Big 12 Commissioner Visits Baylor for Annual ASMA Conference
Baylor Sport Management hosts the 2018 ASMA Conference
Baylor’s Sport Management Program — housed in the Department of Educational Leadership in Baylor’s School of Education — will host the annual Applied Sport Management Association (ASMA) conference Feb. 15-17, 2018.
ASMA is a regional association within Texas and surrounding states that aims to connect students studying the sport management industry with practicing professionals in sports business or institutions. The three-day conference will take place in Paul L. Foster Campus for Business and Innovation. Attendees will tour Baylor’s athletic facilities, attend the Baylor Baseball Tailgate for Baylor vs. Purdue, listen to panel discussions, see industry research, and hear a keynote speech from Big 12 Conference Commissioner Bob Bowlsby.
Bowlsby is a national leader in collegiate athletics and has been the fourth Big 12 Conference commissioner since 2012. He is also a member of the NCAA Division I Council. Prior to his current position, Bowlsby served as the athletic director at Stanford University, the University of Iowa, and the University of Northern Iowa. His extensive career experience also includes time on the United States Olympic Committee Board of Directors and the federal Commission on Opportunities in Athletics.
Big 12 Conference Commissioner Bob Bowlsby
Second-year Baylor graduate student and organizing chair for the event Amy Gaston said, “We are honored to have Commissioner Bowlsby as this year’s Keynote. The Big 12 continues to be a significant national player in college athletics, and his participation brings strong credibility to the work ASMA has done to continue the research and growth of sport management as an academic field.”
In addition to Bowlsby, the conference will host leaders from the Big 12 Conference, Round Rock Express Baseball Club, Baylor University, the University of North Texas, College Football Playoff, Alamo Bowl, ESPN Events, Texas A&M University, SSB data management, and the University of Texas at Arlington. To see the entire list of panelists, click here.
Gaston is the driving force for the event. She worked alongside Jeffrey Petersen, Ph.D., SOE associate professor and director of the Sport Management Graduate Program, as his graduate assistant to draft Baylor’s pitch to host the conference. She anticipates around 175 attendees, including the distinguished panelists and Baylor Athletics staff. This will be the sport management program’s first time hosting an academic conference.
Conference panel topics include:
- Sponsorship in Sport
- Division I Athletics Directors
- Bowl Game Management
- Women in College Sport
- Business Analytics in Sport offered by SSB
- Collegiate Athletic Fundraising
“It’s going to be more than just an academic conference like it’s been in the past,” Gaston said. “We wanted to add some value that was outside of just research.”
The conference begins at 4 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 15, with a networking and social event at the President’s Suite in McLane Stadium to welcome participants. Friday’s events include panels, oral presentations, academic poster presentations and tailgating from 8 a.m.-6 p.m. Activities on Saturday last from 8 a.m.-2:30 p.m. and include panel discussions, academic poster presentations, and Bowlsby’s speech at the ASMA Awards Luncheon presented by IMG. For further information on the conference agenda, click here.
“We are excited about the chance to showcase not only our Sport Management Program, but Baylor University to students, professors, and practitioners from all over the world,” Gaston said. “This is a weekend designed to bring the worlds of academics and professionals in the sport industry together to collaborate, share, and learn with each other.”
Baylor’s Sport Management Program is a master’s level degree program that is typically completed in 22-24 months. Current enrollment is 37 students.
—By Molly Meeker
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Founded in 1919, Baylor School of Education ranks among the nation’s top 20 education schools located at private universities. The School’s research portfolio complements its long-standing commitment to excellence in teaching and student mentoring. Baylor’s undergraduate program in teacher education has earned national distinction for innovative partnerships with local schools that provide future teachers deep clinical preparation, while graduate programs culminating in both the Ed.D. and Ph.D. prepare outstanding leaders, teachers and clinicians through an intentional blend of theory and practice.
ABOUT BAYLOR UNIVERSITY
Baylor University is a private Christian University and a nationally ranked research institution. The University provides a vibrant campus community for more than 16,000 students by blending interdisciplinary research with an international reputation for educational excellence and a faculty commitment to teaching and scholarship. Chartered in 1845 by the Republic of Texas through the efforts of Baptist pioneers, Baylor is the oldest continually operating University in Texas. Located in Waco, Baylor welcomes students from all 50 states and more than 80 countries to study a broad range of degrees among its 12 nationally recognized academic divisions.