UMass Students Gain Experiential Learning Through SoccerFest

AMHERST, MA, May 5, 2008 – The Sport Management program in the Isenberg School of Management at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst has always been a pioneering and model program for other universities throughout the United States. As one of the first schools in the nation to establish such a unique program, UMass Sport Management has a rich history and an alumni base filled with graduates working in all facets of the sporting industry. As a piece of its ground breaking ways, UMass Sport Management offers its most experienced, skilled, and driven students an opportunity to take Sport Event Management, an experiential learning class that provides students with the opportunity to get hands-on experience running a major event.

Each spring, students have the unique opportunity to gain admittance into this culminating class in the Sport Management program. “The undergraduate and graduate students are responsible for all aspects of managing and marketing Clif Bar SoccerFest. Essentially, the students gain the experience of running their own small company. This course requires students to set event goals and objectives, budget for the event, develop and execute a marketing plan, sell sponsorships, recruit and train 180 volunteers and perform all aspects of tournament operations,” remarked Dr. Mark McDonald, faculty advisor for the class.

A great deal of work goes into SoccerFest to make sure the event runs smoothly, but so much more is gained from this class in the knowledge that each of the twenty-four students have learned on how to run a successful business operation. “I’ve gotten so much more out of this class than I even expected going in. So many different pieces need to come together to effectively run a soccer tournament, many of which aren’t even seen by the spectators, sponsors or athletes,” remarked student Phil Chien. Putting on SoccerFest also takes a tremendous amount of discipline from the students in the class, as they must balance extracurricular activities, other classes and outside jobs with the responsibility of putting on one of the largest events on campus. “What makes running this soccer tournament unique from any other is that we are all students first and foremost. We don’t work full time days, and each of us has different class schedules,” remarked student Ari Sliffman.

“There is always the challenge of trying to improve the event each year. Last year’s event set a pretty high bar, but we think that we are really going to surprise a lot of people this year, especially those who have been participating since year one,” says student Alex Hughes. While the soccer festival itself will run like any other tournament, the class has come up with numerous additions to the event in hopes of leaping over that bar. These extras include live entertainment featuring local touring band Maxxtone, an enhanced FunZone for kids with inflatables, rock wall, and dunk tank and a double-header played by the UMass Men’s and Women’s soccer teams.

This year’s SoccerFest will be held on May 10th at the McGuirk Alumni Fields on the campus of the University of Massachusetts-Amherst. The registration period brought tremendous success as the tournament reached full capacity of 140 teams. "Being fully responsible for a large sport event, students grow personally and professionally through interacting with each other and the various event stakeholders, including Amherst Youth Soccer Association (AYSA), corporate sponsors, community members and organizations, and UMass staff, faculty, and administration. Working with these constituencies provides students with a realistic preview of the challenges inherent in running sport events that require the commitment of an entire community to be successful,” says McDonald. Dr. McDonald believes that students who have taken the SoccerFest course will go on to do great things in the sport management world.

For more information on Clif Bar SoccerFest 2008, and tournament schedules, please visit http://www.soccerfest.org.