HK - University of Windsor

Kinesiology News
Among the Best in the World
Recent rankings have proven what those
who work in the Master of Human Kinetics
program in sport management have quietly
known all along: their’s is among the best
in the world.
Mike Thompson stands in the players’ bench at the
Air Canada Centre. A graduate of the MHK program in
sport management, he’s now the coordinator of fan
services for Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment.
The program, with six faculty members
and an average of about 15 to 20 graduate
students a year, was recently ranked
in third place worldwide by the SportBusiness
International 2012 Postgraduate
Sports Course Guide.
Kinesiology professor Jess Dixon said
considering that
UWindsor is on the
same list as firstplace
Ohio University
and the University
of Massachusetts
at Amherst—which
he says are two of
the most highlyregarded
schools in
the world for post
graduate sports management programs—
his department, and the entire campus,
should be extremely honoured.
“To be in the company of those two
schools alone is very impressive,” said Dr.
Dixon, who earned his own PhD at U-Mass.
“I’m very proud of these rankings.”
Jess said a major contributing factor to
scoring so high on that list was the fact
that 85 percent of the program’s grads find
jobs in their field.
Mike Thompson, who graduated from
the program in 2010, landed the job of
his dreams as coordinator of fan services
for Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment,
owners of the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Toronto
Raptors, the Toronto Marlies and the
Toronto F.C. soccer team. Also a graduate
of the Odette School of Business, he said
he was thrilled to hear about the award,
but not necessarily surprised.
“It’s a department that really cares
about its students and what they do when
they graduate,” said Mike, who oversees a
staff of 25 people devoted to ensuring fans
have a top-notch experience when they attend
any of the company’s venues, which
include the Air Canada Centre, BMO Field
and the Ricoh Coliseum.
An Oshawa native, Mike scored a placement
working with the communications
department for the Toronto Blue Jays while
still a student under Jess’ tutelage. He supported
baseball writers in the press box,
providing them with creative games notes,
lineups and other team information.
“When I was working with the Blue Jays
it never felt like work and it still doesn’t
now that I’m here at Maple Leaf Sports,”
he said.
However, professional sports teams
aren’t the only places the program’s grads
can find employment, Jess said. They’ve
found success in such diverse areas as in
municipal parks, recreation, culture and
tourism programs; the sporting goods and
apparel industry; international, national
and provincial sport governing bodies;
5
HK
2011 Community Inclusion Award Community Living Essex County
The Community Living Essex
County hosted their 50th annual
general meeting on June 21, 2011
in McGregor, Ontario. The Community
Inclusion Award was presented
to the Department of Kinesiology for
their role in implementing a fitness
program and an adapted physical
activity manual for participants of the
Community Living Program.
Accepting the award on behalf of the department was Chad Sutherland, Applied Learning
Coordinator; Deborah Wolf, BHK candidate; and Dr. Wayne Marino, Department Head of Kinesiology
sport media; athletic facilities and venues;
management and marketing agencies; intercollegiate
athletics; campus recreation;
and public and private sport and recreation
camps and resorts.
Human Kinetics dean Michael Khan
said the program’s success can be directly
attributed to a collective effort from all the
faculty and staff who work there.
“We’ve got a tremendous team here and
everyone is devoted to ensuring that our
students get everything they need to help
them succeed,” said Dr. Khan. “There’s a
great tradition here of student centred excellence
in which we integrate activities in
research, teaching and community service
and these rankings are a validation of all
our efforts.”
HK Students Win CIS Awards
(L-R): Future HK grad student Jessica Clemencon
being honored as a first team CIS All-Canadian;
kinesiology student Laura Mullins (BHK ’10) captured
the CIS Tracy MacLeod Award for her determination
and perseverance; and Miah-Marie Langlois
was honored as a first team CIS All-Canadian.