Dr. Chad McEvoy comes on the podcast to chat about sports management degrees and their viability in the marketplace. Are sports management programs expected to generate job opportunities or to develop critical thinking skills? Is it an either-or scenario? McEvoy discusses whether sports sales managers even want sports management programs to train students on sales, or if that is still training preferred done by the sports sales managers themselves. Twitter: @ChadMcEvoy
As the growth of sports management programs flourish in the United States, IUPUI associate professor David Pierce wonders what the breaking point will be. Pierce talks about the challenges of providing relevant information, as well as experiences, for the students in his program. Pierce discusses some of the better ways to implement a sales mindset for sports management students, and also how he sees himself as an instructor as the digital media landscape encroaches on academic availability of classes.
Temple University's Director of Programs of Sports & Recreation Management Joe Mahan discusses the state of the education side of the industry. Mahan presents his argument to the vital nature of developing a wide-ranging practicum in the field, as well as building connections overall by attending major industry conferences. Mahan talks about why a graduate degree is becoming more important for industry practitioners as well as the limited amount of jobs available as a whole in sports. Twitter: @dr_marshmallow
Having that short-hand of actually working in the industry has helped Professor Clint Warren at Illinois State as he mentors his sports management students on what to do to establish a career in the field. Warren shares his experience of learning about the importance of ticket sales and revenue generation, as well as how teams look to craft young executives into potential upper management prospects. Warren talks about ensuring that his lesson plans reflect, as well as compliment, any potential student looking to utilize that knowledge later on in life. Warren also discusses some of the determining factors that students should make when considering a sports management program at a university. Twitter: @Clint_Warren
A key asset to any sports management program is having a professor who has worked in the field. James Madison's Alyssa Bosley not only has experience in minor league baseball as an intern, but also has worked at JMU as the Director of Marketing. Utilizing that experience, Bosley shares how she is able to go off-textbook with her advance level discussions when students are looking to get into the sports industry with the most up-to-date and credible knowledge possible. Bosley discusses her insights into how students are adapting to the online landscape, where a negative social media reputation may tank job prospects while a positive one may create an even brighter future beyond just a foot in the door. Bosley talks about her passion for education, and how she has managed to create a rich environment with her students when discussing advanced industry topics. Twitter: @AlyssaBosley
Volt Athletics is aiming to make elite strength and conditioning training available to even those high school and college teams on a tight budget. Dan Giuliani helped found the company, basing it on current technology which allows video, audio and text demonstrations of how to properly use equipment as well as develop various parts of the human body. Giuliani discusses some of the hot topics surrounding strength and conditioning; whether proper technique and education is being implemented across the board by the majority of coaching staffs or if female physiology training has caught up with that of their male counterparts as well as how that affects training regimes overall. Twitter: @VoltAthletics
A former student-athlete at Liberty University, Dena Freeman-Patton understands the educational needs of those she mentors. Heading up the academic side of the athletic department at CSU-Bakersfield, Freeman-Patton shares her view on the challenges facing current student-athletes, as well as attempting to beat back some of the misconceptions that the educational system may have on athletes and academics overall. Freeman-Patton talks about remodeling an academic support system in order to best coordinate over 500 student-athletes each quarter. Twitter: @BMoreDFP