My interview with East Coast Conference Commish (DII)

[fish7718]

I feel anyone in the field of sport management might get something out of this, at the end he also talks about the NBA rules on draft eligibility, one of the smartest men in the this field I have met.

 

Me: Please describe your job.

DR. DRANOFF: Currently, I am Commissioner of the East Coast Conference, (ECC), an NCAA DII athletic conference. In this capacity, I am responsible for the day to day operation of the conference which is made up of 8 schools from around the metro NY area. Along with my two staff members we organize conference schedules, championships, monitor compliance, supervise budget and grant monies provided by member school fees and grants from the NCAA, represent the conference to the NCAA and other organizations, organize and run student athlete educational and life skill programming, serve as liaison between member schools to handle disputes, and basically try to keep conference members happy.

Me: What college did you attend?

DR. DRANOFF: Undergrad and masters at St. Johns, I have my EdD from Dowling College.

ME: Why did you pick that school and major?

DR. DRANOFF: I went to St. John’s University as an undergrad because the sport management program at that time was in its infancy and the career intrigued me. I loved sports and thought it would be an interesting idea. I did not think much about what if things did not work out, I just went for that, besides, no one I knew was studying something like sports mgt and I usually wanted to be different from my friends. It worked out pretty well.

ME: What did you intend to do with sports management major, did you always have a specific job in mind?

DR. DRANOFF: My thought was that I wanted to some day own a minor league baseball team. I loved baseball and figured that would be the fit, never got involved in that at all

ME: What job did you get straight out of college?

DR. DRANOFF: A few months after graduation, I started with St. John’s University in august after graduating

ME: What was your first big opportunity/break?

DR. DRANOFF: I had done pretty well at St. John’s and had become close to the chair of the program Bernie Beglane. He called me and said a position was opening at St. John’s that was new, assistant to athletic director Jack Kaiser. I had done my internship at Bernie’s alma mater Fairfield U and knew that the AD there was a close friend of Mr. Kaiser and thought I would have a chance. I had done my internship at Fairfield more out of convenience. My Dad had died during my junior year and I was going back and forth from where I lived in Connecticut every week to help out with the family store and the location worked. While at Fairfield I really started liking the college level and when I was offered the job at St. John’s I jumped at it.

ME: What is the biggest break/factor that led you to where you are today?

DR. DRANOFF: The experience I had under Mr. Kaiser at St. John’s was second to none. I learned so much and got a chance to meet many people and take on many new tasks. That really set the ground work for all the other jobs I have had and gave me a chance to complete my masters also. I have been an AD at three other schools and would not have the chance without the job at St. John’s and what I learned under Mr. Kaiser I am sure. In addition, I really learned about work ethic and building connections which led to other opportunities as well

ME: What is the best piece of advice you can give for someone looking to break into the sports management field?

DR. DRANOFF: Hard work and being involved. Take a chance to be involved in any way in the area you hope to pursue as soon as possible whether as a volunteer or part time worker. You never know what connection you will make and then use those connections to stay involved. I know that it is very hard to get jobs and the good student, hard worker, person with experience will have a leg up on everyone else. That is one more thing, doing well in school that makes a difference because it is another thing that can set up apart from others. Everything being equal, employers want someone that is bright and will work hard, school shows that quality off. Persistence is important also, don’t quit when it is tough, but stay involved someway.

 

ME: Is there anything you wished you had done in college, in terms of advancing your resume/career?

DR. DRANOFF: Yes, more networking and doing the things I said above. I mentioned that time was tight and I had to help out at home, but I never realized that being involved more in the career stuff would have helped. I also wish I had taken more courses in some other areas like computers (not much going on then computers back then, actually, but it would have helped), more writing classes, etc, anything to help my skills. Lots of that I had to learn on my own.

 

 

ME: In college basketball athletes used to be able to go straight from high school to the pros. With restrictions we have seen athletes use college only as a platform to showcase their talent. Do you think there should be a requirement for athletes to wait a year after high school before gaining draft eligibility, if so how long?

DR. DRANOFF: In my opinion, I think it is somewhat of a farce requiring students to go one year to college and thinking that helps with their emotional, academic growth. It helps physically, of course, but it seems to me that besides giving that school one year of great basketball and achievement is hypocritical when those schools talk about commitment to excellence in academics as well as athletics. Are they really committed to that student’s academic life or just their athletic success? There are a lot of criticisms of big time athletics as being more “edutainment” than education, and I think this is an example. What is the college’s purpose, education or entertainment? Even if entertainment is part of the education for the survival of the athletic program and what it provides to the institution, I think the one year requirement does not have to be part of that equation.

 

Me: Brandon Jennings went straight from high school to playing internationally then came back. How do you feel about his decision to do this? Do you think more and more players will do this now that he has seen success?

DR. DRANOFF: I read that many athletes going to Europe, in some cases, have not had great experiences so they may be more careful about that in the future. That being said, I think it can be an option. I would say that some kind of plan that has been discussed with the NBA providing opportunity through the D league to educate and develop those who do not attend college would make more sense, but I am sure the cost of that would be prohibitive to the NBA team, like that idea better. If someone does not want to be in college, even though education could change their lives later on, forcing them to attend and then making a sham of that, does not work for me.

 

ME: As a professor at St. John’s, have you seen athletes use the college as more of a place to showcase their talent rather than using it as an academic tool?

DR. DRANOFF: In some cases yes, when I worked there, the glory days of St. John’s basketball, we had very talented athletes but most of them did graduate. It was important and most were not leaving early. Big time DI athletes will have the chance to be pros in some sports; I don’t think that’s a bad thing. Smart people will take advantage of all the opportunities provided in terms of education and athletics and it is up to their coaches and the administrators, once there, to help them with that. So few make it in pro sports, which getting the degree is essential, but the student has to get the commitment part and want to be there for the education, that must come from the individual.

Edited March 14, 2010 by Fish7718

[Jenneral]

Nice interview! Thanks for sharing!