By Matt Hawkins
More than 1,000 Bradley students, high school students and parents learned from media experts at the third annual Charley Steiner Symposium on Sports Communication.
The event brought event namesake Steiner ‘71 to campus with radio and television legend Larry King as featured guests. Panels throughout the November day offered firsthand perspectives on ESPN, the Olympics and Paralympics, new and emerging media, sports public relations and other topics.
Bradley students enjoyed the opportunity to hear career-shaping wisdom.
“I went to as many panels as I could because I knew I’d learn something valuable from these professionals,” said Beau Woodcock ’18, a sports communication major from Peoria. “The speakers helped me see where my skills and experiences will serve me best after graduation.”
Guest speakers included former Olympic and competitive figure skater Matt Savoie ‘02, Chicago Sun-Times senior sports columnist Rick Telander, Peabody Award-winning content creator Brad Burke ‘01, award-winning journalist and author Jim Miller and Chicago-based radio host Julie DiCaro, among others.
Though the day focused on sports media, life lessons applied to a broad audience.
“The lessons we learned were universal,” said sports communication major Cal Weisman ’19, of St. Louis. “We saw how opportunities will present themselves if we can be flexible. That’s true for anyone.”
Sports communication major Jaclyn Clark ’18, of Milwaukee, credited the symposium for shaping her future. She is interested in sports public relations and will be part of the Bradley team that will assist NBC Sports’ production of the 2018 Winter Olympics.
“Without the symposium, I wouldn’t have known about many career opportunities,” she said. “It was special to have so many successful people share their stories with us.”
Founded in 2015, the Charley Steiner School of Sports Communication was the first named sports communication school in the nation. Sports communication is the largest major in the Slane College of Communications and Fine Arts at Bradley, with more than 100 students enrolled in the Steiner School.
