The United States Sports Academy’s 2004 Alumnus of the Year Dennis Lindsey was recently promoted to executive vice president of basketball operations for the NBA’s Utah Jazz franchise. Lindsey previously served as the team’s general manager since 2012. He earned his Master of Sport Science degree in sports management from the Academy in 1994. In his new role Lindsey will oversee the Jazz basketball operations staff and develop and maintain the organization’s long-term strategic vision. Lindsey has served as the Utah Jazz general manager for the past seven years, assembling teams that have reached the NBA Playoffs for the last three years and advanced to the Western Conference Semifinals in 2017 and 2018. Lindsey finished as the runner-up in the voting for the 2018 NBA Executive of the Year. His [...]

When Dr. Angel Mejico graduated from her United States Sports Academy doctoral degree program, one of her instructors gave her a piece of advice that has stuck with her ever since. “He told me, ‘take everything you learned here and go do something great with it,’” Mejico said, and she did just that. While working as a visual arts teacher at El Cerrito Middle School in California’s Corona-Norco Unified School District, Mejico founded an art academy and annual art expo which has gained notoriety around the state. Because of her efforts in the classroom and school district, Mejico was named one of California’s five Teachers of the Year in 2019. Mejico earned her Doctor of Education degree in sports management with a sports leadership emphasis from the Academy in 2016. [...]

When Dusty Gunn started his master’s degree program at the United States Sports Academy, he always had the goal of becoming an athletic director at a prestigious institution in the back of his mind. Now, after spending time as a coach, teacher, healthcare administrator and non-profit director, Gunn has been hired as the Director of Athletics at Notre Dame High School in Chattanooga, Tenn. The school has an extensive and notable history, having first opened in 1876 and being recognized as the first school in the Chattanooga area to be racially integrated in 1954. Gunn earned his Master of Sports Science degree in sports coaching from the Academy in 2008. “When I started my master’s program at the Academy, this was always the goal,” Gunn said. “I knew that one [...]

Entrepreneur and health coach Cindy Hodo said her master’s degree from the United States Sports Academy has been beneficial to her career along every step of the way. Hodo is the owner and founding partner of Quest Group, a boutique advertising agency and health and wellness coaching business based in Birmingham, Ala. She earned her Master of Sports Science degree in sports management in 1989 while she worked in marketing for the Senior Bowl in Mobile, Ala. “The people at the Senior Bowl encouraged me to pursue a master’s degree at the Academy and I was able to do that while still working full time,” Hodo said. “Getting my master’s degree from the Academy was hugely beneficial to my career then, and it still resonates today.” After earning her master’s [...]

After working for six years in an assistant professor role at Bowie State University, Academy graduate Dr. Joseph Spears has been rewarded with a promotion and granted tenure. Spears, who lives in Maryland, was awarded tenure and promoted to the rank of associate professor of sports management at Bowie (Md.) State University, where he also serves as NCAA faculty athletic representative. Spears earned his Doctor of Education degree in sports management from the Academy in 2011. He holds master’s degrees in higher education from Morgan State University in Baltimore, Md., and in divinity from Virginia Union University in Richmond, Va. Spears earned a bachelor’s degree at Logos Christian College in Jacksonville, Fla. With a background in religious studies, Spears said he chose to study at the Academy to blend his [...]