OXFORD, Miss. –
The University of Mississippi School of Business Administration and the
Intercollegiate Athletics Department are teaming up this weekend to
help promote both the business school and women’s basketball.
The
athletics department has donated 200 free tickets to the business
school to distribute among faculty and students for the Sunday (Feb.
22) contest between Ole Miss and Vanderbilt University. Tipoff is set
for 2 p.m. in Tad Smith Coliseum.
During halftime, a promotional business school video is to be shown and new business school Dean Ken Cyree has been invited to be a “guest coach,” said Connie Braseth, marketing coordinator for the athletics department. Guest coaches are introduced to the audience before the game and have an opportunity to eat a meal with the team, attend a pre-game speech in the locker room and sit courtside during the game, Braseth said.
“It’s a nice chance to bring attention to the school but also to bring new fans to see our excellent women’s basketball team,” said Charles Noble, MBA director and associate professor of marketing in the business school. “We have many outstanding student-athletes graduate from the business school, and we want to support them and our partners across campus in any way we can.”
The business school’s halftime promotional video features commentaries from graduate and undergraduate students, as well as candid shots of the business school’s classrooms and facilities. The students in the video discuss their experiences as UM business students.
“We hope to draw attention to some of the exciting things going on in the business school, perhaps drawing in some undecided students who might be attending [the game] or getting some undergraduate students thinking about an MBA here,” Noble said. “We also want the parents and alumni present to hear a little about what we’re doing.”
The business school’s involvement is part of the athletic department’s campuswide Dean’s Challenge, a first-year initiative aimed at school deans to help encourage faculty and students to attend the basketball games. Also showcased during the Feb. 22 game are the Graduate School and the Division of Outreach and Continuing Education.
“Dean’s Challenge is a yearlong drive to get folks that typically don’t go to women’s basketball games to go, and to get each of the deans of the different schools on campus involved,” Braseth said. “We’re just getting an opportunity to them to enjoy a basketball game and are hoping to attract some new women’s basketball fans.”
Dean’s Challenge kicked off Jan. 22, when Ole Miss played South Carolina, and featured the schools of Engineering, Accountancy and Education.
For more information on the business school, visit http://www.olemissbusiness.com . To learn more about the UM women’s basketball team, go to http://www.olemisssports.com.