Featured Alumni

A former Olympic hurdler and American record holder and current collegiate track and field coach, United States Sports Academy 2016 Alumna of the Year LaTanya Sheffield is entering her second Olympic Games as a coach in Tokyo later this month. Sheffield, who earned her Bachelor of Sports Science degree in sports management magna cum laude from the Academy in 2011, is the head women’s track and field coach at Long Beach State University and is a women’s assistant coach for Team USA’s sprinters and hurdlers. Sheffield makes her return to the Olympics after serving the same role for Team USA in the Rio 2016 games. Sheffield said her Academy education has been important to her success as a coach. “It made sense for me to pursue my degree at the [...]

Nationally acclaimed sports administrator and high performance professional Scott Novack is entering his seventh Olympic Games later this month in Tokyo as the Team Leader for the USA Rugby Men’s Eagles Sevens team. The United States Sports Academy’s 2018 Alumnus of the Year, Novack has more than 18 years of experience as a sports administrator, managing Olympic and national teams that have won eight Olympic medals, seven world championships and more than 60 World Cup medals. Novack – the USA Rugby Men’s Eagles Sevens program operations manager – will serve as the Team Leader at this year’s Olympic Rugby tournament, which kicks off on 26 July. A Colorado native, Novack, earned his Master of Sports Science degree in sports management from the Academy in 1997 and participated in a mentorship [...]

A volleyball coach with more than a decade of experience coaching at the Paralympic and collegiate levels, Greg Walker has been named the United States Sports Academy’s 2021 Alumnus of the Year. Walker earned his Bachelor of Sports Science degree in sports coaching cum laude from the Academy in 2012 and is the current head coach of the U.S. Men’s Sitting Volleyball National Team and a consultant and training coach for the Men’s Indoor National Team. He is also the head volleyball coach at Smith College in Northampton, Mass. A native of Huntingdon, Pa., Walker has been active with the U.S. Men’s Sitting Volleyball Team since 2013 and has served as head coach since 2016. Sitting volleyball is a variation of the original game but designed for athletes with adaptive [...]

Dr. David Peterson retired from the U.S. Navy in 2018 after more than 20 years of active duty service and was immediately able to transition to work in higher education because of his doctoral degree from the United States Sports Academy. Peterson earned his Doctor of Education degree in sports management with an emphasis in health and fitness in 2014. The Academy’s 2015 Alumnus of the Year, Peterson began his work as an assistant professor of kinesiology at Cedarville University shortly after his retirement from the Navy. Now, Peterson has used his education and his faith-focused lifestyle to write two textbooks that are in use at Cedarville: A Practical Guide to Personal Conditioning (2018) and his latest work A Christian Guide to Body Stewardship, Diet and Exercise (2021), which was [...]

Former professional hockey player and United States Sports Academy alumnus Kris MacPhee was recently hired as the technical director for Hockey PEI in the Canadian province of Prince Edward Island. A native of Clyde River, Nunavut, MacPhee earned his Master of Sports Science degree in sports coaching from the Academy in 2010 while working in the hockey field in Prince Edward Island. “My Academy degree has helped me in almost every aspect of my professional career,” MacPhee said. “I truly can’t say enough about how much they prepared me for the many challenges and opportunities in this career. “I thoroughly enjoyed all of my courses at the Academy. The courses were interesting, flexible in delivery, and ultimately provided me with the knowledge and skills required to be successful in the [...]

Jacksonville State University (JSU) senior associate athletic director and United States Sports Academy alumnus Dr. Greg Bonds was recently elected to the Marshall County (Ala.) Sports Hall of Fame (MCSHOF). A graduate and former letterman in basketball and football at Douglas High School in Marshall County, Bonds was formally inducted into the MCSHOF in June at the Hall’s annual banquet at Lake Guntersville State Park Lodge. Bonds holds a Doctor of Education degree in sports management from the Academy, which he earned in 2016 while working within the JSU athletic department. “The educational experience I received at the United States Sports Academy enhanced my professional career,” Bonds said. “My involvement with intercollegiate athletics spans over 25 years. The Academy helped broaden my knowledge base while strengthening my leadership skills, scholarly [...]

United States Sports Academy President and CEO Dr. T.J. Rosandich, who is also an alumnus of the institution, recently earned a pair of high profile appointments that will boost the Academy’s role on the international stage in the coming years. Prior to being named president and CEO in 2015, Rosandich served the Academy as vice president, chief operating officer, and as a faculty member and employee for decades. He is also an Academy alumnus, having received both his Master of Sports Science (M.S.S.) degree in Sports Management (1989) and his Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) degree in Sports Management (1999). Rosandich was named the Academy’s 1994 Alumnus of the Year for his contributions to the institution, primarily through his work on behalf of the Academy in its international projects. Bahrain General [...]

Former national coach of the year in collegiate basketball and United States Sports Academy master’s degree holder Chad Killinger was recently hired as the ninth women’s basketball coach at Indiana State University. An Indiana native, Killinger earned his Master of Sports Science degree in sports management from the Academy in 2003 while coaching at Jacksonville (Texas) College. Killinger, a former national coach of the year for two-year colleges, previously worked as an assistant coach at Nicholls State University, where he served as the recruiting coordinator and helped the Colonels rank in the top 50 nationally in six statistical categories. Throughout his 25-year coaching career, Killinger has held nearly every position possible in a collegiate basketball program, from student-assistant coach, to assistant coach, to junior college head coach and now Division [...]

The Denver Broncos have named United States Sports Academy 2011 Alumna of the Year Dr. China Jude as their new Vice President of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion – a newly created role for one of the NFL’s most storied franchises. In the role Jude – who holds an Academy Master of Sports Science degree in sports management – will work closely with football, business and community leadership on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) strategy. She will also work directly with the human resources and community development departments, focusing on recruitment, hiring processes, overall workplace environment and external outreach. In addition to leading the organization's overall DEI strategy and representing the team as an external ambassador on social justice initiatives, Jude will guide the team's internal DEI committee as it hosts [...]

United States Sports Academy graduate Matt Lowe has an opportunity that most coaches at the collegiate level never get – to be the first coach in their program’s history. Lowe was recently hired as the first ever coach for the brand new women’s cross country team at Grays Harbor College in Aberdeen, Wash. Lowe holds a Master of Sports Science (M.S.S.) degree in sports coaching from the Academy. He also had a successful collegiate running career at Brescia University in Owensboro, Ky. He recently coached cross country at Kentucky Wesleyan College, where he helped design training for long-distance runners in the steeplechase, 5k, 10k distances, and throwing events; and helped athletes achieve All-Conference Academic and Athletic honors as well as winning conference titles and breaking school and conference records. “The [...]

Graciela Steidley has more than 20 years of experience coaching softball at the high school and collegiate levels, but her bachelor’s degree from the United States Sports Academy ultimately helped her land her first collegiate head coaching position. Steidley holds a Bachelor of Sports Science degree in sports studies from the Academy. She was recently hired as the head softball coach at the University of Antelope Valley (UAV) in Lancaster, Calif. “My education with United States Sports Academy helped my career by opening doors that were not possible prior to earning my degree,” Steidley said. “Prior to applying at the Academy, I was complacent with being an assistant coach and not looking to advance my education. It wasn’t until my daughter was injured and I had to watch her dreams [...]