Professional Development

As the interest in the sport tourism market continues to grow, we are making a special effort to tell the NASCʼs story and increase exposure for our members at the national level. For the third year, the NASC, in association with SportsBusiness Journal, will publish a special advertiser-supported section on the impact our members make in their communities and in sports. The section appearing in the August 8 issue will focus on the evolution of the sport tourism industry and how it impacts communities. Other areas of coverage will include industry trends and best practices, case studies and examples of successful events, and the monetization and economic impact of events.   This is a perfect platform for NASC members to showcase their role in the sport tourism industry. As an advertiser, you will be guaranteed an opportunity for a company spokesperson to be interviewed for the story. With SportsBusiness Journal as our partner, we know that your message will be reaching an audie...

As your professional association continues toward its 25th Anniversary at our 2017 Sports Event Symposium in Sacramento, it seems a good time to look back on the process that led to adopting bylaws and obtaining not-for- profit status. The process itself took three years, and perhaps what is most important is this: the NASC was founded to be THE place where host organizations could gather and share experiences. The first conversations regarding an association took place in 1989. A volunteer committee was formed and work continued through 1990 and 1991, culminating in adoption of bylaws and the election of officers and directors April 10-11, 1992. The single person deserving of credit for making this process work is Hill Carrow. Hill made certain our organizational meetings had agendas and minutes and each meeting resulted in progress. Those persons present in 1992 and still involved in the NASC besides Hill are Vicky Comegys, Dennis Gann, Mike Millay, Dan Quandt, and myself. Fina...

The NASC and Ohio University are pleased to offer the online CSEE course, Strategic Planning for Successful Sport Tourism, once again this summer. Registration*  Fee: $400 Deadline: Registration is open now and will close on June 30.  Register Now. *As a reminder; this course is Core Course 1 as outlined in the CSEE Program Redesign and is the first of three mandatory courses required for certification for those who enroll in CSEE from this point forward. If you are not already enrolled, you will be prompted to complete your enrollment during the online registration process. Enrollment is free and open to NASC members only; the registration fee for each course is $400. Timeline June 17 - Registration for Core Course 1 opens June 30 - Registration closes July 18 - Registered participants receive Ohio University student ID and Blackboard login instructions July 18 - Orientation course opens and Core Course 1 Opens August 31 - Core Course 1 Closes. Course work...

Last month I had the opportunity to present to the Florida State Sports Commissions’ convention. Along with nineteen other speakers, I had the chance to talk about my sport for ten minutes. As luck would have it, I got the chance to present last. Twentieth out of twenty. I was the only speaker between my audience and the Coors Light. The room was lost. So I zigged. I broke the pattern of presentation predictability. I engaged the room and got my point across. Here are just a couple tips that you can consider using when you are in a multiple presenter situation. 1.     Keep your message simple: Your audience will have seen dozens if not hundreds of slides. Most will be forgotten. So focus on one or two key points and keep your slides simple. 2.     Don’t let technology get in the way of your message: You have a video? Great. Doesn’t support your key message? Leave it at home. A misplaced video just gives your audience to check ou...

Check out our line-up of event webinars, sponsored by MGM Resorts International, below and reserve your spot today! The Color Run Thursday, June 23, 2016 2:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. ET Presented by Kent Phippen Register Now! Join Kent Phippen from The Color Run as he discusses what he looks for in a host city and what it takes to host their events. There will be time at the end of the presentation for questions. If you are unable to join us on the 23rd, remember you can download the webinar recording from our Webinar Archives (login required). USA Cycling Thursday, July 21, 2016 11:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. ET Presented by Micah Rice Register Now! Join Micah Rice from USA Cycling as he discusses what he looks for in a host city and what it takes to host their events. Micah will share details on their upcoming 2018-2019 USA Cycling Amateur Road National Championships, 2018-2019 USA Cycling Masters Road National Championships and the 2019-2020 USA Cycling Cyclo-cross National Championship...

Baylor University Athletic Director Ian McCaw came to Waco in the aftermath of one of the ugliest scandals in college athletics. He leaves in the middle of another one. McCaw was hired in 2003 after Baylor’s basketball scandal, when student-athlete Patrick Dennehy was shot dead near a gravel pit and his former teammate, Carlton Dotson, was accused, eventually pleaded guilty and received a 35-year sentence for the murder. But that was only part of the story, as head basketball coach Dave Bliss encouraged his staff to portray Dennehy as a drug dealer to save his own job and reputation. Bliss eventually resigned after an assistant coach taped Bliss’ conversations and exposed the coverup. In the wake of that mess, McCaw came in to add respect and integrity to the program and watched head coach Scott Drew lead the basketball team to 20-win seasons, NCAA Elite Eight appearances and an NIT Championship. It’s ironic, then, that another scandal, this time involving...

We continue our Featured Benefit for the month of May with a blog post on the NASC Playbook. The NASC Playbook is the official quarterly publication of the NASC and is mailed to each member organization. The NASC Playbook is published in March, June, September and December each year. Content includes association updates, member news, and industry trends and best practices for the sport tourism industry. In an effort to enhance the overall content of The NASC Playbook, we like to include peer-written articles in future editions. NASC members have a knowledge of the industry, which lends itself to unprecedented expertise. We encourage you to share your expertise with your peers through well-written commentary.   Submission Guidelines All content should be approximately 400 words and the author should provide a minimum of two photos (author head shot and photo for topic). Our Media Advisers at Game Day Communications can help with final edits.  For content submission, ...

For many of you, whether you’re an events rights holder or operate a sports venue, this is your Christmas season—it’s your busiest, most frantic time of the year as schools let out and summer sports organizations kick into high event gear. You’ll be working on multi-session, multi-day tournaments and won’t be able to catch your breath until the last champion is crowned. So this is a good time to remind all of us, in between cursing the rain, the broken popcorn maker and the late t-shirt delivery, why we do what we do in sports, especially youth sports. Earlier this year, Fortune Magazine published an article, “Here’s Why Women Who Play Sports Are More Successful” by Beth Brooke-Marciniak, global vice chair of public policy at EY. A study by Michigan State University’s Institute for the Study of Youth Sports confirms what we all know—about 70% of children in the U.S drop out of organized sports before age 13. We’...

Check out our line-up of best practices and event webinars below and reserve your spot today! Financing Sport Tourism & Recreation Assets, Part II Best Practices Webinar Wednesday, May 25, 2016 2:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. ET Presented by Don Schumacher Register Now! Join NASC Executive Director, Don Schumacher, CSEE as he presents a follow up to the Financing Sport Tourism session that was presented in Grand Rapids, MI during the 24th NASC Symposium. During this webinar, Don will discuss proven methods, critical elements, and insight to demystify the financing process for new sports venues. This is a webinar for those with an interest in new project development and those desiring to broaden their knowledge related to project finance. There will be time at the end of the webinar for questions. If you are unable to join us on the 25th, you can download the recording from the webinar archives page on www.SportsCommissions.org. NASC Economic Impact Calculator Best Practices Webinar Wednesday...

For Indianapolis, a city known for its upcoming Indianapolis 500, often referred to as “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing,” it may have seemed a bit out of context when Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard talked in 2013 about having cricket as a viable sport for Indy. But out of that talk grew a nearly $6 million project to create a complex that would hold the event on the city's far east side. Out of that came the Indianapolis World Sports Park, a 40-acre former city park that turned into an international sports complex capable of holding local, regional, national and international cricket, rugby, lacrosse and hurling events. So, the logical question might be—why cricket? At the time of the original announcement, Mayor Ballard said the city was confident developments like these will help Indianapolis attract businesses from India and other parts of the globe where these sports are popular. “This is our commitment to international sports,” he sai...