Sports ETA Communities

In 2020 through The Pulse, Sports ETA members indicated the importance of staying connected to others in the industry with similar interests.

To meet these needs, we created and launched dedicated member communities to better connect and resource Sports ETA members. We are proud of these communities’ growth and successes thus far.

Take a look at each of our communities below. If you find a community (or several) that fit your interest, subscribe to their email lists to be notified of upcoming calls and discussion topics, or reach out to the community leaders (contact information can be found below).

College Towns

This group is open to all who are interested in joining a community dedicated to the unique trends and challenges faced by members working in college or university towns, regardless of size.

Community Leaders:

Chad Culver, Senior Director of Sports Commission, Visit Knoxville Zach Ebarb, National Sports & Convention Sales Manager, Visit Baton Rouge Kinda Fry, Senior Manager-Sports, Tourism & Events, Compete College Station Joey Jewell, Senior Director, Eugene, Cascades & Coast Sports Joseph Piotrowski, Sports Director, Visit Tallahassee Mike Price, Executive Director, Greater Lansing Sports Authority

Upcoming Call:

Tuesday, February 22, 2022 @ 2:00 PM ET

Industry Suppliers

This group is open to industry partner members only. If that’s you, we encourage you to participate in this community group to discuss trends, challenges, successes, and everything in between!

Community Leaders:

Hank Pivarnik, STS, EventConnect Daniel Rush, CMP, CASE, MGM Resorts International

Learn More

L.E.A.D.

The L.E.A.D. (Leading, Engaging, And Developing) Community, formerly the Mentoring & Engagement Community, focuses on collaborating, communicating, mentoring and educating association members on avenues to be engaged and involved within Sports ETA and its member communities. Our community will guide members on networking opportunities within the sports events and tourism industry, and provide support, expertise and resources to utilize in developing their careers. L.E.A.D. will serve as the liaison between additional Sports ETA communities, and be responsible for the planning and execution of interactions for first-time attendees and new members at all live events.

Community Leaders:

Don Dukemineer, STS, CHSP, Director of Sports Development, Decatur Morgan County Tourism Hank Pivarnik, STS, Event Solutions Advisor, EventConnect Jerrine Lee, STS, Director of Sports Development, Richmond Region Tourism Cole Lacey, Assistant Tourism Manager, Wicomico County Recreation, Parks & Tourism/TEAM Maryland Ariana Tyler, Senior Business Development Manager, Greater Columbus Sports Commission

Upcoming Call:

Tuesday, February 15, 2022 @ 3:00 PM ET

Subscribe to learn more about this community group and receive important information.

Outdoor Tourism

This group is open to all who are interested in joining a community dedicated to the unique trends and challenges faced by members working in facets of outdoor recreation and tourism. Whether running or biking events, fishing or kayaking events, or everything in between, bring your thoughts and ideas to the group for open discussion.

Community Leader:

Clay Partain, Visit Salt Lake

Subscribe to learn more about this community group and receive important information.

Parks & Recreation

This group is open to all who are interested in joining a community dedicated to the unique trends and challenges faced by members working in facets of parks & recreation.

Subscribe to learn more about this community group and receive important information.

This group is open to rights holder members only. If that’s you, we encourage you to participate in this community group to discuss trends, challenges, successes, and everything in between! You’ll also have access to a secured web page dedicated to this community group filled with research, documents, and other important resources.

Community Leaders:

Steven Short, United Soccer Leagues John David, USA BMX Christine Simmons, USA Taekwondo

Learn More (Sports ETA login required – must be a rights holder to access)

State Association Leaders (Invite only)

This group is open to state association leaders only. If that’s you, we encourage you to participate in this community group! This group meets every other month on Thursdays and discusses a variety of topics, shares challenges, successes, best practices, and everything in between!

Community Leaders:

Shannon Sullivan, Team Indiana William Bloom, Louisiana Office of Tourism

Learn More (Sports ETA login required – must be a rights holder to access)

Small to Mid-Market Destinations

The Small to Mid-Market Destination (SMID) community group is open to any destination member, regardless of size. No organization is too small or too large to participate! This group meets every other month and shares best practices, wins and loses, lessons learned, challenges, and has open discussion.

Community Leaders:

Frank Lett, Senior Associate Executive Director/Director of Sports Marketing, Visit Kingsport Mike Price, STS, CTA, Executive Director, Greater Lansing Sports Authority Don Dukemineer, STS, CHSP, Director of Sports Development, Decatur Morgan County Tourism

Subscribe to learn more about this community group and receive call information.

COMMUNITY GROUPS

Women’s

The Women’s Community is dedicated to the advancement of women in the sports tourism industry. This passionate community meets (virtually) every other month, with the exception of in-person meetings at industry events and months with holidays. Sessions are curated to include content pertaining to professional development, networking, best practices, and advocacy. The composition of this community is relatively balanced; an even number of suppliers and event organizers regularly attend meetings and the LinkedIn Community Group contains 60+ active professionals.

All active Sports ETA members are welcome to join this community.

Discussion topics focus on four primary pillars: professional development, networking, best practices and advocacy.

Community Leaders:

Linda Logan, Executive Director, Greater Columbus Sports Commission Bree Nidds, Vice President of Sales, Discover Lehigh Valley Sports Gray Workman Williams, STS, Executive Director, Visit Greenville NC Kayla Adams, Sports Sales Manager, Greensboro Area Convention and Visitors Bureau

Subscribe to learn more about this community group and receive call information.

Young Professionals

The Young Professionals Community Group is a collection of sports tourism industry professionals open to Sports ETA members under 40. Led by Young Professionals for Young Professionals, across all sectors to connect, learn, and collaborate. The group meets monthly for education sessions focused on topics specific to young professionals, including networking, personal and professional development, industry best-practices, rising trends and more.

This community seeks to support and empower members by focusing on education, networking, and personal and professional development through multiple platforms, providing the necessary tools for growth and career advancement.

Community Leaders:

Ariana Tyler, Senior Business Development Manager, Greater Columbus Sports Commission Luchie Javelosa, STS, Senior Sports Sales Manager, Tempe Tourism Office

Subscribe to learn more about this community group and receive call information.