For the past three years, the research arm of the Georgia World Congress Center Authority Marketing department has partnered with the Georgia State University Sports Management School to create a living classroom experience for graduate students. Each semester students attend events at the Georgia Dome and survey attendees with a variety of questions about their thoughts on Atlanta, the event and the Dome. They then analyze their findings and present the information to officials at the Georgia Dome. The project was initiated by the chief operating officer of the Georgia World Congress Center Authority, Khalil Johnson, and the first survey was taken in spring of 2003. Through coordination from Carol Lucas, Georgia World Congress Center market research manager, and Dr. Brenda Pitts, Sports Administration Program professor at Georgia State University, various events have now been surveyed three times, including Professional Bull Riders, Supercross and the Atlanta Football Classic.

The arrangement is beneficial to all parties involved. The students determine basic market research skills. The Georgia Dome is able to use the information to learn where it can improve and they are also able to share the information with their clients, who can use the information to adjust their event. Finally, Dr. Pitts is able to use the experience as research for publication on living classrooms.

In November, Pitts and Lucas and a few other participants attended the Sport Marketing Association 3rd Annual Conference in Tempe, Arizona to present a symposium on the partnership between the Georgia Dome and Georgia State University. The presentation was based on their paper entitled "Building Living Classroom Partnerships with Local Sport Business Industry," and it gave the background of the partnership, the students’ perspectives on the project and an actual example of one of the events surveyed with the results.

The partnership between the Georgia Dome and Georgia State University is a perfect example of a living classroom giving students the opportunity to get real hands on experience while they are in school and giving the facility real data to work with and make improvements from. This mutually beneficial partnership is sure to be a part of many a graduate student’s education at Georgia State University.