Key Players

The area of community relations is a growing need in the professional sports industry. As a leader in sport management education, our department endeavors to prepare students for a career in the industry.

The class organizes the project which will support the local urban communities and exhibit some of the best practices discussed in the course (following leadership of people of color, fostering organizations and community members, and community relations as an organization-wide effort). 

The Mark H. McCormack Department of Sport Management and community leaders from local areas team up to create and sustain the Key Players Project. Their mission would be to honor men of color for contributing to a child's life in the community. The Project honors these men who nurture and support children - an often overlooked community asset.

The Key Players Project carries out its mission by encouraging children from the local urban community to nominate men who play a key part in their lives. Representatives from 20-30 community organizations (i.e., community center groups, churches, and neighborhood libraries) from across the city select the Key Player Ambassadors.