Out of the classroom and onto the court
Globetrotters' visit marks academic achievement for grad students
By Jackie Zimmermann, Staff Writer
January 12, 2008 | 4:21 p.m.
The Harlem Globetrotters are coming to town Jan. 16, and a group of Ohio University students is just as jazzed about coordinating the event as those who will pay to watch the legendary performers clown around on the court.
Thirty-two graduate students are working within OU’s Center for Sports Administration to organize what will be the only national show to come to OU’s Convocation Center this year. “It’s a wonderful experience for students before they head out into the real world,” said Jim Kahler, executive director of the Center of Sports Administration (CSA).
Even though many of the sports administration grad students have had some professional experience, the magnitude of planning such an event promises to provide invaluable practical knowledge. Revenue from the performance will go to the CSA, a unit of the College of Health and Human Services, to fund initiatives for grad students.
Kahler compared the students’ role to that of regional promoters who coordinate Globetrotter events around the nation. The planning has taken place as part of a course titled sports and sports consumers, which is taught by David Ridpath, an assistant professor of sports administration in the School of Recreation and Sport Sciences. The hands-on project fulfills a key academic goal of Vision Ohio by extending students’ education beyond the classroom.
“Instead of reading about it in a book and hearing a professor speak about it, we’re actually going out and doing group sales, talking to sponsors and creating relationships in the area,” said grad student Michael Jacobs, who is serving as ticket manager for the event.
The Globetrotters came to Athens in 2003, but there wasn’t much exposure, and the attendance was lower than planned, Jacobs said. Instead of performing at the Convo that year, they performed their basketball antics at Vinton County High School in McArthur, Ohio. Jacobs said that one of the stipulations for the Globetrotters’ return was that they play in the Convocation Center.
Even though the event is being held in a campus facility, Jacobs said that the target audience for the occasion is not college students. If the event is deemed a success, the CSA hopes to make it a continuing class project by enticing the Globetrotters back every three or four years.
Regardless of what the future holds, this year’s event promises to be a crowning achievement in the academic careers of the students planning it. “They’ll be able to look back in 20 years and say, ‘We’re the class that brought the Globetrotters to Athens,’” Kahler said.
The Harlem Globetrotters performance will take place at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 16. Tickets range from $13 to $51 and can be obtained by calling 1-866-MY-TICKET, going online to TicketReturn.com or visiting the table set up near Baker’s first floor entrance.
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This article can also be found on Outlook, Ohio University's Web site for campus news.