and Entertainment Management) started a stadium operations internship with the Columbia Fireflies.
  • Elizabeth Eigenbrode (Sport and Entertainment Management) accepted an internship with the Delmarva Shorebirds for summer 2025.
  • Abby Foy (Retailing - Fashion Merchandising and Digital Innovations) began serving as National Retail Federation University Ambassador for USC.
  • Mekhi Gibson (Sport and Entertainment Management) began a marketing internship with Gamecock Athletics.
  • Ethan Goldberg (Hospitality Management) accepted a club management externship with The Alotian Club for after graduation in May. He will also continue work virtually on his Master of International Hospitality and Tourism degree, through HRSM’s Accelerated Bachelors to Master's program.
  • Jackson Hardy (Sport and Entertainment Management) accepted an inside sales representative internship with the Myrtle Beach Pelicans.
  • Harrison Haycox (Sport and Entertainment Management) started an athletic director internship at Richland Northeast High School.
  • Carly Lombardo (Sport and Entertainment Management) accepted a baseball operations internship at The Ripken Experience in Myrtle Beach for summer 2025.
  • Kayla Maxson (Master of Sport and Entertainment Management) started a new position as athletic director’s intern at Dreher High School.
  • Madison Monastra (Hospitality Management) accepted a human resources internship for summer 2025 with The Westin Hilton Head Island Resort & Spa.
  • Kason Pippin (Sport and Entertainment Management) accepted a position as a team host with Peak Events, LLC for the 2025 Jax College Baseball Classic.
  • Jarad Plyler (Sport and Entertainment Management) accepted a stadium and facilities operations internship with the Columbia Fireflies for summer 2025.
  • Adam Simpson (Sport and Entertainment Management) started a new position as assistant marketing and membership manager at The Players Club Golf.
  • Jeremiah Smith (Sport and Entertainment Management) began serving as a page for the South Carolina Senate.
  • Sport and Entertainment Management students worked the College Football Playoff Championship in Atlanta with S.A.F.E. Management.
  • Paige Tucci (Sport and Entertainment Management) started a new position as spring intern at College World Series of Omaha, Inc.
  • Jack Tucker (Sport and Entertainment Management) started a new role as student manager with Gamecock Football.
  • Katelyn Vetro (Retailing - Fashion Merchandising and Digital Innovations) worked with Level Showroom for the February 2025 AmericasMart Atlanta Apparel Market.
  • Nicole Wasserman, Max Hovious, Ethan Goldberg, Brooke Walsh, Savanna Warren, Annabella Martuscelli, Collin Traynham, Nicolas Degabrielle, Weston Booth, Emily Scott, Bella Parlante, Liv Ragonese, Alexandra Joseph, Sami Baityeh and Alejandro Salguedo represented HRSM at the the Club Management Association of America World Conference in Tampa, accompanied by advisor Jessica Chavis.
  • Cody Wohlrab (Sport and Entertainment Management) will be returning to Perfect Game this summer and has been promoted to the position of assistant event coordinator.

Alumni Notes

  • Sophia Barnes (Sport and Entertainment Management, ‘24) started a new role as partnership services coordinator with the Charlotte Knights.
  • Gabriela Beavers (Sport and Entertainment Management, '19) was promoted to senior manager, club marketing with the National Football League (NFL).
  • Davis Cornwell (Retailing - Retail Management, ‘22) started a new position as account manager at Metalube.
  • William Dissen (Master of International Hospitality and Tourism Management, ‘06) was a speaker at the West Virginia Hospitality and Travel Association’s 15th Hospitality University Conference.
  • Perry Dominici (Hospitality Management, ‘22) started a new position as restaurant manager at Sorelle in Charleston, S.C.
  • Raymond Ellington (Sport and Entertainment Management, ‘24) started a new position as business development representative trainee at Arrive Logistics.
  • AnnaGrace (AG) Foell (Sport and Entertainment Management, ‘18) was promoted to manager, business strategy with FC Cincinnati.
  • Anya Garber (Retailing, ‘24) is the new owner of Bella Bridesmaids Houston. She started as an intern with the company’s Charleston store while still a student.
  • Aaron Greenberg (Sport and Entertainment Management, ‘20) was promoted to senior manager, event operations with FC Cincinnati.
  • Anna Hofmann (Sport and Entertainment Management, ‘24) started a full-time position as sponsorship coordinator at Elite Tournaments after interning with the company as a student.
  • Kinsey Hopkins-Campbell (Sport and Entertainment Management, ‘22), game experience coordinator for the New Orleans Pelicans and Saints, was chosen by the National Basketball Association to work NBA All-Star Weekend. She will be the stage manager for the events at Oakland Arena (NBA All-Star Celebrity Game, NBA All-Star Practice, and NBA HBCU Classic).
  • Alex Hotchkiss (Sport and Entertainment Management, ‘24) was promoted to director of sales with Trident.
  • Holden Humphries (Retailing - Retail Management, ‘23) started a new position as a remerch and new store execution analyst at Lowe's Companies, Inc.
  • Grace Hutton (Hospitality Management, ‘24) started a new role as sales and design assistant with WM Events in Atlanta.
  • Nicholas Karis (Sport and Entertainment Management, ‘16) was promoted to director, social media at Los Angeles Football Club (LAFC).
  • Taylor Lemons (Hospitality Management, ‘24) accepted a new position as a social media content strategist with The Kessler Collection.
  • Tatiana (Allgeyer) Lippold (B.S. Hospitality Management,'17, Master of International Hospitality and Tourism Management ‘19) started a new position as clubhouse manager at Country Club of Charleston.
  • Nicholas Logue (Sport and Entertainment Management, ‘24) earned Rules of Golf Expert Certification from the USGA.
  • Natalie Martin (Master of International Hospitality and Tourism Management, ‘24) accepted a new role as events coordinator at Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte.
  • Connor McComish (Sport and Entertainment Management, ‘24) accepted a new position as food and beverage operations manager with the Fort Wayne TinCaps.
  • Tayler Metivier (Hospitality Management, ‘19) started a new position as area revenue manager for the Hyatt Regency Seattle & Hyatt at Olive 8.
  • Danilo Monteiro (Master of Sport and Entertainment Management, ‘23) started a new position as event specialist at Superbet.
  • Jenna Myers (Hospitality Management, ‘24) was promoted to event planning manager at Grand Hyatt San Diego after completing Hyatt’s events corporate management in training program.
  • Julianne Osborne (Retailing - Retail Management, ‘18) was promoted to senior demand planner at Sunday.
  • Caroline Salisbury (Tourism Management, ‘24) accepted a statused role as a guest experience manager at Disney’s Hollywood Studios! Caroline was employed by Disney for a year-long leadership internship, but her exceptional performance led to her being promoted out of the internship to a statused position six months early.
  • Kayla Simmons (Sport and Entertainment Management, ‘24) started a new role as a sales associate with the New Jersey Devils.
  • Ryan Stack (Sport and Entertainment Management, ‘17) started a new position as auction and athlete engagement director at Swidzinski Sports Management.
  • Tate Van Liew (Hospitality Management, ‘24) was promoted to assistant food and beverage manager at The Alotian Club after completing her externship there.
  • Koby Wagner (Sport and Entertainment Management, ‘24) started a new role as coordinator, partnership services for Gamecock Sports Properties at Learfield.

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