Director, School of Hospitality and Sport Management

The Muma College of Business is one of fewer than 200 institutions worldwide with separate AACSB accreditation in both business and accounting. The College enrolls more than 9,000 students across seven schools: the Kate Tiedemann School of Business and Finance; the Lynn Pippenger School of Accountancy; the School of Hospitality and Sport Management; the School of Information Systems; the School of Management; the School of Marketing and Innovation; and the Baldwin Group School of Risk Management and Insurance.

In spring 2025, the college released a ten-year strategic plan centered on four priorities: student success, impactful research, community engagement, and expanded reach. Muma also has a long history of working with Tampa Bay businesses and organizations to create talent pipelines, support workforce development, and connect students with applied learning.

The School of Hospitality and Sport Management (SHSM) prepares students for leadership in hospitality, tourism, sport, and entertainment management. Launched in fall 2025, the School brought together the former School of Hospitality and Tourism Management and the Vinik Sport & Entertainment Management program. SHSM serves students on the Tampa and St. Petersburg campuses and is led by Interim Director Michelle Harrolle, who has directed the Vinik program since 2013.

The University of South Florida seeks an entrepreneurial academic leader to serve as Director of the School of Hospitality and Sport Management at the Muma College of Business. Reporting to the Dean, the Director will lead the School’s research, teaching, and outreach across USF’s Tampa and St. Petersburg campuses and serve as a visible ambassador for the School in Tampa Bay and beyond.

 

• Lead externally. Serve as a highly visible ambassador who builds consequential relationships with hotel companies, professional sports franchises, venue operators, tourism organizations, developers, restaurateurs, entrepreneurs, alumni, donors, and civic leaders.
• Raise the resources. Make fundraising and resource development a central responsibility: articulate the School’s vision, cultivate transformational gifts, secure corporate investment, and work closely with the Dean and advancement team on major fundraising initiatives.
• Make Tampa Bay the classroom. Expand experiential learning through internships, residencies, executive-led courses, applied research, consulting projects, major-event experiences, and partnerships connected to the stadium, Uptown Landing, and the broader region.
• Develop talent and the workforce. Make the School a preferred talent partner for the region’s hospitality, tourism, sports, and entertainment industries while preparing students for national and global leadership roles.
• Lead innovation. Keep the curriculum and research responsive to artificial intelligence, data analytics, customer experience, sports technology, revenue optimization, food innovation, and new models of fan and guest engagement, and foster entrepreneurship.
• Champion teaching, research, and student success. Foster a collaborative environment within the School and across the College that supports faculty research, teaching excellence, strong advising, career outcomes, and alumni engagement.
• Lead the academic enterprise. Direct strategic planning aligned with the College’s ten-year plan; recruit, evaluate, develop, and expand the faculty and staff; manage the budget and course scheduling; unite the School’s programs into a coherent portfolio; and sustain accreditation standards, including AACSB.

Minimum Qualifications:

1. A terminal degree (Ph.D. or equivalent) in hospitality management, sport management, or a related field, preferably from an AACSB-accredited institution or international equivalent.
2. Outstanding accomplishments in teaching, research, and engagement that meet USF standards for appointment with tenure at the associate or full professor level.

 

Preferred Qualifications:

1. Bold, entrepreneurial leadership with an appreciation for the nuances of guiding an academic enterprise; demonstrated vision, execution, and strategic planning, and the drive to build something new.
2. Ability to develop and lead strategic and tactical plans in collaboration with stakeholders.
3. A keen understanding of, and contacts within, the hospitality, tourism, sport, and entertainment industries.
4. A compelling fundraiser with a demonstrated ability to cultivate major gifts and corporate investment, and a record of building external partnerships.
5. Strong people-management skills, including the ability to recruit, retain, and develop outstanding faculty and staff, and evidence of sound financial and operational management.
6. An inclusive, collaborative, and persuasive communicator who can unite previously separate programs.

 

The University of South Florida is a top-ranked research university serving approximately 50,000 students from across the globe at campuses in Tampa, St. Petersburg and USF Health. In 2025, U.S. News & World Report recognized USF with its highest overall ranking in university history, as a top 50 public university for the seventh consecutive year and as one of the top 15 best values among all public universities in the nation. U.S. News also ranks the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine in the highest tier, placing it as one of the top 16 medical schools in the nation and inside the top 10 among public universities. USF is a member of the Association of American Universities (AAU), a group that includes only the top 3% of universities in the U.S. With an all-time high of $750 million in research funding in 2025 and as a top 20 public university for producing U.S. patents, USF uses innovation to transform lives and shape a better future. The university generates an annual economic impact of nearly $10 billion for the state of Florida. USF’s Division I athletics teams compete in the American Conference. Learn more at www.usf.edu.