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CORTLAND, New York – SUNY Cortland sport management senior Brian Deschere was one of five American undergraduates selected to represent the United States at the inaugural American Sports Brand Fusion Arts Exchange and Sport Management Study Tour in College Station, Texas. Deschere, of Ithaca, N.Y., attended the exchange at Texas A&M University from July 10 through Aug. 17. The five-week study tour included three students each from Indonesia, Nigeria, Russia, Turkey and Venezuela, in addition to the five American students. The exchange took place at Texas A&M's main campus as well as at professional sport venues and league headquarters in Texas, Florida, Washington D.C., and New York City. "It was an opportunity to study my trade from a different perspective with students from all over the world," said Deschere, who graduates from SUNY Cortland this December. "Part of the goal was to develop cross-cultural connections, while learning about sport management and that definitely happened. Within two days, 20 of us had formed a bond. Sports broke the language barrier for us and we became a close-knit family." The Center for Sport Management Research and Education at Texas A&M University received a U.S. State Department grant to "enhance and create a deeper understanding of U.S. society, culture and values through an intensive and thorough study and understanding of the formation, development and business practices of the American Sports Brand." The Fusion Arts Exchange will continue each summer through 2009. SUNY Cortland sport management senior Joslyn Dambra of Hopewell Junction, N.Y., was also involved in the exchange, but as a paid program mentor. Her role in the program was to be there and assist all 20 participants in whatever they might need, such as making multiple runs to a store to buy necessities. "I applied to be one of the five American participants," said Dambra, who also graduates in December. "I received a call saying those spots had been filled, but they had an opening for a female mentor. I was so excited to have this opportunity that I graciously accepted. The experience was so valuable to me because the generosity of each of the participants was unbelievable and made me look at life from a different perspective, trying not to take what I have for granted, but instead embracing it every second of the day." The students shadowed professionals in the field and participated in classes with numerous hands-on workshops related to public policy issues, business methods and other topics related to the field. "The classes were great," Deschere said. "Most of the material covered I had already learned, which shows that SUNY Cortland did a phenomenal job of not only preparing me, but giving me the opportunities to compete with students from much larger schools. My professors did a great job." Participants had access to executives from Coca-Cola, Disney and Adidas to learn about sports marketing, promotions and the business side of sports. "Being a part of this program was very special to me," Deschere said. "You don't have that kind of access to such big-time professionals anywhere. It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity." Visits to sites of some of the most popular U.S. sports venues such as Yankee Stadium, NASCAR tracks, NFL stadiums, soccer stadiums and NBA arenas were also on the agenda. Deschere is currently an intern at the Center for the Study of Sport in Society at Northeastern University in Boston until Dec. 31. He conducts research, updates and writes blogs on the Web site and helps write position statements that are used by professional teams and Olympic committees. At the conclusion of his internship, Deschere hopes to stay in Boston and continue to establish himself in the sport management arena. |
