BALTIMORE – Coppin State University’s Sports Information Director Rob Knox was selected to participate in the 2015 NCAA Leadership Institute that will take place July 11-17, at the Omni William Penn Hotel in Pittsburgh.
Knox, who will be inducted into the Lincoln (Pa.) University Athletics Hall of Fame in September, has been at Coppin State since 2013. He will also serve as a panelist at the upcoming “Other Side of Sports” conference in Washington, D.C. on Friday, June 12.
He is the primary athletics communication strategist for the Eagles’ 14-sport NCAA Division I program.
“I am honored to be chosen for such a prestigious and career-impacting program,” Knox said. “I am looking forward to learning, meeting and working with new colleagues and then using the knowledge gained to help my personal and professional growth. I am grateful for my supervisors, Mr. Derrick Ramsey and Ms. Alecia Shields-Gadson for their support of me in participating in this once in a lifetime opportunity.”
The NCAA Leadership Institute provides tailored programming to assist racial and ethnic minorities in strategically mapping and planning their careers in athletics administration by providing professional development programming over the course of a calendar year, which includes two, one-week programs at the beginning and conclusion of that year.
Combining the in-person sessions, continuing education activities throughout the year and the extensive alumni group, participants not only exceedingly enhance and master skill sets but also explore and plan for future career goals and paths.
Prior to arriving at Coppin State, Knox worked two years at ESPN in Bristol (Conn.) where he was a Statistics Manager in the Stats & Analysis department.
Knox, who has also worked at Lincoln and Kutztown, has been fortunate to earn numerous accolades. He was the 2011 CoSIDA (College Sports Information Directors Association of America) Rising Star College Division Award winner. He has won three CoSIDA Fred Stabley writing awards and was the recipient of the Lincoln University “Raising the Bar” award from the vice president of student enrollment and management.
Knox is a former CoSIDA Board of Director member and past president of the Black College Sports Information Directors' Association (BC-SIDA). In May 2014, he was invited to speak and represented CoSIDA at the NCAA Division III Institute for Administrative Advancement in Atlanta in which he facilitated a one-hour discussion and Q&A session on “Personal Branding and Effective Communication.” He also served as a member of the NCAA Division II Women’s Soccer Atlantic Regional Advisory Committee.
“I am happy that Rob will have an opportunity to attend the NCAA Leadership Institute and continue his personal and professional growth,” Coppin State Director of Athletics Derrick K. Ramsey said. “We have consistently discussed exploring careers in other areas of athletic administration because he has tremendous experience in the field to limit himself to just one area. This is the perfect program for him.”