In front of 300 guests at the Star at Frisco, Dr. Bob Heere was designated the Sport Marketing Association (SMA) Research Fellow of 2018. Heere, the director of Sport Management for the College of Business, earned the award in recognition for his high standards and contributions of scholarly research.

“It is always an honor to be recognized by your peers," said Heere. "What made it particularly special was that it was in Frisco, and that the award was handed to me by Chad Estis, the executive vice president of the Dallas Cowboys. I think this helped in building our relationship with the Cowboys, as they witnessed first hand that a faculty member from UNT was recognized by their peers.”

To qualify for nomination, SMA requires a minimum of seven publications in the SMA owned journal, Sport Marketing Quarterly, and at least ten presentations at the annual conference. Heere has exceeded those requirements with eight published articles in Sport Marketing Quarterly, two case studies and more than a dozen presentations at SMA conferences.

Established approximately five years ago, SMA has had only fifteen people qualify for their research fellow distinction, with Heere being the only recipient of 2018.