Monday, June 6, 2011

Meet the Class - Tavia

One of the unique attributes of the DeVos Sport Business Management Program is the network of students who make up our program. Our class will take every course together during our tenure here at UCF and we will work on countless group projects and collaborative efforts. As a result of our shared interests in the business of sport, a natural team camaraderie is formed. However, our team is composed of people from diverse backgrounds, experiences and ambitions. We offer profiles of class members to give you an idea as to the type of people who make up our program, individuals who collectively will be leaders in sport and society and will be teammates for life.

Name: Tavia Record

Hometown: Brampton

Undergraduate School & Major:
University of Central Florida
English Creative Writing, BA

Current G.A. or Sports Industry Related Internship/Job:
*Graduate Assistant for The Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport
*Athletics Compliance Office Volunteer
*Graduate Assistant Student-Athlete Advisor and Mentor in the Burnett School of Biomedical Sciences
*International Full-Scholarship Track & Field Student-Athlete


Reasons for Choosing the DeVos Program:
Iron sharpens iron, as one man sharpens another.
-Proverbs 27:17

I acted on a desire to be challenged by the best sport management directorship and a diverse cohort to increase my strength as a leader and to learn new ways to use my gifts to uplift others.

Future Career Ambitions (1 to 2 sentences):
My short-term career goals

*Become a leading image consultant that is known for helping professional athletes maximize their potential in the public eye. I would meet the needs of my clients by providing service and assistance in personal project development, philanthropy, public relations, garnering sponsorships and brand management.

*Represent Canada at the 2012 Olympics in the 400m and 4x400m relay

*Expand my image consulting project for youth, which stems from my belief that every child deserves to feel validated and to be given the guidance to embark on their dreams

If you could have any superpower what would you choose and why?
It would be awesome to have the ability to travel in time to…

*rewind to visit various eras in history

*pause priceless moments that I have shared with my family, friends, teammates, coaches, mentors, sorority sisters and the President’s Leadership Council

*fast-forward to peek at how the seeds I’ve sown this season will take shape and bloom in the future

If you had the opportunity to interview anyone dead or alive, who would you choose and what would you most want to know?
I enjoy talking and learning from elderly people, so if I could jump into a time-travel mobile, I’d choose to visit my great-grandfather named Charles Griffiths. He was a World War I veteran who was known for being honorable, loyal, respectful and charming. From the stories that I’ve heard, he sounds like someone that I could laugh and talk with for hours. I would ask him to talk about how he stayed true to his values and how this paid off very well in his professional and personal life.



Friday, June 3, 2011

Favorite Stadium/Arena Experience- Amanda

Stadiums/Arenas Visited:
Amway Center (Orlando Magic)
Raymond James Stadium (Tampa Bay Buccaneers)
EverBank Field (Jacksonville Jaguars)
Fenway Park (Boston Redsox)
Gillette Stadium (New England Patriots/New England Revolution)
TD Garden (Boston Celtics/Boston Bruins)
Bank One Ballpark (Arizona Diamondbacks)
Daytona International Speedway (NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Daytona 500)
Brighthouse Networks Stadium (University of Central Florida)
New Orleans Arena (New Orleans Hornets)

Venues I’d like to Visit:
Yankee Stadium (New York Yankees)
Churchill Downs (Kentucky Derby)
Charlotte Motor Speedway (NASCAR Sprint Cup Series)
Wrigley Field (Chicago Cubs)
Madison Square Garden (New York Knicks)
Cowboys Stadium (Dallas Cowboys)

Favorite Venue:
Gillette Stadium

Favorite Experience:
I hadn’t realized how many venues I had been to over the span of my short life until I started making this list. With each addition, I began to think about how fortunate I was to experience each of these stadiums/arenas and how each one of them had an entertaining story to accompany it. My most favorite fan experience took place at the TD Bank Garden during a Boston Celtics game. It was my informal introduction to Kevin Garnett. Sitting only three rows behind the Celtics bench provided just the view I needed to actually appreciate KG’s greatness in person. At the beginning of each home game, KG takes massive amounts of baby powder in his hands, throws it in the air, and then proceeds to both ends of the court drawing in the great cheers of the audience filled Garden. The game hadn’t even started and unknowingly my excited grip had already left fingernail impressions in my best friend Matt’s arm.

Amanda Barton