Dr. Stella Leivadi is an Associate Professor and Programme Coordinator of the Sports Management programme at Deree–The American College of Greece. She also serves as a Fellow of the Center of Excellence in Food, Tourism & Leisure, where she is the Leisure Area Lead. Dr. Leivadi holds an MSc and a PhD from the University of Connecticut, USA, and has held faculty appointments at several academic institutions in the United States, including the University of Miami, as well as at private colleges in Greece offering UK-validated degree programmes (e.g., University of Wales).

She has recently been appointed as a Visiting Professor at the Faculty of Sport and Physical Education for the 2025–2026 academic year, with teaching responsibilities in Human Resource Management within the Kinesiological Education programme and Management and Operations of Sports Organizations within the Management in Sport, Sport Tourism and Recreation programme. In addition to her academic career, Dr. Leivadi has worked with five Olympic Games Organising Committees (Athens 2004, London 2012, Rio 2016, Tokyo 2020, and Paris 2024). Her research interests focus on leisure, sport tourism, exercise behaviour, and quality of life.