Lee University Athletics has announced the appointment of Cassidy Brinkley as its new Associate Athletic Director for External Operations in February of 2026. Brinkley joins the athletic department after leading large-scale event operations, sports tourism initiatives, and community programming for over ten years.
In her role with Lee athletics, Brinkley will oversee community engagement, marketing, and revenue generation. She joins the Flames after six plus years of working with the Chattanooga Tourism Co.
Brinkley began at Chattanooga Tourism Co. in 2019 as the sports event manager. Then in 2022 she took on the role of Director of Event Operations where she managed the destination experience associated with 90+ annual events, including large-scale events like IRONMAN, NCAA National Championships, and TSSAA State ChampionshipsÂ
In January of 2025, Brinkley was named the Vice President of Visitor Experience with the Chattanooga Tourism Co.  Her role was to lead the strategic direction and execution of the visitor experience across Chattanooga’s leisure and group travel sectors. She was a part of the executive leadership team and helped advance strategic planning to support Chattanooga as a premier visitor destination.
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