Brian Hill
Associate Professor

My Background:

Dr. Hill currently serves as department chair. He is a member of the Leisure Services Management faculty and also teaches courses in the Family Recreation Masters Degree Program.

Dr. Hill came to BYU from the University of Nebraska in the Fall of 1999. In Nebraska, he worked as an Associate Professor of Travel and Tourism, Director of the Nebraska Tourism Resource Center, and an Extension Specialist in Community Tourism. During 10 years in Nebraska, he also founded the Nebraska Mormon Trails Association and served as Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President of the Mormon Trail Wagon Train–150 Years.

Dr. Hill has established a Family Recreation Research Team with faculty, graduate students, and undergraduate students. This team has successfully submitted grant proposals and academic presentations. They utilized a Delphi technique with 15 experts in families and recreation to develop a research agenda in family recreation. They are involved in several other studies, most notably a summer experiment focused on the impact of challenge in family recreation activities. These research activities have brought energy and excitement to the department and its students.

Much of Dr. Hill’s previous scholarship has focused on rural sustainable tourism. He currently leads a $165,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture researching and training for Rural International Tourism Development and Marketing. He has presented papers in Italy and Scotland as well as the U.S. linking the Mormon Trail Sesquicentennial celebrations to sustainable rural tourism principles. In 1998, the College of Health and Human Performance honored his work with an Honored Alumni Award.

Courses I Teach:

Fall:
RELC 492 - The Gospel in the Academic Disciplines: Recreation Management
RMYL 487 - Research and Evaluation

Winter:
FAM LIFE 100 - Strengthening Marriage and Family: Proclamation Principles & Scholarship

Year Round:
RMYL 223R - Family Outdoor Recreation Skills

Personal Information:

Dr. Hill graduated from BYU in Recreation Management in 1986 and then pursued a Ph.D. in Parks, Recreation, and Tourism Management at Clemson University in South Carolina. In South Carolina, he met his wife at church, and they were soon married in the Atlanta temple. They have four energetic children who love the arts, adventure, and wilderness. They traveled together 1100 miles retracing the Mormon Trail pulling a handcart in the summer of 1997–a family highlight.