Horizons Fall 2013

37 HORIZONS focus. “I apply much of what I learned about business at NSU,” she said. NSU professors are keenly aware of what it takes to make it in the profes- sional sports world. Nancy Olson, M.Ed., M.S., an ad- junct professor in sports management who worked for the Florida (now Miami) Marlins for nearly 14 years, says NSU focuses on getting students real-life training. “It’s really important to get some experience. For internships, I dis- cuss with students what they want to do. Many times, I’ll know somebody in the field,” said Olson. The opportunities are myriad. Stu- dents have landed professional sports internships with organizations like the Miami Dolphins, Florida Panthers, and St. Louis Cardinals, as well as in commu- nity parks and recreation programs, area high schools, and other colleges. Olson also sends out a weekly jobs newsletter to potential employers and students. She says there is a variety of potential jobs after graduation, including coaching, sales, marketing, social media, community affairs, and fund-raising. The nonprofit aspect has become so important that many of the available jobs in sports now center on the skill of fund- raising. In response to real-world needs, NSU developed the M.B.A. concentra- tion in Sport Revenue Generation. “We looked at the job postings through a wide variety of areas and found a lot of the jobs focused on the ability to generate revenue streams,” said Peter Finley, Ph.D., associate professor of sports and recreation management at Huizenga Business School. The undergraduate degree in sports management focuses on creating a solid foundation in areas such as facilities management, coaching, sports law, sports ethics, and community sports; while the master’s degree concentration delves into sponsorships, special events, and fund-raising. Finley also stressed the importance of experience as crucial to a successful career in sports management. By grad- uation, “students should have logged hundreds of hours of volunteer work and completed internships,” he said. The right internship at the right time led Rob Brzezinski (B.S. in education, 1992; J.D., 1995) to a high-profile career in the National Football League— currently as vice president of football operations for the Minnesota Vikings. Brzezinski’s discussions about sports careers and opportunities with Joe Lakovitch, J.D., who was an NSU professor, but is now retired, led to introductions to Miami Dolphins per- sonnel, which in turn led to an internship in his second year of law school. Another mentor and trusted adviser was Brad Williams, Ed.D., now vice president of student affairs and dean of the College of Undergraduate Studies. “The professors were very accessible and truly cared about the students, and that was huge for me,” said Brzezinski. The Dolphins hired him following his graduation—shortly after the ratifica- tion of the new collective bargaining agreement in the NFL, which included a salary cap. “This required a new area of expertise in the NFL and I feel fortunate to have exposure and experience since inception,” said Brzezinski. Ohio native Andy Platt (B.S., sports management, ’01) is associate athletic director at Rice University in Houston, and serves as the chief financial officer for the athletics department’s $30- million operating budget. The former NSU student-athlete, a four-year letter- man in men’s basketball, also has high praise for NSU’s sports manage- ment curriculum. “Nova Southeastern was one of the pioneer sport management programs in the country. Our program was differ- ent than others in that it had a focus on internships and gaining practical experience, versus traditional theory education,” said Platt, who pointed out that his father, Alan Platt, Ph.D., had started the NSU program. “He [Alan Platt] could relate to students and understood the importance of practical on-the-job training,” said Platt. n Rob Brzezinski (B.S. in education, 1992; J.D., 1995) serves as vice president of football operations for the Minnesota Vikings. Wesley Friedman (J.D., 2012), a staff attorney with the Arena Football League, says he always wanted to use his law degree to work with a sports team.