In 1963, the University of North Carolina at Greensboro began offering classes in recreational studies under the School of Health, Physical Education, and Recreation which later became the School of Health, Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance in 1980. The Department of Recreation and Leisure Studies branched out from the School in 1984, in response to the identification of the difference between physical recreation and leisurely recreation. The department moved to the School of Health and Human performance in 1990 and was renamed the Department of Recreation, Parks, Tourism, and Hospitality in 1998. The department once again changed schools in 2012, becoming the Department of Marketing, Entrepreneurship, Hospitality, and Tourism under the Bryan School of Business and Economics. Today, the department offers three concentrations: marketing, entrepreneurship, and sustainable tourism and hospitality.
Department Heads:
Ethel Martus Lawther (1963-1974)
Margaret Mordy (1974-1979)
Rosemary McGee (1979-1980)
Richard Swanson (1980-1983)
Stephen Anderson (1983-1994)
James Sellers (-1988, 1994-1997)
Benton E. Miles (1994-2001)
Daniel T. Winkler (2001-2005)
Stuart Schleien (1997-2008)
Stephen Lucas (2005-2008)
Kevin Lowe (2008-2013)
Sevil Sonmez (2008-2014)
James Boles (2014-current)
Department Names:
School of Health, Physical Education and Recreation (1963-1980)
School of Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (1980-1983)
Department of Recreation and Leisure Studies (1984-1990)
Department of Leisure Studies in School of Health of Human Performance (1990-1997)
Department of Recreation, Parks, and Tourism in School of Health and Human Performance (1998-2004)
Department of Recreation, Tourism, and Hospitality Management in School of Health and Human Performance (2004-2011)
Department of Marketing, Entrepreneurship, Hospitality, and Tourism (2012-present)