In The News: Nora Cothren Blogs for Go! Athletes

Joined by Craig Cassey Jr., Go! Athletes put on a memorable presentation. Cassey along with Go! Athletes representative Nora Cothren shared their stories as out athletes. They also were able to share ways that they thought we could all work together to make a more inclusive environment. During their presentation, the duo opened up the floor to the audience to brainstorm and share their ideas on how to improve the current environment.

We were lucky to have Go! Athletes become such a dedicated supporter and presenter of the Sport For Social Change Conference.

Read Nora's post on the organization's website HERE.

For more on the Go! Athletes organization, visit them online at goathletes.org.
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In The News: Sports Unbiased Covers #S4SC

Zach Cintron is a Drexel Sport Management student and a contributor to the Drexel SMTSU's blog, The Sports Complex. He also contributes to Sports Unbiased where he covered the day's action at the Sport For Social Change Conference on Oct. 25. 

Zach's two-part series about the event can be seen at Sports Unbiased (Part One & Part Two). 

Here is a short excerpt from part two of his series which focuses on the presentation from Eli Wolff on the topic of inclusion in sport:

At two years old Eli Wolff had a stroke, but that didn’t keep him from being a player on the Brown University Varsity soccer team. Eli also went on to compete for the U.S. National team in the 1996 and 2004 Paralympic Games.

Wolff opened his presentation with a story about how his elementary school gym teacher wouldn’t allow him to participate in using the pull-up bar like the other kids. Eli replied (Editor’s Note: words bleeped for this article) “&^$% you! ^%&^ you I can do this!” which isn’t the language a elementary student should be using. After a talk with the principal, Eli prevailed and showed he could be just like all the other children. Eli said disabled athletes want to achieve what they want regardless of their disability.

Read Zach's full recap of Wolff's presentation HERE.

To view Eli Wolff's presentation in full, click HERE. 

SBEN to Stream #S4SC All Next Week

It is hard to believe that it has been almost two full weeks since the first annual Sport For Social Change Conference was held at Drexel University. Throughout the day, five different presentations presented on a variety of topics. Dr. Eric Zillmer and Bruiser Flint presented on athletes giving back and becoming role models. The Ed Snider Youth Hockey Foundationpresented on developing our nation's youth with sport.Eli Wolff presented on access and inclusion to sport.Go! Athletes and Craig Cassey Jr. presented on LGBT issues in sport. Patrick Hruby presented on safety issues in sport.

It was a tremendous day and we are happy to announce that we will be sharing it in video again next week in conjunction with the Sports Business Education Network. Over the course of next week, SBEN will stream one presentation each day.

Check it out starting Monday Nov. 11, and use the hashtag #S4SC on Twitter if you tune in! Follow the link HERE.

Archived Presentations

Here is a list of the archived presentations from the Sport For Social Change Conference on Friday Oct. 25, 2013.

Dr. Eric Zillmer and Bruiser Flint
Athletes Giving Back to the Community
http://goodwincollege.adobeconnect.com/p1eq8veb7ln/

Ed Snider Youth Hockey Foundation
Youth Development with Sport
Part 1 - http://goodwincollege.adobeconnect.com/p2f8mf30gyh/
Part 2 - http://goodwincollege.adobeconnect.com/p6xl4pptero/

Eli Wolff
Access and Inclusion in Sport
http://goodwincollege.adobeconnect.com/p69u5c7zp16/

GO! Athletes with Craig Cassey Jr.
LGBT Issues in Sport
http://goodwincollege.adobeconnect.com/p2s00lea6y0/

Patrick Hruby
Safety Issues and Remedies
http://goodwincollege.adobeconnect.com/p5qcaowrgg7/

In the News: How Earl Monroe Inspired Bruiser Flint

Bruiser Flint was a last minute addition to the Sport For Social Change Conference. Dr. Eric Zillmer was sifting through the athletic department looking for a coach to speak with him on the topic of athletes giving back to the community. At about 8:30 p.m. the night before the conference, SMTSU officers got word that Flint would be joining Dr. Zillmer.

Flint did not disappoint either. He spoke candidly about how NBA legend Earl Monroe inspired his basketball dream. SMTSU President and Drexel editor for Philahoops.com wrote about Flint's experiences for the website.

Here is an excerpt from the full story on Philahoops:

While Monroe was tearing through the NBA and wowing fans night after night, Flint was growing up in that same southwest Philadelphia neighborhood trying to find his way. Flint was a talented basketball player but it never occurred to him that basketball could be the way out.

One day, Monroe came back to the neighborhood to talk to a group of students about having a dream and finding a way out. A young Flint sat among the students that listened intently to The Pearl’s wisdom. It was a moment that changed Flint’s life. Monroe had made it out with basketball and so could Flint.

That day, a dream was born.

Read Rossi's full story about Drexel men's basketball coach Bruiser Flint on Philahoops.com!

In the News: Rossi Recaps #S4SC for The Sports Business Exchange

The first annual Sport For Social Change Conference was a huge success for the Drexel Sport Management Student Union on Friday. The five presentations delved deep into five different topics all trying to answer one question: how can we move forward as a society using sport? 

SMTSU President Kevin Rossi reviewed the event for The Sports Business Exchange. Here is an excerpt of the recap: 

When the Drexel University Sport Management Student Union (SMTSU) broughtSurvivor: Africa winner, founder of a nonprofit called Grassroot Soccer that educates children in Africa about AIDS, and two-time cancer survivor Ethan Zohn to campus last year for a speaking engagement, a big idea was formed. How could sport be used to better our society as a catalyst for positive social change? After all, Zohn had started Grassroot Soocer with the million dollars he had won on Survivor, and that is when we became interested in the idea of using sport for doing social good.

The idea the SMTSU’s leadership had while listening to Zohn speak quickly blossomed into the first annual Sport For Social Change Conference. Held last Friday, the conference featured five presentations on five different topics all trying to answer one question: how can we help move society in a positive direction using sport?

Read the entire recap at The Sports Business Exchange's website!

#S4SC Event Day Storify

Continue reading to check out posts from Sport For Social Change Conference event day in our latest Storify!

#S4SC in Review: Dr. Zillmer and Bruiser Fint

The Sport for Social Change Conference started out on a surprising note, as Drexel’s Head Men’s Basketball Coach, Bruiser Flint joined Director of Athletics Dr. Eric Zillmer for the first presentation of the day. Tackling the issue of athletes giving back, Dr. Zillmer and Coach Flint both expressed the wonderful opportunities working in athletics presents for each of them. 

“I never feel like I have to work,” Dr. Zillmer expressed. “I feel like it’s a lifestyle. Its fun, exciting, people all over are interested in what you do. But the bigger reason is that you can change a person’s life.”

Photo via Alexa Fontanella

Building off of this idea, Coach Flint jumped into the issue at hand and discussed how he constantly tells his team to “reach back, to go forward – give back to the communities and help others.” 

However, Coach Flint also expressed how the world is quick to think that athletes should be held to a higher standard because as athletes, they’re ‘privileged.’ “There are great opportunities in athletics because of the transparency," Flint said. "But every athlete cannot be held more accountable than any other person.” 

Dr. Zillmer piggy-backed this thought by explaining that the beauty of athletics is the opportunity to step forward and be an ambassador for an issue, but if an athlete wants to be an athlete, “that should be okay too.”

Coach Flint briefly shifted the discussion to the importance of coaches giving back to the communities. Two wins away from being the winningest coach in Drexel’s history, Coach Flint understands that his position as a head basketball coach allows him to be involved in important causes, such as Coaches vs. Cancer. “The culture in athletics is to do things for change,” Coach Flint explained, “and Coaches vs. Cancer gives us the opportunity to create great moments in the lives of others.” 

Photo via Alexa Fontanella

Dr. Zillmer noted that as athletics administrators, they feel innate responsibility to initiate community outreach; however, he also discussed the need to protect his student-athletes. There’s a time and a place for community outreach but some athletes simply don’t feel comfortable being in the public eye.

Dr. Zillmer and Coach Flint opened the presentation up for discussion and fielded questions from many of the participants in the audience. When asked why he recruits international student-athletes, Coach Flint explained that the beauty of an international student is the culture and knowledge they can bring to their teammates. Dr. Zillmer questioned aloud the role athletics plays for Drexel, and acknowledged that international students can provide unique education to the entire campus. With all of the questions presented to Coach Flint and Dr. Zillmer, it was clear that an entire conference could have been devoted to listening to these influential men speak. The duo provided an incredible look into how they handle their student-athletes and the demands of giving back to the community. 

There’s a balance between getting their student-athletes involved and exploiting the students because they’re athletes, but important to remember that as Dr. Zillmer said, “We can’t be in a silo and exist in a vacuum. We tell our student-athletes they’re tomorrow’s leaders.”  

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Bruiser Flint Interview:

Dr. Eric Zillmer Interview:

Videos and interviews courtesy of Hayley Zedeck and Greg Monforte. 

Recap written by Taryn Nichols

#S4SC in Review: Patrick Hruby

ASK THE RIGHT QUESTIONS. Patrick Hruby stressed this quote. “In order to get the right answers, we would need to ask the right questions,” he mentioned. However, what exactly are the right questions.

Hruby is a journalist for Sports on Earth, the joint venture USA Today and MLB Advanced Media sports website. Hruby's work focuses on the politics and social issues of sport, writing extensively about amateurism issues in the NCAA, the use of Native American imagery in sport, and safety issues in sports. His presentation at the Sport For Social Change Conference focused on concussions in the NFL.

Photo via Alexa Fontanella

He started off by talking about a man by the name of Mike Webster. For any of you that have read or seen League of Denial, you know why or what he was referring to. It is an issue that is huge today in the NFL and it is one they are struggling to deal with. The NFL has been accused of hiding and lying information about head injuries and concussions from the league. He mentioned how originally Webster’s brain looked normal but after Dr. Bennet Omalu double checked his brain there was microscopic brain damage similar to that of a boxer’s brain (CTE).

“What if getting hit in the head in football even with a helmet is similar to getting hit in the head in boxing? What if it causes invincible brain damage?”  This is the right type of question. Hruby then asked us to imagine if there was a game out in stores. This game was fun, it was a workout, and if one was good at this game it would make him very popular. The game sounded great. But then he said what if every now and then a boxing glove would hit you in the head. Sometimes it would be a little tap and other times it would knock you out. He then asked us, “Would you allow this game to be sold in the shelves at toy stores? And if it was allowed in stores, would you sell it to kids?” This game he was talking about is football.

Photo via Alexa Fontanella

“Not playing football is not an option to most of America right now. Should we consider it as an option? One of those questions I was telling you about.” He then went on to what the NFL is trying to do about this issue. USA Football has a campaign called “Heads Up” out about safe tackling and how that can reduce the number of concussions in the game of football. Roger Goodell mentioned that he was trying to take the “head” out of football. Question to ask Roger Goodell, Why do football players need to wear helmets then if you are trying to take head out of football with safe tackle techniques?

Patrick showed these videos to his classes with college football players in it and they laughed.  Showed it to former players and they laughed. Not at the fact that they didn’t support it, they do, but at the fact that the NFL thought they could take the head out of the game. “To make a tackle, you need to get leverage. To get leverage you lower your shoulders. When you lower your shoulders, your head follows.”

Patrick then went on to talk about this conspiracy that the NFL is a part of in this issue. For more on what the conspiracy is, have a look at League of Denial. One part that specifically interested me was when Patrick started to talk about Austin Trenum. Patrick wrote a story about Austin and he starts it off with, “When a well-adjusted Virginia teen suddenly killed himself, his parents looked for warning signs they had missed. But Austin had no dark secret, no teen angst. There was nothing—except for a concussion he had sustained during a football game a few days earlier.”

Photo via Alexa Fontanella

“When football causes brain damage, who is going to pay for it? We’re not just talking about people dying, were talking about people living but living poorly. These kind of brain problems makes life hard, hard to work, hard to do much of anything.” He ended his presentation with a bold statement. “We have to ask for Austin, for Mike Webster, for the people that have been or will be hurt by football. We owe them an answer and we wont have an answer if we don’t ask the right questions.”

Recap written by Lindrit Shkodra

#S4SC in Review: Eli Wolff

Eli Wolff, Program Director of the Sport and Development Project at Brown University, spoke at the Sport for Social Change about the topic of access and inclusion for all athletes but specifically athletes with disabilities.  His presentation had three major parts. The first part that he spoke about was how he had his earliest advocacy movement.  When Eli Wolff was in elementary school he had a Physical Education teacher that would not let him do pull ups on the bar like the rest of the class.  He keep asking to do it until one day he had enough and in the cleaner version said “Screw you I can do this.” 

Photo via Kevin Rossi

This moment is when Eli learned that sport is a place to be valued.  “Sport has a huge value on who you are and who you become because of inclusion.”  He also stressed that we do not need to separate athletes with disabilities from abled bodied athletes.  “We don’t have to have separate worlds for people with disabilities are part of the fabric of sports culture.”  Playing sports can be essential to development and to learning different values in life.  


The second part of his presentation was about how he is working to helping to create inclusion at the college level.  There are only two schools across the country that has programs for student athletes with disabilities.  Eli mentioned that there is no athletic director on any NCAA level that has a disability.  One of the biggest quotes that Eli was pushing was “Nothing about us without us” and this goes along with my previous statement.  “It is hard to make changes with no one in the offices.” 


“Inclusion is the final stage of integration of people with disabilities in a sport competition or organization in which they are involved, accepted, and respected at all levels of the competition or organization.”  Eli said that inclusion happens in three stages, Invisibility, Visibility, and finally Invisibility.  The first invisibility is that you do notice the person.  They are there but you either chose to ignore them or do not notice they are there.  Visibility happens when you begin to talk with them and becomes friends with the person.  This friendship leads to the final invisibility which is you no longer notice that the person has a disability.  You become so close with them that you forget that they have a disability. 

Finally, Eli spoke about the Olympic movement.  He spoke about the Olympics and Paralympics becoming more inclusive.  The Paralympics do not use the same symbol as the Olympics.  Since they do not use the rings after the Olympics are over they tear down all of the promotional material and replace it with the materials for the Paralympics.  This takes a few weeks and costs about 20 million dollars.  He hopes that one day these two events will not be seen as two different ones but one combined event.  He ended with showing us the #onemovement. 

In conclusion, Eli is a big advocate for inclusion and has done so much already for his cause.  There is still plenty more work that needs to be done.  If anyone reading this was unable to attend, I recommend that you look up the archive link and watch his presentation.  You will definitely enjoy it and learn a lot about athletes with disabilities and their fight for inclusion.

Recap written by Greg Monforte

Online Live Streaming Link

For those of you who cannot make it out to the Sport For Social Change Conference in-person, the entire conference will be streamed online.

Here is the link to the online live-stream: http://goodwincollege.adobeconnect.com/smtsu/

In The News: The Triangle Previews #S4SC

Drexel's student-run newspaper, The Triangle, ran a preview of the Sport For Social Change Conference featured in the Oct. 18 issue. Sports editor Bryan Fyalkowski spoke with president Kevin Rossi, via president Kevin Murray, and faculty adviser Dr. Ellen Staurowsky for the piece.

In the article, Fyalkowski quotes Rossi on the inspiration for the conference:

The idea for this conference really spurred from a May 25 speaking event that featured “Survivor: Africa” winner Ethan Zohn hosted by the SMTSU and The Good Idea Fund. Zohn used his winnings from “Survivor” to begin Grassroot Soccer, a nonprofit that uses soccer as a vehicle to educate people in Africa about AIDS.

“The message that he passed along got us thinking about other ways that sports can help society progress,” Rossi said. “We wanted to continue on with that message of positive change and educate more people on the power of sports.”

You  can read the full article in the print edition on Drexel news stands now, or you can read online at The Triangle's website.

The Sport For Social Change Conference will be held a week from today, Oct. 25, from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. in the James E Marks Intercultural Center multi-purpose room.

Go! Athletes and Craig Cassey Jr. Added to Conference

Go! Athletes and Craig Cassey Jr. will present at the Sport For Social Change Conference presented by the Drexel Sport Management Student Union (SMTSU) on Friday October 25th. They will speak on the topic of LGBT issues in sport and offer an activity for attendees to participate in. Go! Athletes and Cassey will present from 3:00 to 3:50 p.m.

The two will join Dr. Eric Zillmer, Ed Snider Youth Hockey, Eli Wolff, and Patrick Hruby.


Go! Athletes was founded in 2008 and is an LGBT advocacy non-profit organization. Go! Athletes' main mission is to ultimately eliminate the anti-LGBT bias that exists in athletics. Go! Athletes works with LGBT student-athletes to create a better environment and provide resources for those athletes to do so. Everyday, they live their slogan: education, engaging, and empowering every generation of LGBTQ athletes and allies. Their advisory board includes nationally recognized names like Joanna Lohman, Wade Davis, Cyd Zeigler, and Brian Sims.

Go! Athletes representatives travel the country to spread the word and promote acceptance for the LGBT community and the athletes. With speaking engagements, training programs, and major initiative partnerships with other LGBT advocacy organizations like the You Can Play Project, Go! Athletes spreads their mission.

Go! Athletes will be represented by executive director Anna Aagenes among others.

Craig Cassey Jr. will join Go! Athletes in their presentation. Cassey is a Media, Pa. native and Georgetown University track and field athlete who runs middle distance. Cassey is an out-spoken advocate for the rights of LGBT athletes. He has made headlines with his blog where he wrote about his experiences as an out high school athlete and being voted prom king of his high school prom.

See the updated conference schedule for a complete look at the day's presentations. A buffet-style lunch will be served at 1:00 p.m.

RVSP for the Sport For Social Change Conference online TODAY!

Follow along and contribute to the conversation on Twitter using the hashtag #S4SC.

Updated Conference Schedule

10:00 to 10:45 - Sign In and Light Breakfast

10:45 to 11:00 - Introduction

11:00 to 11:50 - Dr. Eric Zillmer 

Topic: Athletes Giving Back and Being Role Models

Position: Director of Athletics

Employer: Drexel University Athletics

Additional Information

11:50 to 12:00 - Break

12:00 to 12:50 - Jim Britt

Topic: Youth Development via Sport

Position: VP and COO

Employer: Ed Snider Youth Hockey Foundation

Additional Information

*Panel Discussion

12:50 to 2:00 - Lunch

Buffet Style

Chestnut Street Caterers

2:00 to 2:50 - Eli Wolff

Topic: Access and Inclusion in Sport

Position: Program Director of the Sport and Development Project

Employer: Brown University

Additional Information

2:50 to 3:00 - Break

3:00 to 3:50 - Go! Athletes and Craig Cassey Jr.

Topic: LGBT Issues in Sport

Additional Information: Go! Athletes
Additional Information: Craig Cassey Jr.

3:50 to 4:00 - Break

4:00 to 4:50 - Patrick Hruby

Topic: Safety Issues and Remedies

Position: Journalist/Writer

Employer: Sports on Earth

Additional Information

4:50 to 5:00 - Conclusion

Sport For Social Change Conference Flyer

Eli Wolff Contributes to NCAA Think Tank

Dr. Eric Zillmer and Eli Wolff Added to Sport For Social Change Conference Line-up

The Drexel Sport Management Student Union (SMTSU) has confirmed that Drexel University Director of Athletics Dr. Eric Zillmer and Program Director for the Sport and Development Project at Brown University Eli Wolff will speak at the first annual Sport For Social Change Conference at Drexel University on October 25th from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Dr. Zillmer and Wolff will join Patrick Hruby of Sports on Earth and Jim Britt of the Ed Snider Youth Hockey Foundation, who were announced late last month as speakers at the conference.

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Dr. Eric A. Zillmer will present on the topic of athletes giving back to their school and community. Dr. Zillmer is the Director of Athletics and Carl R. Pacifico Professor of Neuropsychology at Drexel University in Philadelphia. A licensed clinical psychologist who received his doctorate in clinical psychology from Florida Tech, Zillmer completed internship training at Eastern Virginia Medical School and a postdoctoral fellowship in clinical neuropsychology at the University of Virginia Medical School. 

Now in his 16th year as Director of Athletics, Dr. Zillmer oversees all components of the Athletics Department, which provides recreational opportunities and programming for over 25,000 students and 6,000 faculty and professional staff. During his tenure as AD, Dr. Zillmer was instrumental in the creation of the Drexel athletics logo, extensive renovations at the Vidas Athletic Complex, the creation of a new 84,000 square feet Rec Center, the transfer of the Armory to Drexel University, and securing the winning bids for the 2008 Olympic Trials in Table Tennis, the 2011-2013 U.S Open in squash, as well as the 2012 NCAA Men's Lacrosse Quarterfinals at PPL Park and the 2013 NCAA Men's Lacrosse Championship at Lincoln Financial Field.  

He also serves on the Executive Board of the Philadelphia Sports Congress, the Boards of the Philadelphia Classical Guitar Society, the Austrian Society of Pennsylvania, and the Dad Vail Organizing Committee and the Advisory Board of SquashSmarts. 

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Eli A. Wolf will be presenting on the topic of sport for athletes with disabilities and how society can provide a more inclusive environment. Wolff received his bachelor's degree in sociology from Brown University in 2000 and his a PhD candidate in philosophy with a focus on Olympic studies at German Sport University Cologne.

Wolff is the Program Director of the Sport and Development Project at Brown University. Wolff also serves as the Program Director for the Inclusive Sports Initiative at the Institute for Human Centered Design, Program Director for the Disability Sport Education Program at the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign, co-founder of the Olympism Project, and coordinator for the Power of Sport Forum and the International Sport for Development and Peace Association. His work focuses on the intersection of research, policy and practice to advance sport and human rights, development and social change. 

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The Drexel SMTSU is working to confirm one last speaker that will be announced shortly. A tentative schedule for the Sport For Social Change Conference has been released.  

To register for the event and reserve your spot, register on our EventBrite page. 

Stay tuned for further updates!

Tentative Conference Schedule

10:00 to 10:45 - Sign In

10:45 to 11:00 - Introduction

11:00 to 11:50 - Dr. Eric Zillmer 

Topic: Athletes Giving Back and Being Role Models

Position: Director of Athletics

Employer: Drexel University Athletics

Additional Information

***NOTE: Potentially a panel discussion

11:50 to 12:00 - Break

12:00 to 12:50 - Jim Britt

Topic: Youth Development via Sport

Position: VP and COO

Employer: Ed Snider Youth Hockey Foundation

Additional Information

***NOTE: Potentially a panel discussion

12:50 to 2:00 - Lunch

Buffet Style

Chestnut Street Caterers

2:00 to 2:50 - unconfirmed speaker

Topic: LGBT Issues in Sport

Position: unconfirmed

Employer: unconfirmed

2:50 to 3:00 - Break

3:00 to 3:50 - Eli Wolff (tentative time)

Topic: Access to Sport and Sport for Development

Position: Program Director of the Sport and Development Project

Employer: Brown University

Additional Information

3:50 to 4:00 - Break

4:00 to 4:50 - Patrick Hruby

Topic: Safety Issues and Remedies

Position: Journalist/Writer

Employer: Sports on Earth

Additional Information

4:50 to 5:00 - Conclusion

"League of Denial" Set to Hit Stores

"League of Denial" has found itself in the news a lot in recent memory. Between ESPN controversially splitting from their collaboration with PBS Frontline bringing "League of Denial" to the world in television documentary form to the recent publicity tour and excerpt postings, people know about "League of Denial"

Co-written by ESPN investigative reporters (and brothers) Steve Fainaru and Mark Fainaru-Wada, "League of Denial" explores the murky world of concussions, head trauma, the NFL, what knowledge is known, and when it was known. After the NFL settled with the over 4,000 former players in the concussion lawsuit, we thought that we would never know the league's involvement with concussion research, their knowledge at certain points in time, or potential cover-ups. 

Now, we may have found our answers.

Patrick Hruby will be presenting on the topic of safety issues and potential remedies at the Sport For Social Change Conference on October 25th at Drexel University.

You can pre-order the book on Amazon.

Here is a trailer for the upcoming PBS Frontline documentary based on the "League of Denial" book:

Villanova Football Player Pat Williams Giving Back

As you know, one of the central topics for discussion for the upcoming Sport For Social Change Conference is athletes giving back and being role models. Organizing committee member and Drexel Sport Management graduate student Taryn Nichols works at Villanova University in academic support for their athletics program. She shared with us this inspiring story of Villanova football player Pat Williams and how he has given back to the local Philadelphia area community.

For more information on the Student-Run Emergency Housing Unit of Philadelphia, visit SREHUP.org. You can catch Williams in action on Saturday as the Wildcats take on the Penn Quakers at 5:00 p.m.

Hruby Appears on ESPN Outside The Lines Panel

Yesterday, we announced that Patrick Hruby of Sports on Earth and Jim Britt of Ed Snider Youth Hockey Foundation would be joining us to present at the first annual Sport For Social Change Conference on October 25th, 2013 (Register here).

Coincidentally, the same day that we made the announcement, Hruby appeared on ESPN's Outside the Lines to talk about the impact of the All Players United movement that saw some NCAA football players write "#APU" on their wristbands and towels during their nationally televised games on Saturday.

Here is a clip from the panel:

Patrick Hruby and Ed Snider Youth Hockey Foundation to Speak

The Drexel Sport Management Student Union is pleased to announce that Patrick Hruby, writer for Sports on Earth, and the Ed Snider Youth Hockey Foundation will speak at the Sport For Social Change Conference to be held at Drexel University on Friday October 25th. 

Patrick Hruby will be presenting on the topic of safety issues in sport with a focus on how leagues and government can make sports safer for professionals all the way down to the youth level. In addition to his regular writing for Sports on Earth, Hruby is a contributor to Washingtonian magazine, The Atlantic online, ESPN.com, ESPN the Magazine, and elsewhere. Hruby has a master’s degree in journalism from Northwestern University and bachelor's degrees in English and government from Georgetown University. Hruby’s work has been featured in The Best American Sports Writing collections and has won various awards in longform, magazine, and newspaper writing. 

The Ed Snider Youth Hockey Foundation will be presenting on the topic of youth development in sport. With a mission of teaching our country’s youth the value of academics, hard work, and teamwork through hockey, the ESYHF serves over 3,000 children in the Philadelphia area. The ESYHF was founded by the Chairman of Comcast-Spectacor, Ed Snider, in 2005. Comcast-Spectacor owns the Philadelphia Flyers, Wells Fargo Center, Global Spectrum, Ovations, Paciolan, Front Row Marketing, Flyer's Skate Zone, among other properties. Representatives from ESYHF will include VP and COO Jim Britt among others.

Registration for the Sport For Social Change Conference is now open! Reserve your spot today. Final speaker schedules and additional speakers will be announced shortly.

Which OTL Panelist is Speaking at the S4SC Conference?

Here is a clip from ESPN's Outside The Lines on September 1st. The panel discusses the National Football Leagues $765 million concussion lawsuit settlement with the players.

Why is this clip from the beginning of the month relevant now?

One of the panelist may or may not be speaking at the Sport For Social Change Conference! Which one do you think it is? (Hint: It is not the one that has spoken at a Drexel SMTSU event before).

Official announcement coming soon!

Register Online For Free!

You can now reserve tickets online for the first annual Sport For Social Change Conference presented by Drexel SMTSU on October 25th at Drexel University!  Register at http://s4scconference.eventbrite.com/.  Remember that registration for the event is FREE for all that attend.

Don't forget to bring a friend! Register now.

Welcome to the Online Home of the Sport For Social Change Conference

Welcome to the online home of the First Annual Sport For Social Change Conference presented by the Drexel Sport Management Student Union (SMTSU). The event will be held on Friday October 25th, 2013 on the campus of Drexel University. Specific location and times on Drexel's campus are still to be determined.

The Sport For Social Change Conference will be FREE to all that attend!

The goal of the Sport For Social Change Conference is simple: how can we help move society in a positive direction via sport? Many times, social issues work their way into the sports conversation and vice versa. Although some may shy away from tackling these issues, the Sport For Social Change Conference looks to go head-on with the issues.  The Sport For Social Change Conference will be heavy on brainstorming and idea creation, giving the opportunity to students to dive straight into the industry's intellectual conversation.

Topics that will be discussed:
 - Sport and Politics
 - Sport for Handicapped/Disabled
 - Sport for Youth Development
 - LGBT Issues in Sport
 - Sport Facility Sustainability and Welfare
 - Athletes as Role Models

Volunteers leading up to the event and on event day will be needed. If interested, email the Drexel SMTSU directly at drexelsmtsu@gmail.com.

Stay tuned for updates on speakers, schedules, locations, and giveaways for the Sport For Social Change Conference!

Follow #S4SC or the Drexel SMTSU directly @DrexelSMTSU.

Official logo of the Sport For Social Change Conference:

Johnny Weir Talks Sochi 2014 Games With Keith Olbermann

Openly gay United States figure skater Johnny Weir recently sat down with Keith Olbermann on Olbermann to talk about the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics and the anti-LGBT laws put in to place by Russia's President Vladimir Putin.

Guinness Commercial Features Wheelchair Basketball

One of the central themes to the Sport For Social Change Conference is for attendees to take a step back and look at how they can benefit society via sports. Handicapped and disabled sports is one of the major topics that will be tackled on October 25th, and this Guinness commercial spot that aired during NFL Monday Night Football on ESPN on Sept. 9th, 2013 while the Philadelphia Eagles played Washington is a look into how the able-bodied society can promote the inclusion of the handicapped and disabled in sports.