McCormack Department of Sport Management Announces Fall 2026 Scholars
The Mark H. McCormack Department of Sport Management is proud to announce its fall 2026 class of McCormack Scholars. Joining the department this semester are Jim Small, most recently president of the World Baseball Classic, and Marcita Thompson, senior vice president for global tourism, engagement and experiences at the Boston Red Sox.
“This is the third year of the McCormack Scholars program, and we’re hitting our stride with Jim Small and Marcita Thompson,” said Jeffrey Pollack, professor of practice in the McCormack Department and co-founder of the program. “They have helped grow the game of baseball and set a leadership standard at two iconic organizations.”
Small will visit the UMass Amherst campus Oct. 13, and Thompson will visit Nov. 10.
Previous McCormack Scholars include:
- Laura Gentile, former Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer at ESPN, Co-Founder of espnW and Storied Sports (spring 2026)
- Stacy Sonnenberg, Head of Global Sport Finance for Goldman Sachs (fall 2025)
- Li Li Leung, President and CEO, USA Gymnastics (fall 2025)
- Kim Davis, Senior Executive Vice President, National Hockey League (fall 2024)
- Jennifer Todd, Senior Vice President, Boston Celtics, and Co-Founder of The Basketball Tournament (fall 2024)
Launched in 2024, the McCormack Scholars program was established to honor and engage accomplished sports industry leaders and innovators. Each year, McCormack Scholars are invited to campus for a structured day of impact. Participants share their professional story for the McCormack Archive and meet with faculty to spotlight and discuss research relevant to the scholars’ interests. They also give a keynote lecture to students and faculty on leadership or any other topic they are passionate about.
Industry leaders invited to participate in the McCormack Scholars program must have a proven track record of accomplishment, including but not limited to at least 10 years of impactful senior leadership, demonstrated innovation and creativity in their work, game-changing entrepreneurial achievement, and passion for advancing the sports industry. Scholars must also demonstrate a commitment to equity, corporate social responsibility, and sustainability.
About Jim Small
Jim Small is the founder and principal of Ascendant Sports and Entertainment (ASE), a New York-based global advisory firm. ASE specializes in providing strategic vision to brands, sports leagues, teams, and national governing bodies seeking to expand their international footprint. ASE’s advisory roster includes the Yomiuri Shimbun—Japan’s leader in sports, media, and entertainment and owner of Japan’s most popular sports franchise, the Yomiuri Giants baseball team—as well as Chinese Professional Baseball (CPB) and Sumo in America.
Prior to founding ASE, Small worked more than 40 years in professional sports at the league, club and sponsor level.
From 2019 to 2026, he served as president of the World Baseball Classic (WBC), an event he helped launch in 2006. Under his leadership, the WBC has grown into one of the world's most popular sporting events. The 2026 WBC was seen by nearly 3 billion viewers around the world.
Small spent nearly 30 years in leadership roles for MLB’s international initiatives, including a stint as senior vice president, international, where he was charged with growing MLB’s brand and revenue outside of the United States. From 2003 to 2019, Small oversaw MLB’s Asia Pacific business based in Tokyo. Small started his career in public relations positions with the Kansas City Royals, the Chicago Cubs, the Texas Rangers and MLB’s New York Office. From 1996 to 1998, he held a variety of global marketing positions at Nike, based in Beaverton, OR.
Small has served as an advisor to the Japanese government’s Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry and on the board of directors of the General Sports Administration of Saudi Arabia. He is a founding member of Tomodachi, a public-private sector youth initiative operated by the U.S.-Japan Council in partnership with the United States Embassy in Tokyo. He is a National Board Member of the University of Kansas Alumni Association and has served on the board of trustees for Hands on Tokyo, one of Japan’s leading charitable organizations, and the American School in Japan. In 2022, he was named the Italian American Baseball Foundation’s Executive of the Year.
He currently serves as an adjunct professor of sports management at Tokyo’s Kanazawa Institute of Technology.
Small holds a BA in journalism from the University of Kansas, an MBA in finance from Fordham University, and a certificate in corporate governance from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School.
About Marcita Thompson
Thompson is the senior vice president for global tourism, engagement, and experiences at the Boston Red Sox. She joined the organization in 1998 and was named to the executive team in 2015.
As an early advocate and leader in creative business strategies, Thompson established a competitive business model to achieve success in Fenway Enterprises and Fenway Park Tours. Throughout her tenure, she has served in various marketing, sales, hospitality, community, operations, and sponsor-related roles. Her leadership not only elevates the Boston Red Sox brand but also champions social justice, inclusion, community, and brand development, leaving a lasting impact on the industry and the city of Boston.
Under Thompson’s leadership, the Boston Red Sox organization has honored some of the most iconic legends and barrier breakers in Major League Baseball, from the 90th anniversary of the team being established in the American League to the 1999 All Star Game All Century Team ceremony. She also produced the 2004 and 2007 World Series Galas. Thanks to her extensive experience and knowledge in many industries, Thompson continues to elevate the Boston Red Sox brand through engagement and leading business practices. She serves on the Red Sox Social Justice Equity and Inclusion Advisory Committee and the “Take the Lead” program, the first-of-its-kind partnership between Boston’s six major professional sports teams designed to combat racism and hate speech in sports venues and the Boston community.
Thompson is a founding board member of the UMass Boston Sport Leadership bachelor’s degree program, advisory board member for the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, UNCF, BECMA, and CHIEF, and she was named the WISE Mentor of the Year in 2022 and received the President’s Trailblazer Award in 2026.