TROY News Center

TROY – Dr. Kenneth Blankenship, executive director of the Central Alabama Sports Commission, has been awarded the Sport Management Lifetime Achievement Award by the Southern Sport Management Association at its conference at Troy University.

The award came on April 11 during the ninth annual Southern Sport Management Conference, and recognizes Blankenship for his significant contributions to the Sport Management industry.

A native of Wetumpka, Blankenship began his career as a coach, teacher and athletic director at schools in Macon County and Selma. He was one of the founders of the Bryant-Jordan Student-Athlete Scholarship Program, serving as its executive director for 20 years. He served as executive director of the Alabama High School Athletic Directors and Coaches Association from 1996 until 2004.  From 1992 until 1994, he served as Director of Athletics at TROY, successfully leading the University’s transition  from Division II to Division I athletics.

Dr. Blankenship completed his undergraduate and master’s programs at TROY, and completed a doctorate in educational administration and supervision from Auburn University.

The Association also honored Dr. David K. Stotlar, of the University of Northern Colorado, with its Sport Management Scholar Lifetime Achievement Award, during a special awards dinner on April 11.

Dr. Stotlar, who teaches sport management and sport marketing, has authored more than 90 professional journal articles and has written more than 50 textbooks and book chapters in the field. He was selected by the U.S. Olympic Committee as a delegate to the International Olympic Academy in Greece and the World University Games Forum in Italy and has served as a venue media center supervisor for the 2002 Olympic Games. Additionally, he has conducted international seminars in sport management and marketing for numerous national and international Olympic meetings.

Among Dr. Stotlar’s contributions to the profession is his service as president of the National American Society for Sport Management, and was an initial NASSM Research Fellow. His a founding member of the Sport Marketing Association.

Three Troy University students also won accolades during the conference. Riley Montgomery, a graduate student from Montgomery, and Jessica Lynch, a graduate student from Oxford, Miss., took home a second-place award for their poster presentation entitled “Measuring the Sponsorship Effectiveness at a Mid-Major Conference Football Program.”  Santiago Pinzon, a graduate student from Colombia, earned second-place honors with his oral presentation entitled “An Exploration of the Impacts and Needs of Brand Identity Campaigns within Divisions of the NCAA.”

The Association recognized Dr. Colby Jubenville, a sport management faculty member at Middle Tennessee State University, and Dr. Ben Goss, an association professor of entertainment management at Missouri State University, with service awards.

The conference, which brought together students from more than 24 universities and professionals from throughout the region, concluded Friday, April 12. Sponsors for the conference included TROY’s College of Health and Human Services, Troy Athletics and IMG College.

Dr. Kenneth Blankenship, executive director of the Central Alabama Sports Commission, was presented the Southern Sport Management Association’s Lifetime Achievement Award by Dr. Fred Green, an associate professor of kinesiology and health promotion at TROY, during its ninth annual conference at Troy University. (TROY photo)

Dr. Kenneth Blankenship, executive director of the Central Alabama Sports Commission, provided comments to the Southern Sport Management Association’s annual conference as Troy University Chancellor Dr. Jack Hawkins Jr. listens. Blankenship received the association’s Lifetime Achievement Award for his contributions to high school and university athletics. (TROY photo)

TROY – Representatives of more than 24 universities will attend the ninth annual Sport Management Conference at Troy University Wednesday through Friday.

Hosted jointly by the University and the Southern Sport Management Association, the conference will focus on emerging scholars and student development, and more than 30 presenters will lecture, said Dr. Michael Martinez, an assistant professor of kinesiology and health promotion who is coordinating the conference.

“Our practitioner sessions will be looking into the current landscape of the sport industry, and our students will have the opportunity to talk with professionals in the field and recent graduates who are in the sport industry,” he said.

Academic presentations for regional faculty on topics of sport law, marketing, motorsports, organizational management and other areas are also scheduled.

In addition, the Association will honor two with its lifetime achievement awards: Ken Blankenship of the Central Alabama Sports Commission will be honored as a practitioner, and Dr. David Stotlar, University of Northern Colorado, will receive the lifetime scholar award.

Major sponsors for the conference include Troy University’s College of Health and Human Services, TROY Athletics and IMG College Sports.

2013_SSMC-Schedule.pdf

TROY – Troy University has become the first university in America to be designated a “Purple Heart University.”

The move comes in an effort to honor veterans who have been given the award that was created by Gen. George Washington. The Military Order of the Purple Heart is granted to those service members who have been killed or wounded in battle.

“Our status as the first Purple Heart University in America is a natural extension of TROY’s long history of service to the men and women in uniform,” said Chancellor Dr. Jack Hawkins Jr. “We are proud of the thousands of our students and graduates who are serving in harm’s way and it’s with pride that we serve them and support them.”

One of the newest support efforts the University has undertaken is the creation of the Troy for Troops Center, a one-stop center for military students to access University services and problem resolution. In addition to the TROY for Troops Scholarship, given to dependents of TROY alumni killed in action, the University has established the TROY for Troops Military Tuition Discount Scholarship for each branch that will discount all tuition above that which is allowable by tuition assistance.

Currently, the University enrolls about 7,000 active-duty military personnel, National Guard members, Reservists or veterans, and 62 TROY alumni serve as general or flag-rank officers or as members of the Senior Executive Service of all four branches of the U.S. military. Over the past 30 years, 123 TROY alumni have retired as general or flag-rank officers from all branches.

The University’s tradition of military service has its roots in 1950, when it began offering extension courses at Fort Rucker. Later, these operations were expanded to Maxwell Air Force Base and these centers became the forerunner to what is known today as Global Campus, the division of the University that operates teaching sites outside the state of Alabama and internationally.

Headquartered in Troy, Ala., the University operates campuses in Montgomery, Dothan and Phenix City in Alabama, and sites in seven states and six nations.

Several members of the University’s senior leadership team are themselves veterans, including Chancellor Hawkins, who served in the U.S. Marine Corps in Vietnam. He has also served as chair of the Board of Visitors for Air University, housed at Maxwell AFB in Montgomery.

While no official lists of Purple Heart recipients exist, it is estimated that about 1.7 million Americans from all wars and conflicts hold the award. In Alabama, there are 718 members of the Military Order of the Purple Heart of Alabama, although that membership does not include all Purple Heart recipients, which number more than 7,600 since 1932.

University officials formally signed a resolution designating the University in March.

Troy University Chancellor Dr. Jack Hawkins, Jr., center, receives a commemorative plaque designating the University as the nation’s first Purple Heart University from Col. Edgar L. Smith, III (ret.), left, and Commander K.T. Cole, of the Military Order of the Purple Heart J.R. Thomas Memorial Chapter #2205. (TROY photo)

TROY – It’s not unusual for a group of high school students to visit Troy University’s campus as a stop along the way to another destination, but for one high school band from Michigan, Friday’s campus visit held special meaning.

The Wyoming High School Marching Wolves are the product of a school consolidation in Wyoming, Michigan, near Grand Rapids. Just a year old, the new high school has new colors, new mascots, and a new fight song, all selected by students.

Troy University’s fight song, “Trojans One and All” was adopted by the student body to unify their fans, and the University sanctioned its use.

The students’ stop came in route to New Orleans, where they will be performing over the next several weeks, said Jeff Bennett, a former band director who serving as the tour’s director.

“This trip is all about the students,” he said. “It’s a great opportunity to promote cohesiveness and help them form the bonds they’ll need to be successful as a band and a new high school.”

Added to the fight song connection, Bennett said there was another TROY connection with the students: most have learned music through compositions by Troy University music professor Robert W. Smith.

“Many of these kids have played his compositions. Most are great for public school (music) programs because they teach foundational ideas and techniques,” Bennett said. “I have used them for years, as do the current directors.”

The Marching Wolves are under the direction of Bryan Ambrose, one of Bennett’s former students, and Erick Flack, assistant director of bands.

Members of the Wyoming High School Marching Band visited Troy University to see the school that shares its fight song. Students of WHS, a year-old consolidated high school near Grand Rapids, Mich., adopted “Trojans One and All” to help unify the new students and fans. (TROY photo/Cass Davis)