MEET OUR TEAM

Tamara Jarrett

Every great idea requires a leader with the faith and courage to take the first step.  Tamara Jarrett, the President and Founder of CORE, has over 25 years in the recreation industry.  Throughout her lifetime, Tamara has identified, recruited, and developed young talent while always looking for opportunities to learn and grow from her own mentors.  This constant quest for knowledge and the desire to connect people to one another has fueled the creation of the CORE network.

Tamara has held faculty and administrative positions at Ohio University, Kent State University, and Louisiana State University (LSU). Most recently she led project teams toward the opening of the Student Recreation Center at California State University-Northridge, the Student Wellness Center at Georgia College & State University, and is currently the project leader for the new recreation center at Cal Poly Pomona.

Ms. Jarrett’s award-winning leadership has set new standards in service and program development toward the opening of the new recreation facilities at LSU, Kent State, and Ohio University. She is an active contributor to the field – speaking at numerous conferences and workshops and serving various roles within our national association (NIRSA). Committed to the student experience in both the programmatic and academic arenas, Jarrett played a key role in developing the LSU sport management curriculum and served on the academic advisory board. She also served as an advisory board member for the Walt Disney World College Program.  She has taught courses in facility management, legal and ethical issues in sport, recreation administration, research methods, event planning, and communication studies.

Jennifer has been involved in the health, wellness, fitness, and recreation industry for the last 20 years.  As the Chief Strategy Officer for a worldwide leisure management and consulting firm, Jennifer has been directly responsible for the pre-opening and management of over 100 recreation facilities, spas, fitness centers, and health clubs.

Over the years, Jenn has created systems and tools that have improved the communication and operation of a multi-million dollar company with over 2,000 employees and over 100 facilities.  She developed and trademarked programs that were executed successfully across multiple brands and created centralized online communication resources that fostered the continued growth and development of a diverse and complex business.  This passion and talent lead to her development of Connect2Concepts, a CORE partner company focused on integrated technology solutions.

Prior to entering the corporate world, Jenn also spent several years working in campus and municipal recreation where she was directly responsible for facilities ranging in size from 5,000 sf to 168,000 sf that provided community members and students of all ages and interests with a wide array of programs and services. With a strong business acumen and discipline of execution, Jenn has a reputation for bringing concepts to completion.  She has a strong work ethic and an intense drive to deliver meaningful results.  Jennifer received her undergraduate and graduate degrees in Recreation Administration from Ohio University, and she currently serves on the academic advisory board.

Jennifer Jacobs