- Faculty; On Campus
If you have a passion for sports and a head for business, you need to meet Dr. Doug Blais, chair of Southern New Hampshire University's Sport Management Department.
A former college athlete, Blais has worked with some of the best (and best-known) teams and companies in the world. He's advised the Boston Celtics on their ticketing policies, traveled with NBC to help produce the Olympics and consulted with many sports teams and entertainment venues in New England and beyond.
"Even when I was in college, I wanted to teach," he says. "I thought with a business background and a passion for sport -- that would be a great combination."
Now Blais studies all aspects of the sports industry, including the economic impact of sports and the connections between sports and society. He brings industry leaders into the classroom as guest speakers and finds them opportunities outside class. One spring break he took students to Florida to work with the Marlins and the St. Louis Cardinals; another group will work with the Doral Golf Tournament in Miami.
Undergraduate sport management student must take at least one internship. Students have interned with national sports teams, sports merchandisers, the Olympics and countless community-based sports organizations.
Graduates land positions everywhere in the world of sport management, including with such national teams as the Boston Red Sox and the Los Angeles Kings. Blais stresses that many, however, are not seeking high-profile positions, but instead are drawn to recreational and community sports.
Wherever they succeed after graduation, Blais helps his students understand the sports industry isn’t all fun and games.
"Our job as faculty is to take their passion and get them to understand it's a business," he says.
