Connections

A couple of weeks ago I sat down with my supervisor to inquire about some figures on a demographic fact sheet for our marketing partners in Virginia. Ms. Sawyer, our Principal and CEO gave me the financial layout and development plan for Champion Schools which was enlightening for me because I joined the team without knowing much of that information. It was a good thing to hear her explain what type of school CS was and what they’re goals are since I am a key in the marketing of this institution to the public.

What every entrepreneurial endeavor needs to get rolling is a value proposition. This is a business marketing strategy that involves assessment of the company (our school), the customers (the students) and the competition (other schools, private and public). Ms. Sawyer and her business associate, Patrick McGee, had the vision for a public charter school founded on principles of academic and athletic discipline. They have found a market niche of their own to build a competitive advantage over other public schools because they offer many things that Phoenix public schools don’t. The value proposition compiled by Mr. McGee’s marketing team is also essential for investors like the construction company building our new campus.

In consumer markets, customer retention is an important concept to implement especially in newer, smaller businesses. It’s a little more difficult and usually expensive to find new customers and much easier to focus on quality of service to influence customers to spend their dollars in the same place while spreading a good word for you. At CS, the quality of their service could be called the quantity of their service. Transportation, school supplies and several organized teams and leagues are all apart of a cost free education. I work with teachers on their facebooks to try and build awareness of CS through networks which relates back to the relationships we have with the students and their families. The schools facebook, twitter, blog and website are also tools we use to keep the CS family informed and intimate with what’s happening.

The Theory of Play is something anyone working with kids should know. A handout in one of my PRM courses explained that play is essentially behavior that humans and animals participate in to explore and learn about their environments. Having physical education with a game everyday gives the CS students the chance to play and develop motor skills, sensory knowledge, exploration of different roles, cognitive, problem solving and social skills which is the best indicator of success in schools.

Sport is the other recreation management concept that applies to CS. Cooperative competition is a term used to explain sport which I believe speaks a lot to the mission and goals of our school. Sport brings together physical athletics, which all kids love, education and professionalism. I think the patience and capacity of our first through fourth graders to board buses every morning and for our fifth through eighth graders to switch class rooms every hour speaks to this notion of professionalism and maturity.

Multi Vs Inter

Institutions of learning tend to work their way from multidisciplinary to interdisciplinary when you consider the age and level of education. Everything I ever learned leading up to college was much more of a taste of several different disciplines to aid in selecting a major once I got to ASU. Needless to say, I needed more time to decide my major and ended up selecting to study business and recreation management through a cross-disciplinary technique. Since Champion Schools currently runs form kindergarten through 8th grade I would say that it is a more multi-discliplinary environment. Math, science, english/reading and social studies are the primary disciplines of class room learning. The class teaching along with daily sports training round out the structure for the students. The mission at Champion Schools is based on the concept that behaviors and ethics developed on the practice field enhance and improve each students ability to learn in a class setting. This is where I would consider what our school does as interdisciplinary. There are many ways that athletic education and class education cross paths for our student-athletes. Receiving and reflecting instruction, accountability and decisions are just a few things that each student does daily. I have been working for about a month and I don't see any real departments at the school. Most teachers instruct and play a part in the physical education aspect of the curriculum. The elementary level teachers have the same kids and the intermediate level teachers have students rotate through class rooms learning different subjects. The special education instructor seems to be the only other position that differs from that structure. The Principal, Vice Principal, and Athletic Director make up the top of the hierarchy. Coaches and teachers follow them, with a secretary, a few TAs and a couple assistants, including myself, completing the organizational structure.

Champion Schools: Summit Elementary

Hi! My name is Brian Matsumoto and I'm a senior BiS major in business and recreation management graduating in December. I spent my first two years at ASU trying to get into WP Carey for economics and marketing but didn't have the grades. During that time I took PRM 120 (leisure and quality of life) with my roommate and later, after hearing about the sports management class, decided that PRM would be my other concentration. I've played sports all my life and known that I wanted to be a businessman so sports agency is my dream career. I've never been into white water rafting and camping but for the last two summers I have worked with kids at Tempe's Escalante Community center and as it turns out, I enjoy recreation and management. I met the athletic director and principal of the school I work at through business associates and they have worked to accommodate me ever since. Champion Schools is an athlete charter school with its main campus, Summit Elementary, located downtown by the Phoenix library. I have a pretty unique position there because I don't have one specialty. I help coach and train kids in the mornings and work on marketing with their partner ProVentures in my other spare time. I also have tutoring as a secondary responsibility. So far I have helped with facebook tutorials for the faculty and staff and also put together blogs for the school website. The first week was logistically a little hectic because the enrollment nearly doubled this year and there were initially three different campuses so I was able to help with that. I had an internship last year in marketing at Athletes Performance, where some of the coaches have learned their methods so I'm experienced in the same practices. I hope to obtain contacts and greater knowledge from the CEO of ProVentures who used to be the Director of Marketing for Octagon, a prominent sports and entertainment agency. I want to get into sports marketing and an internship at ProVentures in Virginia is my goal for next year.