Arizona Coyotes and DREAM Foundation work to add more diversity in sports
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Posted By: S. Moore on April 12, 2023 During a bleak time, a bright idea blossomed from Position Sports. Sparked by the shutdown of sporting events and social justice movements during the pandemic, the Phoenix-based agency wanted to make an impact. Eventually, the agency merged sports with inclusion when it created the DREAM Foundation to give opportunities to students in Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) in 2020. From there, Mark Clifford, an Air Force veteran and former professor at Grand Canyon University, joined as the executive director in 2021 and helped the program flourish. “He’s making a genuine relationship with us. This is not just a connection for him. He definitely is taking the time to talk with us and know us as people,” DREAM Foundation cohort Miles C. Borom said. Since Clifford took over the program, it went from having 30 to 40 applicants to 120 applicants across 35 different HBCUs. As the program grew, Clifford reached out to Coyotes President and CEO Xavier A. Gutierrez last season after the two had become familiar with each other through various events at GCU. The Coyotes swiftly jumped on board and are now in the second season of the partnership. “I think it’s important as much for us as for them to really have these discussions and have this effort be so central for what we stand for as the Arizona Coyotes,” Gutierrez said. The students have worked in several roles over two games, including hockey operations, corporate activations, production, digital marketing, and broadcasting. The Coyotes also held several panels with different members of the organization, including Gutierrez. “If you look at a league such as the NHL, on the surface it looks not as diverse,” Clifford said. “When you have teams, organizations, owners, presidents, and individuals within the teams that recognize that there’s value that comes with diversity and people with different thoughts, values, and ideas to help elevate and strengthen an organization, it’s really important to have those voices in and around a team to hear some of that.” In the NHL’s first diversity and inclusion report released last October, the NHL’s workforce was found to be 83.6 percent white, 4.17 percent Asian and 3.74 percent Black. Fewer than 2.5 percent of employees surveyed did not answer. For most of the students involved in the games, it was their first NHL experience. “It’s a sport that not a lot of people think about when you think about individuals of color. We’re not really at games like this,” Daikerra Sweat said. “I think when you give HBCU students part of the DREAM Program the opportunity to say, hey, look, this is hockey, you’ve never thought about it before, but we can bring this back to our communities and express that this is something you should all be interested in.” The Coyotes have sought opportunities for underrepresented groups and have a staff that reflects diversity. Gutierrez became the league's first Latino president and CEO in June 2020. The Coyotes also have put on a coaching internship program over the last two seasons that brings in coaches from diverse backgrounds to learn from and work with the coaching staff. “It really is an embodiment of what we want to do to bring diverse voices into the NHL and giving them exposure and putting them in the room. And now, they’re building those relationships, they’re building that experience. That’s what I think is the most important part. The talent needs an opportunity to be in the room.” What once was a way to fill a need in the sports industry has transformed into a life-changing experience for HBCU students around the country. “Because of where we come from, it’s not every day that you will see someone that wants to do the same thing as you that is right in the same room as you,” Borom said. “It’s a blessing to meet other people that look like me and think like me too. The whole program is a blessing.” Participants Jaylen Segers, North Carolina Central Daikerra Sweat, Fisk University Alexis Easton, Southern University and A&M College Miles Borom, Talladega College Heaven Wiley, North Carolina A&T Mubarak Maalik, Hampton University Carl Baylor Baylor, Virginia State Jordan Jones, Morgan State Leah Dawson, Howard University SOURCE AZ Central News If you enjoyed this article, Join HBCU CONNECT today for similar content and opportunities via email! |
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