Tiffin University employees recognize the importance of forming and maintaining professional connections within one’s field, and seek to afford students every opportunity to do so before their careers officially begin. At TU, we prompt our undergraduates to hit the pavement early-on, to meet people, shake hands and form working relationships with those already established in their circles. This is all done in the hope that when many young professionals are just beginning to think about networking, our alums will have already cultivated a lengthy portfolio of contacts.
In true Dragon fashion, one on-campus student organization sought to do just this for its members. On October 13, 2020, the TU Sports Management Club visited the renowned Huntington Center in Toledo, Ohio, and club members were afforded the rare opportunity to meet with and pick the brains of high-level managers, all of whom being responsible for the oversight of numerous daily operations and tasks. Our students were educated on the do’s and don’ts of managing a sports team, as well as how to navigate marketing and sales endeavors such as the licensing of official team merchandise for professional baseball and hockey programs. The topic(s) of ticket sales, allocating funds for advertising and promotional budgets and how to secure internships were also addressed in full.
Dr. Rick Goeb, Associate Professor of Sport Management at TU and faculty advisor for our Sports Management Club was elated to see his pupils taking such initiative with their budding careers in the world of professional athletics. According to Goeb, the event was almost entirely student-organized, the reins being taken by the club’s student president, Madeline Schuessler-Recker. At the time of the visit, Madison was already an intern with the Toledo Mudhens and Toledo Walleye baseball / hockey teams, respectively, and wanted to give her peers the same chance for career advancement she had already been afforded. When asked about the intention behind this visit and the club’s efforts, Dr. Goeb said,
“Every semester, TU students have the opportunity to visit outstanding facilities and meet potential employers. This time, it just so happened to be a student who organized this round of meet and greets. Madeline helped facilitate the visit and scheduled opportunities for TU students to interview with professional staff for internships with this outstanding sports organization. TU sports management students benefit from these visits by obtaining potential internships, jobs or being introduced to a new professional contact.”
For more information on the Sports Management Program click here.