Over the summer, three students majoring in Sport Management at Rice University had the opportunity to intern with the Houston Dynamo. Danielle "Dani" Spriggs ’16, Chris Kim ’14, and Adam Gustavsson ’16 held positions in the communications, stadium operations, and sales departments for the Major League Soccer team.
Spriggs, who is also pursuing a minor in Business, served as a communications intern for the Dynamo. She was responsible for writing press releases and updating player bios, along with contributing to the team yearbook produced each season. In addition, Spriggs helped with press box operations during games.
“I want to pursue a career in public relations for a sports team,” Spriggs said. “Interning with the Dynamo helped me get my foot in the door and gain experience in the field.”
As a stadium operations intern, Kim played many roles to ensure that game days went smoothly. His duties ranged from managing equipment storage to designing accreditation and parking for staff and volunteers.
“I was responsible for pre-game events and set-up requirements,” Kim said. “However, the most memorable part was after the 4th of July game against the New York Red Bulls when Thierry Henry was kind enough to greet the interns in the locker room.”
Kim is also pursuing a degree in Managerial Studies and ultimately wants to be a Sport Marketing professor.
While with the Dynamo, Gustavsson held the title of Inside Sales Account Executive Intern. He was responsible for creating and maintaining good relationships with customers. Gustavsson accomplished this by selling tickets, phoning customers to inform them of upcoming deals, and carrying out promotions during games.
“This experience showed me that I want to be involved in sales,” Gustavsson said. “I like the close communication with customers and I have a competitive nature, so I like how you have to work hard to get paid more with commissions.”
Although each student had a different experience with the Dynamo, they are all taking away an increased desire to pursue careers in their respective fields.
LaShay Fontenot is a junior majoring in Statistics and Sport Management with a minor in Financial Computing and Modeling.