MIAMI GARDENS, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Gus Machado School of Business at St. Thomas University (STU) is pleased to announce the appointment of professor Dr. Bob Epling as the “Arthur H. Hertz Endowed Professorship in Sports Tourism.”
This new endowed professor position is supported by a charitable gift from Arthur H. Hertz, who generously donated $500,000 before his passing last year to establish the endowed professorship in sports tourism. Hertz’s donation and vision allows the University to expand its sports administration program, one of the only in the nation with a business focus and founded in 1973; and be among the few universities in the world that offer a sports tourism management degree or specialization.
“Dr. Epling’s expertise and dedication to our sports administration program, which is already one of the oldest and highly ranked in the country, will set us further apart from the rest,” said STU President Franklyn Casale. “He will build upon the university’s strong commitment to student success and prepare students for professional careers in sports tourism.”
Dr. Epling joined the University in 2016 as an associate professor of sports administration and sports tourism. He previously served in administrative roles as a program coordinator, department chair, and school dean at Reinhardt University and Berry College in Georgia. His research and professional development interests focus on the history of big-time intercollegiate sports, and the relationship between academics and athletics on contemporary college campuses.
According to the World Tourism Organization, the global tourism market is projected to grow between 2 and 3 percent while estimating that the sport tourism sector will grow approximately 14 percent presenting major national and global opportunities to the University’s graduates.
ABOUT ST. THOMAS UNIVERSITY:
Founded in 1946 in Havana, Cuba by American Augustinian priests, the university re-opened as Biscayne College in Miami in 1961 following the confiscation of the campus and expulsion of the priests from Cuba. The only Catholic Archdiocesan-sponsored University in Florida, St. Thomas University offers more than 90 undergraduate, graduate, and post-graduate degrees at its five schools and college from its 144-acre campus in Miami Gardens, Florida. The University is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS), the American Bar Association, and is a member of the Association of Law Schools.
