A note from the SMA Vice President of Academic Affairs.

Ballouli, Khalid

Earlier this year, the SMA executive board gathered in Albuquerque, New Mexico, to conduct its annual midyear meeting and discuss matters concerning the current status of SMA membership and the 2013 SMA Annual Conference. SMA executive board members Gregg Bennett (President), Nancy Lough (President-Elect), Dan Funk (SMQ Editor), Andrea Eagleman (VP of Student Affairs), Steve McKelvey (VP of Industry Relations), Joris Drayer (Member at Large), and Eric Schwarz (Executive Director and Past President) came away from the mid-year meeting with an enthusiasm that our organization was about to make another significant step in becoming the foremost membership and conference in our field. It was an honor and delight to work alongside this dedicated and professional group of people, and I am very pleased to report some exciting initiatives scheduled for the 2013 SMA Annual Conference.

First, we are pleased to announce that Dr. Drayer and the SMA Awards Committee have put together a series of new awards that will be given to nominated and selected individuals beginning this October. Last year, the SMA Awards Committee created the Sutton Award, which honors an educator in the field of sport marketing who best exemplifies the mission of the SMA by connecting knowledge to the sport industry. Fittingly, Dr. Bill Sutton received this inaugural award in 2012, and this year we look forward to honoring a new recipient.

In addition, the committee has created three new awards that will be given out this year, including a newly named Stotlar Award. This award recognizes a mentor in the field of sport marketing who represents the mission of the SMA by promoting and advancing doctoral students in the discipline. Dr. David Stotlar has made a profound impact on our discipline through outstanding mentorship of doctoral students and the professional development of some of the most respected scholars in the field. We are very excited to recognize our first Stotlar Award recipient this year at SMA.

We are also happy to announce that the first SMA Research Grant will be awarded at this year's conference. Grants applications were submitted prior to August 1, and the SMA Awards Committee will spend time leading up to the conference deciding the winner(s) of this year's grant funding. The awards committee would also like to announce the creation of the SMA Research Fellow Award, which recognizes scholars who have disseminated research through the SMA and Sport Marketing Quarterly. Dr. Drayer and the SMA Awards Committee are to be commended for their work in establishing these awards and ensuring the men and women responsible for enriching our discipline are rightly honored within our organization. These awards will be given out during the SMA Awards Dinner on Thursday night at the University of New Mexico's iconic arena "The Pit." Details about these awards can be found on the SMA website.

Second, Dr. Lough has been hard at work preparing our new "Lifetime Membership" option for eligible academicians. Those who elect to purchase a Lifetime Membership will receive many benefits, including automatic renewal of their SMA membership each year for as long as the member is active in the field, discounted membership rates based upon years as an active member and status in the field, a subscription to Sport Marketing Quarterly, as well as other additional subscription discounts and member services provided through the SMA. More information regarding the Lifetime Membership will be announced at SMA 2013.

Third, we are happy to announce that the SMA Pedagogy Symposium will once again take place at this year's SMA conference, providing yet another forum for sport marketing faculty to exchange strategies, ideas, assignments, projects, and other teaching methods to allow our students to become more prepared as they enter the workforce. Presentations during the SMA Pedagogy Symposium will consist of a walk-up style conversation where presenters will highlight an activity, case study, or any deliverable teaching tool, technique, or pedagogy from the sport marketing academic field. We encourage all of our attendees to visit the SMA Pedagogy Symposium this year and facilitate discussion on current teaching methods.

Lastly, we are very pleased to report that, while SMA 2013 will be the first SMA conference held outside of a major professional sports market in the United States, our organization was able to maintain our typical number of academic submissions. A total of 150 presentations were submitted for SMA 2013, of which 72 were accepted as oral presentations, and another 57 were accepted as visual presentations. I would like to personally thank all of the reviewers who helped deliver abstract decisions on time and in an orderly fashion this year. I'd like to also thank Dr. Schwarz for his work on creating a new online submission and review system for the SMA. He should also be commended for the many hats he has worn in making SMA 2013 in New Mexico a reality.

In addition to our academic presentations, we are excited to have former WNBA President Donna Orender as this year's Veeck Address Honoree and Keynote Speaker on Wednesday, October 23. Orender is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Orender Unlimited, LLC, and we look forward to her opening remarks at this year's conference. Furthermore, on Friday, October 25, legendary sports executive and top-selling author Jon Spoelstra will deliver the SMA President's Luncheon Address. Spoelstra comes with a large reputation as one of the most innovative and successful sports marketers in the industry. With the lineup of presentations and speakers we have scheduled this year, SMA 2013 should set the bar high for Philadelphia in 2014!

As a reminder, SMA 2013 will take place October 2226, 2013, and while the abstract submission date has passed, it isn't too late to register as a guest. SMA 2013 promises to expand our knowledge beyond the traditional sport marketing concepts toward specialized areas of sport marketing that are emerging in our industry. Please visit the updated SMA website for more details and plan to join us in Albuquerque, New Mexico, for a great conference!

Khalid Ballouli

Vice President of Academic Affairs, Sport Marketing Association