Life Sciences Commons^™

Voter Intentions And Political Implications Of Legislated Stadium Subsidies, Timothy Kellison, Brian M. Mills

Kinesiology Faculty Publications

In the US, decisions to allocate public funding toward professional sports facilities are usually made not by voters via referendum or initiative, but rather by their elected representatives. We examine the attitudes of residents in a region affected by a no-vote stadium subsidy to determine whether policymaking is congruent with public will and to consider the political impact of residents’ support of or opposition to the stadium subsidy. Using survey data from 369 registered voters in Cobb County, Georgia, we found the average voter would have approved of publicly funding a new ballpark, but felt that voters should have had …

Determinants Of Support And Participation In A Major Sport Event Referendum, Melody Johnston, Michael Naylor, Geoff Dickson, David P. Hedlund, Timothy Kellison

Kinesiology Faculty Publications

In recent years, referenda have been used to inform decisions to bid on major sport events. Recognising referenda as a means to engage a community in a major sport event, the purpose of this study was to investigate the determinants of referenda support and participation intention. A sample of 603 New Zealanders completed a questionnaire a) the intention to participate in such a referendum. Based on exploratory factor analysis assessing b) their support for a referendum on their city bidding to host the Commonwealth Games, and multinomial logistic regression, the key findings are that political cynicism, civic duty, event status …

Perceptions Of The Fiscal Challenges Facing Athletic Departments Of Historically Black Colleges And Universities, Kelly Elliott, Timothy Kellison

Kinesiology Faculty Publications

Research has shown the athletic departments of historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) do not generate significant revenue. The financial struggle facing HBCU athletic departments can be explained using resource dependency theory. Specifically, as HBCUs are the most under-resourced member institutions of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the numbers demonstrate how these institutions lack sufficient funding to invest in their programs. The purpose of this study is to explore the fiscal challenges facing HBCU athletic departments. To gather this information, two different groups of participants were interviewed to obtain an independent and insider perspective of the challenges. Phenomenology was …

Climate Vulnerability As A Catalyst For Early Stadium Replacement, Timothy Kellison, Madeleine Orr

Kinesiology Faculty Publications

Purpose: Severe hazards associated with climate change are threatening human settlements, thereby requiring global cities to implement comprehensive climate adaptation strategies. For sports organizations, adaptive measures may include designing and constructing new stadiums. In this study, we explore climate change as a vehicle for urban transformation, particularly as it relates to the replacement of existing stadiums with new, more sustainable and resilient venues.

Design/methodology/approach: We employed a collective case study approach focusing on three recent cases of stadium replacement: Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas; Oakland Ballpark in Oakland, California; and Marlins Park in Miami, Florida. These cases were …

The Impact Of The Coronavirus Pandemic On A Major Event Legacy: The 2020 National Collegiate Athletic Association Men’S Basketball Final Four, Beth Cianfrone, Timothy Kellison

Kinesiology Faculty Publications

During the 5-day window of April 3–7, 2020, thousands of basketball fans were set to descend upon Atlanta and be entertained by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Men’s Basketball Final Four. In conjunction with the Final Four, the Division II and Division III Men’s Basketball Championships, as well as the National Association of Basketball Coaches Convention, were also to be held in Atlanta that weekend. The NCAA staff and the Atlanta Basketball Host Committee (ABHC) planned the large-scale events, as well as numerous smaller community-related events. They secured more than 2,000 volunteers to host the events in multiple private …

Factors Affecting Leaders’ Adoption Of Innovation: The Case Of Digital Ticketing In The High School Athletic Space, Armin Marquez, Beth Cianfrone, Timothy Kellison

Kinesiology Faculty Publications

In an environment where technologies continuously evolve, we must seek to understand how sport professionals evaluate innovation. The purpose of this study is to identify critical factors influencing sport organization leaders’ decisions to adopt a technological innovation as the best strategy to gain efficiencies. We explore the factors influencing sport managers’ evaluation of technological innovations— prior conditions (i.e., need identification and individual innovativeness), perceived characteristics of the technology (i.e., relative advantage, compatibility, complexity, trialability, and observability), and situational constructs (i.e., trust and cost)— and the effect they have on leaders’ decisions to adopt or reject a given tool. The context …

Sport Ecology: Conceptualizing An Emerging Subdiscipline Within Sport Management, Brian Mccullough, Madeleine Orr, Timothy Kellison

Kinesiology Faculty Publications

The relationship between sport and the natural environment is bidirectional and critical to the production of sport products, events, and experiences. Researchers have studied sport and the natural environment within the various subdisciplines of sport management. However, given the changing climate and mounting public concern for the environment, there is pressure to reconsider the relevance and significance of the natural environment, which is taken for granted in managerial contexts. Reflecting the importance of the natural environment, the robustness of the current literature, and the potential for the future, we propose a new subdiscipline of sport management called sport ecology. Thus, …

Budgeting For Success:Comparing Finances Between Historicallyblack Colleges And Universities And Predominantly White Institutions, Kelly Elliott, Timothy Kellison

Kinesiology Faculty Publications

There has been little research into the comparison of historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) to predominantly white institutions (PWIs) in recent years. With growing athletic department budgets, it is important to understand how HBCUs financially compare to their PWI counterparts. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to determine how HBCU athletic departments compare to their peer PWIs in terms of athletic department spending and to conduct a budgetary analysis of HBCU athletic departments. To examine differences in athletics budgets, data were collected from the U.S. Department of Education’s Equity in Athletics Disclosure Act (EADA) Survey. NCAA member institution …

Global Perspectives On Democracy And Public Stadium Finance, Timothy Kellison, Michael Sam, Sungil Hong, Kamilla Swart, Michael Mondello

Kinesiology Faculty Publications

Arenas, ballparks, and stadiums built for professional sports teams or mega-events all around the world often come with large public costs. In democratic states, citizens are assumed to have a role in public policymaking, but previous research suggests the strength of this role can vary case-to-case. To examine the incidence of public stadium finance and public participation across the geopolitical landscape, a collective case study was employed and organized into regime type (i.e., full democracies, flawed democracies, hybrid regimes, authoritarian regimes). The results of the study show clear contrasts in the financing mechanisms within and between regime types. Additionally, each …

Brand Equity In College Athletics: An Assessment Of Syracuse University’S “New York’S College Team” Strategic Branding Campaign, Glynn M. Mcgehee, Beth A. Cianfrone

Kinesiology Faculty Publications

Sports organizations often seek to manage their brand and improve brand equity. Within the ever-growing business of college sports, collegiate athletics programs often focus on strategic branding and marketing initiatives for the goal of improved brand awareness and brand associations for a stronger brand equity. The purpose of this case study was to investigate one university's strategic marketing efforts to enhance its brand via a 10-year marketing campaign. This study assessed Syracuse University and the strategic management of the "New York's College Team" branding campaign. Primary and secondary data sources were utilized to ascertain main foci of the branding campaign, …

The Changing Landscape Of The Team Uniform Sales Market, Matthew Y.H. Smith, Timothy Kellison, Brandon Pottebaum, Beth Cianfrone

Kinesiology Faculty Publications

The amateur team uniform sales market, long run through small, local shops and sales representatives, is undergoing profound change. The rise of customization and ecommerce may be leading long-time retailers to weigh the benefits of adopting new tactics versus maintaining traditional sales strategies. To gain insight on the team uniform sales market, semi-structured interviews were conducted with six professionals with histories working in the sporting apparel industry. In sum, the participants had more than 40 years of experience. Based on the interviews, several themes emerged that capture the amateur team uniform sales market, including the current market conditions, changes in …

The Modernization Of Historic Grant Field At Bobby Dodd Stadium, Chad Seifried, Timothy Kellison

Kinesiology Faculty Publications

The article discusses the improvement and modernization of the Bobby Dodd Stadium at Historic Grant Field on the campus of the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta in 2018. Topics covered include plans for improvement such as expansion of tailgating space, locker-room modernization, and addition of cellular and Internet service, its construction and renovation history, and the importance of football both inside and outside of the university.

Facilities Operations Professionals’ Staffing Perceptions In Division I Football Championship Subdivision And Non-Football Athletic Departments, Camille Patterson, Kelly Elliott, Timothy Kellison, Beth Cianfrone

Kinesiology Faculty Publications

Athletic training centers and competition venues are important recruitment tools for colleges and universities, and they are often sources of significant investment. As these facilities have grown in size and scope in recent years, facility management is an increasingly vital cog in the athletic department. Unlike ticketing, marketing, or management strategies, the facility management staff is rarely studied. To understand the perceptions of athletic department facility operations staff, we administered online surveys to athletic facilities operations staff department heads at Football Championship Subdivision and non-football Division I institutions. For closed-ended items, descriptive statistics were computed, while NVivo was used to …

Student Perceptions Of Branding Benefits Of A New Collegiate Stadium, Glynn M. Mcgehee, Beth Cianfrone, Timothy Kellison

Kinesiology Faculty Publications

As universities engage in high-cost stadium projects, there is a need to understand the benefits these facilities provide to stakeholders. We consider the soundness of collegiate stadiums in terms of benefits they may provide to undergraduate students, as the most immediate university stakeholders. Specifically, their perception that collegiate stadiums improve university brand equity is considered. The purposes of this study were to measure student perceptions of stadium benefits (e.g., brand, tangible, and intangible) and to determine if students’ personal characteristics explain perception of brand equity benefits of a stadium. Surveys were distributed to students at a university with a new …

Formation And Function Of A Collegiate Athletics Sustainability Committee, Brian P. Mccullough, Timothy Kellison, Elodie Wendling

Kinesiology Faculty Publications

Institutions of higher learning may be considered dual-identity organizations because of the perceived distinctiveness between universities’ academic and athletic missions. One way in which these barriers can be weakened is through cross-sector social partnerships (CSSPs), a form of collaborative engagement aimed at achieving a common societal goal. In this study, we examine the formation of a university-directed CSSP focused on enhancing environmentally sustainable initiatives within the Athletic Department. Interviews with 11 members of a so-called Green Team illustrate the processes of boundary spanning and boundary blurring. As demonstrated in the article, boundary spanning occurred under the leadership of a “champion” …

An Analysis Of Collegiate Athletic Department Social Media Practices, Strategies, And Challenges, Matthew Blaszka, Beth Cianfrone, Patrick Walsh

Kinesiology Faculty Publications

Similar to professional sport organizations, intercollegiate athletic programs frequently use social media to reach consumers. However, athletic departments face unique challenges, such as simultaneously managing multiple teams’ social accounts and strategies, while monitoring and advising the socialactivity of student-athletes and coaches. The tactics used to interact with consumers and challenges of using social media have yet to be studied from an athletic department point of view. The purpose of this study was to explore intercollegiate athletic departments’ social media usage patterns, strategies, and challenges. Seven college athletic departments were studied via personal interviews with staff members. The results suggested that …

Rising Above The Clutter: Brand Awareness Of Sponsorships, Beth Cianfrone

Kinesiology Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Ncaa Drug Testing Policies And Penalties: The Role Of Team Performance, Kelly Elliott, Timothy Kellison, Beth Cianfrone

Kinesiology Faculty Publications

Under National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) rules, all Division I and II student-athletes are subject to year-round drug testing. In addition to these NCAA-mandated tests, the NCAA encourages each member school to establish its own drug testing policy. Drug testing has been studied frequently, often from the legal, athlete motivation, or economic perspectives. Yet, on the collegiate level, it is unclear the extent to which drug testing policies vary across institutions and divisions. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to compare the drug testing policies of high- and low-performing athletic programs to determine whether student-athletes competing on successful teams …

A Pragmatic Perspective On The Future Of Sustainability In Sport, Timothy Kellison, Brian Mccullough

Kinesiology Faculty Publications

This chapter discusses sport and the environment and looks to the significant challenges. To continue growth in the sustainability space, both academy and industry must endeavor to enhance the general proficiency, technical expertise, and communication skills of its students and practitioners. A few sport organizations have emerged as leaders in implementing pro-environmental strategies, including some who acted as innovators and early adopters long before sustainability had emerged as a pressing issue in sport. For the majority of organizations, however, who implemented eco-friendly initiatives much later, the motives for adopting a pro-environmental perspective may range from altruism to the desire for …

Assessing Spectator Response To Sponsorships At Historically Black Colleges And Universities, Kelly Elliott, Beth Cianfrone, Timothy Kellison

Kinesiology Faculty Publications

Historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) have a strong tradition and football following, yet they struggle financially and lack sponsorship revenue. HBCU fans are understudied, and investigating their behavior would help athletic departments. The purpose of this study was to determine HBCU football consumers’ response to sponsorships. Spectators’ team and university identification, awareness, attitude, loyalty, goodwill, gratitude, and trust of sponsors were examined in relation to purchase intentions and positive word of mouth (WOM) of sponsors. Brand loyalty and gratitude led to increased purchase intentions. Brand attitude, brand awareness, brand loyalty, and goodwill led to positive WOM.

Framing Democracy: Stadium Financing And Civic Paternalism In Test Market, Usa, Timothy Kellison, Joshua Newman, Kyle Bunds

Kinesiology Faculty Publications

The vast majority of North America’s professional sport arenas, ballparks, and stadiums are publicly subsidized without direct approval from voters. In this article, we examine the discursive constitution of ‘no-vote subsidies’ within the public sphere, and in particular problematize the twinned production(s) of citizenship and democratic process in framing public subsidization of these sites of private accumulation. To do this, we examine the recent no-vote subsidy occurring in Columbus, Ohio—thereby providing context-specific interrogation of the mediations of participatory citizenship, political decision-making, and the institution of democracy as related to sport stadium funding. As part of this analysis, we discuss the …

Public Parks Usage Near Hydraulic Fracturing Operations, Timothy Kellison, Kyle Bunds, Jonathan Casper, Joshua Newman

Kinesiology Faculty Publications

Following the advent of hydraulic fracturing to effectively collect natural gas and oil, there has been growing interest in placing exploration and extraction wells in or adjacent to public park and forest systems across North America and Europe. At the heart of the debate about leasing public parkland is the concern that park acreage and accessibility will be lost to fracking operations, thereby decreasing park attendance. In this study, we apply value-belief-norm theory to evaluate park users’ general attitudes toward fracking and public policy and their perceptions of fracking’s impact on their recreational activity. A survey of 255 park users …

Public Attitudes Towards No-Vote Stadium Subsidies: The Development And Validation Of An Ex Post Proxy Referendum, Timothy Kellison, Yukyoum Kim

Kinesiology Faculty Publications

In most cases, professional sport stadiums are financed through a mix of public and private investment. The amount of public subsidy allocated for a stadium can vary greatly by project, as can the role of citizens in deciding such matters. With respect to public-stadium financing, research has focused chiefly on citizen participation through direct democracy (e.g., referendums and initiatives). However, the vast majority of stadium projects across North American professional sport receive public financing without any form of citizen vote. Cases of the socalled no-vote subsidy may be problematic to citizens, especially if public policy does not correspond to the …

Building Stadiums, Building Bridges: Geopolitical Strategy In China, Timothy Kellison, Alicia Cintron

Kinesiology Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Go Green For The Home Team: Sense Of Place And Environmental Sustainability In Sport, Brian Mccullough, Timothy Kellison

Kinesiology Faculty Publications

The sport industry has a tremendous impact on the natural environment. As a result, sport organizations have implemented ways to reduce their impact ranging from energy upgrades, waste management programs, and fan engagement. However, fan engagement efforts have received mixed results to increase participation in sustainability initiatives. This paper proposes that sense of place can be leveraged using fan identification to increase participation in such initiatives, thereby decreasing the environmental impact of the sport organization and individual fans. A conceptual model is presented and practical examples are provided for the use and reference of sport management and sustainability educators or …

A Forecast For The Mainstreaming Of Environmental Sustainability, Timothy Kellison, Brian Mccullough

Kinesiology Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Brand Management In Top-Tier College Athletics: Examining And Explaining Mark-Usage Policies, Timothy Kellison, Jordan R. Bass, Brent Oja, Jeffrey D. James

Kinesiology Faculty Publications

The practice of an interscholastic athletic department reproducing the logo of a collegiate team for its own use is becoming increasingly visible. Qualitative questionnaire responses from collegiate brand managers suggest that licensing departments differ in their perceptions of the outcomes associated with allowing logo replication in high school athletic departments. Perceived consequences of two enforcement strategies—prohibitive and cooperative—are highlighted, as are implications and directions for future research.

Fan Mobilization And The Minnesota Sport Stadium Campaign, Lana Huberty, Timothy Kellison, Michael Mondello

Kinesiology Faculty Publications

As state and local government subsidies to professional sport organizations have increased over the past three decades, economic arguments have been crafted to justify these subsidies such as Crompton’s (2004) claims of increased community visibility, enhanced community image, stimulation of other development, and psychic income. The purpose of this study was to examine the public relations strategy of a professional sport organization campaigning to secure public funding for a new stadium. Specifically, authors focused on the use of press releases by the Minnesota Vikings, a National Football League team, over the three seasons preceding the completion of their successful sport …

No-Vote Stadium Subsidies And The Democratic Response, Timothy Kellison

Kinesiology Faculty Publications

Scholarship on sports stadium subsidies has covered myriad topics, including economic impact, finance, political strategy, and voter behavior. One area receiving much less attention from researchers is the emergence of the no-vote subsidy—where stadium-finance decisions are decided without a public vote—as a frequent alternative to direct democracy (i.e., referendums or initiatives). In this article, it is contended that an unfavorable no-vote subsidy can have damaging effects on a team’s financial performance, the reputation of elected officials, and citizen confidence in the democratic process. Whereas previous analyses of stadium-subsidy debates often end with a voting outcome (i.e., the issue is passed …

Identifying Key Market Demand Factors Associated With High School Basketball Tournaments, Beth A. Cianfrone, James Jianhui Zhang, Brenda Pitts, Kevin K. Byon

Kinesiology Faculty Publications

High school sports are popular in the United States and the associated state championships are often publicized, well-attended special events providing an economic impact on host communities. Understanding attendees, particularly those variables affecting market demand for high-profile interscholastic sporting events, would help athletic directors and state associations improve marketing efforts. Through an abridged adoption of the Theory of Reason Action, this study was conducted to develop a consumer profile of high school tournament spectators by understanding their sociodemographic characteristics and market demand variables. Based on a review of literature, we identified four market demand factors to influence attendance (Event Attractiveness, …