Two Chances to 'Lunch and Learn' on Thursday at Lindsey Wilson University

lunch and learn with columbia tourism COLUMBIA, Ky. (11/04/2026) — Area residents can dine and learn this Thursday at Lindsey Wilson University.

Two lunchtime events will offer lessons in local tourism and the student perspective of a new major in sport performance.

The Lindsey Wilson sport performance major will hold "Lunch & Learn: The Student Perspective," and the Lindsey Wilson School of Business and Communication will hold "Lunch & Learn: Adair County Tourism and Convention Commission."

Both events, which are free and open to the public, get underway at 11 a.m. CT on Thursday, Nov. 5, and will be held at the Roberta D. Cranmer Dining & Conference Center.

At the sport performance event, six student-athletes will reflect on the new major, how they are applying its lessons in their respective sport and the impact it's having beyond competition. The student speakers will be archer Keegan Benton '29 of Summerville, South Carolina; football players Anderson Brock '30 of Gallatin, Tennessee, and Bradshaw Klym '30 of Nashville, Tennessee; women's soccer player Marisa Bates '30 of Elizabethtown, Kentucky; and women's wrestlers Hailey Medina '28 of Gering, Nebraska, and Gia Simonpietri '29 of Saint Johns, Florida.

The event will be moderated by LWU sport performance and sports management professor Courtney Carter, who is also director of LWU's sport performance major.

The event sponsored by the LWU School of Business and Communication will feature two members of the Adair County Tourism Commission: Executive Director of the Adair County Tourism Commission Paige Nickel '11 and Josie Sprowles Hatcher, who is a social media and digital content specialist.

They will discuss how local and rural tourism are supported by content strategy. That event will be moderated by LWU School of Business and Communication Dean Benson Sexton '04.