Samantha Rachel Roberts

Samantha Rachel Roberts (Gorse), 44, passed away unexpectedly on September 19, 2021, in Greenville, Texas. She was born on November 16, 1976, in Catterick, North Yorkshire, England, UK, the daughter of John David Gorse and Susan Gorse. A fun fact about Samantha’s middle name is that she was named after a legendary English cricketer, Rachael Heyhoe-Flint, who was the English cricket captain from 1966- 1978.

Samantha attended high school at Adams School, graduating in 1995. She then attended the University of Wolverhampton, UK, earning her BA (Hons) in Marketing & Sport Studies in 2002. She then went on to earn her MA in International Business in 2004. In 2014, she finished her studies for her PhD in Strategic Sport Marketing from Coventry University, UK. She held academic appointments at Coventry University, UK for four years, before coming to the United States in 2016 to take a position as Assistant Professor in Sport & Recreation Management. Samantha recently achieved tenure and was promoted to Associate Professor in the department of Health and Human Performance. She was an active member of North American Society for Sport Management and Applied Sport Management Association.  She was an expert in areas such as corruption in sport, marketing and branding, and was just about to launch an initiative on hidden disabilities in sport and recreation.  Samantha presented research with colleagues and students all over the world.  She was a prolific author, having been published in numerous prestigious journals.

Samantha was a lifelong fan of the Telford Tigers Ice Hockey team and the West Ham soccer club. She also enjoyed knitting and scrapbooking. Her true passion was helping her students with their writing skills and teaching them to become life-long learners. She will be greatly missed by the many students that she impacted on a daily basis. She was interested in them as individuals, not just students. She had recently begun attending the First Baptist Church in Commerce.

Samantha is survived by her son, Riley Gorse, her mother, Susan Gorse, her father, John David Gorse, sister, Becci Dobaczewski and husband, Damian, and niece, Marley Dobaczewski.

To make a gift to the A&M-Commerce Legacy Fund in honor of Dr. Samantha Roberts online, go to http://lionpride.tamuc.edu/DrRoberts  Include “Dr. Samantha Roberts” in the comments field. Make a gift by phone by calling 903-886-5712. Gifts may also be mailed to Texas A&M University-Commerce Foundation P.O. Box 3425, Commerce, TX 75429-3425.  Checks should be made payable to Texas A&M University-Commerce Foundation.  Include “in memory of Dr. Samantha Roberts” in the memo field.

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