Lambton sports and rec grads making their mark
Prospective Lambton College students can check out the school's sports & rec management program when the Sarnia site reopens to the public this weekend.
Program Coordinator Angela Barclay said those interested in business who also enjoy sports should see what the program has to offer. She said since it launched in 1995, the industry has only continued to grow.
"Also, with the whole legalization of sport betting [in Ontario], there's a whole other area that's opening up for people in the sport and rec industry."
Barclay said they've had graduates become general managers of sports teams, teachers, recreation directors and a whole lot more.
"We ask students 'what's your dream,' and I can pretty much bet the house that at least one person in a group of 10 is going to say 'I want to be the GM of insert professional team here.' So, we have had students move up in the ranks, including Mark Glavin, the assistant general manager of the Sarnia Sting."
Program Professor Justin Randall said there are tons of different avenues to get into sports even if someone is not a professional athlete.
"If you like the Maple Leafs, Kyle Dubas is the GM of the club and he has a sport management degree. A friend of mine has a sport management degree and he's the strength and conditioning coach for the Chicago Cubs."
Randall also said a number of their grads have stuck around in Sarnia-Lambton.
"Mark Perrin is the tourism director of Sarnia-Lambton -- he's a graduate of the program. I don't know how many recreation directors that are at city hall but I think all, or close to it, are graduates of our program," said Randall. "The amount of things you can get out of our program, we don't even have enough time to talk about it -- it just goes on and on."
Randall said the program provides students with hands-on experience.
"When our students do things for assignments, we make them run the event, we make them run the league, the tournament, whatever it is, because that's the way we feel they learn best is by running it."
Some events put on by students include a Sarnia-wide scavenger hunt, an international learn to skate program for international students, a virtual dart league and last month's basketball skills competition.
Among the Ontario colleges that offer sports and rec management programs, Lambton is the only one with a hockey arena on campus. Internal Enrolment Advisor Adam Morris-Page said it's a big plus for students to be able to work with the Sarnia Sting.
"A lot of the interest that we get is because we have that arena and we have that co-op opportunity. It's a pretty amazing chance for students to get involved in OHL hockey."
To learn more about Lambton's Sports & Recreation Management program, click here.