The Catawba College Sport Management faculty and students attended the ’21 North Carolina Sport Management Symposium. The two-day virtual event was designed for students to learn from industry leaders, including executives from NASCAR, Esports, MiLB, NBA, College Football Playoffs, and the Institute for the Study of Sport, Society, and Social Change.
Catawba Sport Management professors Dr. Troy Carlton and Dr. Duane Aagaard, as members of the N.C. Sport Management Coalition, worked on a steering committee with faculty members from eight other institutions to plan and execute the symposium. This included faculty involvement from Belmont Abbey College, Chowan University, Johnson C. Smith University, NC State University, North Carolina A&T, Queens University, Wingate University, and Winston-Salem State University.
Davis Fields, a first-year Sport Management student shared, "It was an excellent event to grow as a future leader in the sport industry. All of the speakers shared incredible insight and provided their personal contact for us to remain connected after the symposium.”
Sessions included the following themes and communicators:
- “NASCAR: Driving Through a Pandemic”
- Bruce Mosley, Chief Revenue Officer of Rousch Fenway Racing
- “Esports: The Future is Here”
- John Cash, Founder & CEO of Narmer Group
- “MiLB, Moving Past 2020”
- Jake Brewer, Director of Ticket Operations, Kannapolis Cannon Ballers
- “NIL (Name, Image, & Likeness) Coming to the NCAA”
- Kristi Dosh, Author of Saturday Millionaires and Forbes Sport Business Writer
- “Leadership & Sales Principles for Turbulent Times”
- Drew Praster, Vice-President of Ticket Sales, Charlotte Hornets
- “The Sport Industry Tackles Racism & Diversity”
- Ryan Hall, Director of Public Events, College Football Playoff
- Akilah R. Carter-Francique, Executive Director, Institute for the Study of Sport, Society, & Social Change
- Vince Pierson, CEO & Principal Strategist, VSP Diversity Solution
- Lexi Williams, Manager of Diversity & Impact, Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment
- Dr. Timothy Lewis, Speaker, Consultant and Coach
The symposium concluded with the “Ignite Student” competition with Amber Hand, a Sport Management senior at Catawba, finishing second. This year’s “Ignite” theme was “The Best Social Media in the Sport Industry,” and Amber’s selection was Carolina Panthers.
“The Sport Management Symposium was truly amazing,” said Amber. “The guest speakers had so much knowledge and insight to share with us. I took something away from everyone I listened to. Then being able to compete against the other schools in the “Ignite” competition was both fun and challenging. The other female competitors were excellent communicators, and I learned something from each of them.”
