A group of 19 business and communications students will run and host Penn State’s first-ever sports business conference on March 15 and 16. The event will feature speakers, industry professionals, and Penn State alumni from the New York Jets, the College Football Playoff, Major League Baseball, and more.

Seniors Alex Sheinman and Jon Marcus came up with the idea for the conference to put Penn State on the map for sports business.

“Getting a job in sports really comes down to networking and an event like this will put Penn State students in a great position to make relationships with successful people working in sports,” said Sheinman, who’s now the president of the Sports Business Conference. “This conference will provide a unique, intimate opportunity for students to network and learn from the best of the best in the sports industry.”

The conference will kickoff on Thursday, March 15 with a networking event in a private room in Beaver Stadium. Conference events, including a keynote speech, professional panels, and interest group discussions, will run from 9:15 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the Katz Law Building the following day.

Here’s a sampling of the types of speakers you can expect at the event:

• Alisa Petercuskie, Premium Partnerships Account Executive for the New York Jets
• Jessica Holtz Steinberg, Marketing Agent for Creative Artists Agency
• Laila Brock, Senior Director of Operations and Logistics for the College Football Playoff
• Matthew Driver, CEO of the American Soccer League
• Mike Neligan, Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Excel Sports Management
• Paul St. John, Sports Marketing Development Leader for Deloitte
• Neil Duffy, Vice President of Business Development and College Network for World Gaming
• Scott Shirley, Co-founder and CEO of Pledge It
• Joann Esposito, Sports Properties Manager for The Madison Square Garden Company
• Wayne Kimmel, Managing Partner at SeventySix Capital
• Matthew Schroll, Director of Inside Sales for the Philadelphia Union

“Having a the first Penn State Sports Business Conference will really put Penn State on the map for all the successful alumni working different jobs in the industry,” Sheinman said. “You’d be surprised how many people go to Penn State and then have awesome jobs working for a team, league, or agency within the sports field.”

Early bird tickets for students are now on sale for $15 and will be available for a few weeks at the organization’s table in the HUB. You can also e-mail [email protected] if you’re interested in purchasing tickets.