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Relational and Collaborative: Professor Travis Feezell on His Career and the MA in Leadership Program
Relational and Collaborative: Professor Travis Feezell on His Career and the MA in Leadership Program
In 1992, Travis Feezell became an assistant college baseball coach and quickly worked his way up to head coach. It was his first leadership position in higher education. At the time, he had an admittedly simplistic view of what a leader should do and be.
“I thought leadership was about command and control,” Feezell said about that period in his career. “I’m going to tell you what to do and how to do it. And, when you break the rules, there are going to be consequences. Frankly, I think it was an utter failure in leadership on my part.”
In the three and a half decades since, Feezell has taken on a number of other leadership roles. He has served colleges, universities, and consulting firms as everything from a leadership consultant to a president and provost. However, Feezell’s job title is not the only thing that has changed over the years. His leadership philosophy has evolved as well and is now much more nuanced, empathetic, and effective.
As an associate professor in Belmont Abbey College’s Master of Arts (MA) in Leadership program, Feezell is now sharing his hard-earned wisdom with the next generation of leaders in every sector.
Real-Life Lessons and the Unexpected Path to Leadership
Feezell’s initially rigid attitude about leadership was shaken when the father of one of the players on the baseball team he coached passed away unexpectedly. Feezell delivered the news.
“What leadership demanded in that moment was a humane relationship with this person,” Feezell said. “He needed to be supported.”
As the player’s coach, Feezell knew he should be among the people the young man could count on. Feezell then decided that he should be there not only for this particular person but for anyone on his team who needed him. It was a pivotal moment that taught him the value of a person-first approach to leadership.
Discovering a Passion for Leadership
Equipped with a new outlook on the role of a leader and an intimate knowledge of college athletics, Feezell became his school’s athletic director. In this position, he got more involved with general college operations.
“I was also running the postgraduate scholarship program for the entire institution, looking at Rhodes scholarships and Marshall scholarships for our students,” Feezell said, adding that he was also involved with running the school’s art gallery. “At the same time, I’m picking up a doctoral degree in higher education and sport.”
During this period, Feezell also taught classes on sports ethics, sports history, and sport leadership at various institutions on a part-time basis. In 2008, he brought his talents to Belmont Abbey College, where he had the chance to teach classes on organizational leadership and deepen his understanding of the field.
“That was my first full-time teaching gig, and I ultimately became a tenured professor,” Feezell said. “Within a year, I was the interim athletic director. Within another year, I was the interim dean of the business school.”
At this point, Feezell was largely filling roles as needed. He loved teaching, but the more he worked on the administrative side of higher education, the more he came to love that, as well. A colleague who was then a college president encouraged him to make the pivot.
There and Back Again: Leaving and Returning to Belmont Abbey
In 2014, Feezell left Belmont Abbey to pursue his new calling as provost and chief academic officer at a university in Arkansas. He then became president of a college in Nebraska.
But while leaving Belmont Abbey College allowed Feezell to pursue new opportunities and grow as a leader, it still held a special place in his heart. When the school needed a provost in 2020, he jumped at the chance to return.
“The spirit of the Benedictine community is the thing that attracts me and keeps me here,” Feezell said. “These are beautiful people, beautifully directed to serve the community. It’s an incredibly special place.”
After taking on the provost position, Feezell oversaw Belmont Abbey’s internal operations related to enrollment, student affairs, marketing, and institutional research. Just as importantly, he helped guide the school’s first steps into the world of graduate business education and expand its online offerings.
One of the programs born out of this effort was the MA in Leadership program, which was launched in 2022. Helping to design this program gave Feezell the chance to put his leadership skills to work in a new way.
Designing the MA in Leadership Program: A Curriculum That Fills a Gap
In deciding which master’s programs to launch, Feezell and his colleagues have devoted much time and energy to figuring out what type of education today’s leaders need. The team decided to launch a Master of Business Administration program, but Feezell believes that that type of program is not relevant to every rising leader’s goals.
“An MBA program tends to have a quantitative bent,” Feezell said. “It grounds people in quantitative analysis, and that’s not for everyone. Some people are thinking, ‘How do I become a more influential, effective organizational leader?’”
The MA in Leadership program was designed to serve students with that question in mind. While the program features a class on data analytics, the focus is placed more on team and change management, ethical decision-making, and effective communication, teaching students skills that, in Feezell’s experience, are essential to leading any kind of organization.
According to Feezell, “Leadership is messy, complex, and it can be nasty at some points. It’s motivational and collaborative.”
Returning to the Classroom Full Time
During his time as provost at Belmont Abbey College, Feezell had continued to teach when he could. In 2024, he decided to step back from administration and start teaching full-time again. Today, MA in Leadership students can find him teaching Leading Effectively in Nonprofit Environments and the introductory Foundations of Leadership course.
“I think students come into that class thinking I’m going to teach them how to command and control,” he said of Foundations of Leadership. “I try to spend a significant amount of time just saying I’m not sure that’s what leadership is about.”
Feezell and his students talk about principles such as motivation, celebrating employees’ achievements, and modeling behavior as a leader.
“The other thing that becomes an emphasis in the class is the notion that leadership is a relational activity,” Feezell said. “We don’t lead things, we lead people. We’re in a relationship with them.”
Bringing Meaning and Connection to an Online Format
Feezell’s belief in the relational nature of leadership informs his approach as an instructor in the online and asynchronous MA in Leadership program. In addition to reaching out to students individually, he also uploads a video each week so students can respond to him or each other with their own video.
“The video might be on the topic we’re studying, what’s due that week, or I might be posing a question,” Feezell said. “There is constant conversation.”
Feezell also often asks students to apply their new skills to case studies and exercises about situations they might face as leaders. Students then discuss each other’s solutions and share insights based on their own experiences.
“For me, learning happens in the engagement both with the material and also the conversation that’s happening around it,” he said.
However, Feezell knows he is not alone in his efforts to engage with students in the MA in Leadership program. He is proud of what the program has become and how his colleagues continue to make the students’ experience impactful.
“Sometimes master’s degrees revolve around earning a credential,” he said. “I get that and understand it. Maybe that’s what attracts people to some of our programs at Belmont Abbey. But I think students are transformed by our programs. They can be changed for the better and become better leaders who have better self-awareness.”
Become the Forward-Thinking Leader Your Organization Needs
In the MA in Leadership program at Belmont Abbey College, experienced instructors such as Travis Feezell help students transform into leaders who can navigate any obstacle effectively and ethically.
In as few as 12 months, students in the program complete coursework that covers values-based and servant leadership, strategic decision-making, organizational behavior, and other principles they can take to any industry. Designed for working professionals, the program is delivered in an asynchronous online format that balances convenience with depth and personalized support.
To find out more about the MA in Leadership program, request information from Belmont Abbey College today.
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Helping Others Thrive: Student Abbey Martin on Learning to Lead at Belmont Abbey College
Helping Others Thrive: Student Abbey Martin on Learning to Lead at Belmont Abbey College
As an organizational and personal development specialist who works at an international cabinetry hardware corporation, Abigail “Abbey” Martin is involved in just about everything related to training the company’s employees. She designs and leads classes that teach skills in areas such as public speaking and active listening, facilitates training sessions with outside providers, and helps her co-workers prepare for promotions and new positions.
“I’ve always loved helping people,” Martin said. “I grew up wanting to be a teacher.”
Even though she is currently working in business administration, Martin has never let go of that dream. One day she would like to teach organizational behavior, leadership, and similar subjects at the college level.
“When I was an undergrad, there were two professors who opened my eyes so much. They changed my career trajectory,” she said. “I want to be that person for others.”
Until then, Martin wants to have as positive an impact as possible in the corporate world while she gathers invaluable first-hand experience.
To help her accomplish all of her goals, Martin enrolled in the online Master of Arts (MA) in Leadership program at Belmont Abbey College in August 2025. While she is only about halfway through her studies as of summer 2026, she feels she has already had a transformative experience.
Where to Start: Finding the Right Program for Authentic Leadership Development
While Martin only recently became a Belmont Abbey student, her connection to the school goes back much further. She grew up nearby and attended soccer camps on the campus. In kindergarten, she decided to go by “Abbey” instead of “Abby,” “Abi,” or any other shortened variation of her full name. She simply loved the way the name looked on Belmont Abbey’s signs.
Years later, when it came time to explore master’s programs, Martin naturally considered her nicknamesake first, but her final decision required a process that was a bit more nuanced.
“I got a bachelor’s degree in business administration with a concentration in human resources, but with that, I also had to take accounting and finance classes,” Martin said. “I’m not a numbers person. I knew I wanted to get my master’s, but I didn’t want to get an MBA. It would just not fit me that well.”
What Martin wanted was a program that would enable her to deepen her understanding of organizational behavior, development, and leadership. In that sense, the Master of Arts in Leadership program at Belmont Abbey College seemed like the perfect fit.
“This program hits everything on my list,” she said. “Finding it was a full-circle moment.”
Flexible, Hands-On, and Transformational: Martin’s Online Student Experience
Once Martin requested more information from the MA in Leadership program and started the enrollment process, she found that her initial judgment about the program was correct. However, the program is typically offered in a full-time one-year format, and Martin works full-time and sometimes travels to Austria for work. She says the program’s administrators were quick to help her create a two-year part-time plan.
“They’ve been really flexible,” Martin said. “I couldn’t schedule one of the classes to graduate in two years. So they made a substitution for me, and I was able to take a different class.”
A year in, Martin still has about five classes to go. With each one, she is learning new skills that are helping her in her current role and setting the foundation for her long-term success.
A Hands-On Curriculum Rooted in Real-World Issues
So far, Martin has taken classes in subjects such as the foundations of leadership and professional and technical communication. Each one is delivered online, but, in Martin’s experience, the assignments her instructors give add a hands-on and personalized component to the curriculum
“You’re actually able to tie theories to the real world and use different lenses,” she said.
For instance, in her class on organizational change management, Martin and her peers were tasked with analyzing and making suggestions about a change a business had recently navigated. Students could choose any organization they liked, but Martin chose her own.
“I was able to diagnose how the changes were going at my current organization and identify what we could do to make it better,” she said.
Growing Personally: The Ethical Backbone of the MA in Leadership Program
As a Benedictine institution, Belmont Abbey College integrates values such as service, hospitality, and community into every program. Martin has found this aspect of her education to be just as applicable to her career as the new skills she is learning.
“I absolutely love the Benedictine philosophy, especially the human dignity side of it,” Martin said. “I have taken so much of that mindset into my job. I have tried hard to instill it in other people and make sure I’m exuding it. I think that’s the biggest thing I’ve tried to take away from this program.”
Martin particularly enjoyed reading works by Brené Brown and John Maxwell, modern leadership thinkers who focus on topics such as building trust as a leader, providing clear and honest feedback, and prioritizing ethical leadership.
To tie it all together, Martin completed an oral exam in which she was asked to apply ethical principles to different business scenarios, an exercise she found particularly impactful.
“Taking that ethical mindset and not just reading the words but applying it to work and things going on now was massive for me,” she said. “It really stuck with me.”
When Is the Right Time to Pursue a Master’s?
At just 23 years old, Martin is an experienced professional and, at the same time, still in the early days of her career. She knew now was the best time to invest in her career by earning a master’s, but she wondered if she could handle it or if it was a good idea to dive right in.
Martin is not one to dwell on those types of doubts very long, and now that she is deep into her studies, they are completely gone. She wants that to serve as encouragement for anyone considering enrolling, no matter where they are in their own careers.
“If this is the stepping stone you need to get somewhere in your career or life, do it. Trust in yourself that you’ve got it,” she said of enrolling in the MA in Leadership program. “Balancing school, your social life, and work is hard, but you will be insanely proud of yourself afterward. Embrace it, be good to yourself throughout it all, and give yourself grace.”
Learn to Lead Effectively and Ethically at Belmont Abbey College
In today’s ever-shifting economic landscape, authentic stakeholder engagement, ethical leadership, and informed decision-making are more important than ever. Through Belmont Abbey College’s MA in Leadership program, professionals working in any sector can learn skills in these areas that will enable them to guide their organizations through new obstacles and opportunities alike.
Over the course of 12 months, students take 10 online classes that teach concrete skills in fields such as data analytics, human resource management, and organizational change management. Along the way, Belmont Abbey’s impassioned faculty help them apply these skills within a servant leadership framework that both drives results and inspires others.
To find out more about the program’s curriculum, its scheduling options, or anything else, request information from Belmont Abbey College today.
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Serving the Church at Home and Beyond: The Abbey’s Diaconal Formation Program
By: Laura Schaffer
Dr. Alessandro Rovati became a theologian to serve the Church. He lives out his vocation as Chair of Belmont Abbey’s Theology Department — and through active service to the Diocese of Charlotte.
As the director of the College’s unique Diaconal Formation Program, Rovati combines his vocation and joyfully notes that “there’s nothing more beautiful for a theology program than to put its expertise at the service of the life and needs of the local church.”
For the past 2,000 years, deacons have assisted priests in their pastoral ministry, serving the liturgy and performing acts of mercy. Deacons are called to “attend the table and the Word,” Rovati explains.
Deacons baptize, catechize, and preach. They minister to their parishes in a way that models and embraces community stewardship and self-giving. For a time, the diaconal vocation, originally distinct from that of the priest, was subsumed into the stages of priestly discernment. The Second Vatican Council, however, reinstated the practice of ordaining permanent deacons while preserving the diaconal stage on the path to priesthood.
Heralds of the Gospel
Since then, the Charlotte diocese has embraced the formation of permanent deacons differently. In recent years, diocesan leadership has determined to create a more rigorous and substantive program. To this end, they reached out to Rovati at Belmont Abbey College, having already established a relationship with the college through its education of seminarians.
After years of careful collaboration, the Abbey officially began its new Diaconal Formation Program in 2023. The program offers a certificate after three-and-a-half years of study and 18 theology courses as part of the diocese’s five-year discernment and formation process.
The synchronous online program was designed to meet best the needs of men working full-time, supporting families, and living throughout the diocese. Seventeen men are enrolled, having completed their first year this past January and been formally accepted as candidates by Bishop Emeritus Jugis.
At the same time, diocesan deacons renewed their promises. The candidates will continue to deepen their familiarity with Scripture, tradition, and Church teaching throughout their formation, exploring how these rich and vital resources can nourish their future ministry. Course assignments often ask students to explain their study topics as if to a parish, preparing them to become “heralds of the gospels.”
New fervor
Many have told Rovati that the program has enriched their lives of faith and transformed how they participate in the Liturgy. It has opened their hearts and minds to the inexhaustible wealth of biblical and Church tradition, sparking a new fervor in their spiritual journey. This transformation is evident in the “depth and urgency” of the student discussions, all of which powerfully demonstrate their eagerness to make an “impact on the life of their local communities.”
One of Belmont Abbey’s Strategic Plan’s pillars is to “build and serve the Church, locally and beyond,” a goal that the Diaconal Formation Program aligns with and significantly contributes to. Inspired by the Benedictine hallmarks of stability, community, stewardship, and love, the Abbey is particularly grateful to play a key role in the education of deacons and seminarians for the Charlotte diocese. The program serves the local church and hundreds of students each year, helping them realize their God-given potential in service to their families and communities.
We ask your prayer for the 17 diaconal candidates who seek to offer their gifts and energies with such generosity to our diocese. We are deeply grateful for your support and prayers as they continue their discernment and formation. Your involvement is a testament to the strength and unity of our community.
Abbey Alumni, Future Priests: Diocesan Seminarians receive a Belmont Abbey formation
By: Hannah Martin ‘26
If you visit Belmont Abbey College, you might notice young men in cassocks and backpacks heading to class. As it happens, our connection with the local Catholic seminary just minutes away from campus is a little-known but important fact of college life. St. Joseph College Seminary enjoys a special relationship with the Abbey, and seminarians earn their BA in Philosophy here while living down the road in a house of formation.
These young men navigate the question we must all consider: What is my calling, the living purpose God created for me? The discipline and structure of life in the college seminary minimize distractions and allow seminarians the time and clarity to ask this question and discern the answer: not as a disembodied, heavenly voice, but as the patient unfolding of life in formation. One seminarian suggested that even in a purely practical sense, “A well-ordered daily routine and schedule is extremely beneficial to all aspects of your life.”
Seminarians discern their vocation through honest striving in prayer and community, which reveals over time whether or not a young man was made for this way of life he’s chosen to explore. Seminary formation focuses on cultivating a deep prayer life, practicing the cardinal virtues, developing intellectual gifts, and embracing opportunities for pastoral charity. Assisting at Mass, praying the Liturgy of the Hours and the Rosary, and setting aside time for Adoration establishes a daily life rooted in sacramental grace, and regular spiritual direction guides each seminarian’s journey. This framework of prayer and formation also orients seminarians’ studies, sports, and work and thus helps them seek God’s will throughout all parts of their lives. Ultimately, the seminary enables men to discern their vocations by discovering who they are.
Likewise, Belmont Abbey College strives to form students as the men and women God created them to be. We seek to cultivate a rich faith life rooted in the sacraments and monastic prayer – so that, from this rootedness, our students may thrive in excellence and virtue. Our mission “is to educate students in the liberal arts and sciences so that in all things God may be glorified. …provid[ing]… an education that will enable [students] to lead lives of integrity, to succeed professionally, to become responsible citizens, and to be a blessing to themselves and to others.” “Lives of integrity” necessitate the active self-knowledge that embraces our personal callings, through which alone we become most authentically “a blessing to ourselves and others.”
As part of daily campus life, seminarians offer a visible reminder of the vocation each of us has within. College is a time for young people to grow and discern God’s will for their lives within their degrees, careers, and vocations. It is our duty as a college to foster this discernment, and we strive to provide the tools and the resources students need to become fully themselves. Professors, coaches, faculty, and friends support students throughout their term, while the monastery maintains a prayerful stability at the very heart of campus life, offering friendship, guidance, and sacramental nourishment to the entire Belmont Abbey community. The seminarians’ presence on campus, however, and their integration into academic life, brings close an added and regular witness to committed discernment and inspires all of us to consider more seriously who it is God created us to be.
Since our founding in 1876, Belmont Abbey has played an active role in the life of the Catholic Church in the American South, not only providing a Benedictine liberal arts education but also ministering to North Carolina parishes and communities from the time when the state was considered “mission territory” to the recent past. Abbot Leo Haid presided as bishop over the entire state until the establishment of the Raleigh Diocese in 1924, and from 1890 until 1937 the college itself offered seminary formation, so we are particularly grateful to continue this legacy by providing an undergraduate education to the future priests of the Charlotte diocese.
