SPRING 2008 Community College Magazine - Northampton ...

ALumNi prOFiLe
A Sporting Career
big league
CAREER
Nick Nagel ’02, sees a sport management degree blossom
after graduating NCC By Cynthia Tintorri
Nick Nagel, assistant director of athletic programs at the University of
North Texas in Denton, is ready to love his career.
FOR A GUY WHO WASN’T
sure what he wanted to do
when he came to Northampton,
Nick Nagel has done
quite well for himself. He’s
treading on what was once
the stomping ground of Pro
Football Hall-of-Famer, fourtime
Super Bowl champion
and former Steeler, Mean
Joe Green. Since September
of this year, Nagel has been
the assistant director of athletic
programs at Green’s alma
mater, the University of North
Texas in Denton.
“When I fi nished my
high school career, I thought
about political science, but I
didn’t think I’d be happy doing
that,” he said. “Then I saw the
sport management degree in
the NCC catalog and thought,
Hey, I like sports – I’d love to
do that as a career!”
Nagel’s dad, Michael,
was a development offi cer at
NCC when the younger Nagel
decided to come here. “My
parents and I thought NCC
would be a good place for me
to figure out what I wanted to
do. My experience there truly
led me on my current career
path,” he said.
After graduating from
NCC, Nagel went on to St.
John’s University in New
York, where he earned a B.S.
in sport management with a
minor in business in 2004.
He then interned in athletic
communications and event
management for Bryant Uni-
versity in Rhode Island, and
then for the Patriot League.
Nagel landed a job in the athletic
facilities offi ce at West
Virginia University, where he
simultaneously worked toward
a master’s in sport management,
awarded in June 2007.
Nagel found himself
without a job when his boss
returned from maternity leave,
so he began interviewing for
various positions in intercollegiate
athletics. “UNT just
seemed to be the right fit.
After some very positive
interviews, I was offered and
accepted the job.”
As assistant director of
athletic programs for UNT,
Nagel serves as event manager
for 16 intercollegiate athletic
sports. “I ensure that all the
logistics for athletic events
are coordinated correctly,
from teams being on time and
facilities being set up, to accommodations
for offi cials and
anything else that’s needed
for the event to take place,”
he said.
Nagel is also responsible
for making sure fans and
venues are safe and secure. He
even coordinates construction
and upgrading of athletic facilities
on campus, “along with
anything else that might be
thrown my way!”
Although he played basketball,
football, and track and
field growing up and in high
school, Nagel says he didn’t
have the athletic gifts to play
at the college level. “But I
love watching student athletes
succeed at their craft due to all
the hard work they put into it. I
get to know them at a personal
level. It’s very rewarding.”
His favorite part of the
job? “No two days are ever
“No two days are ever
the same.”
the same. I’m always doing
something different, with its
own set of challenges. My
education at NCC taught me
all that the sports industry
had to offer – it’s so much
more than what goes on on
the playing field. I knew if
I worked hard, I’d fi nd my
place in the industry.” u
40 NCC ● SPRING 2008 PHOTO BY JENNIFER C. FOGEL