FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Clark Teuscher, Sports Information Director, 630-637-5302

Mar. 1, 2011 - North Central College student-athletes Kyle Haste and Brianna Tolliver have been selected to attend the NCAA's Sports and Entertainment Summit, to be held Mar. 4-6 at the Millennium Biltmore Hotel in downtown Los Angeles.

Haste, a senior business major on the football team, and Tolliver, a junior broadcast communication major on the women's track and field team, will be among approximately 100 invited student-athletes who are pursuing academic degrees releated to careers in media, marketing, television, film and music. The student-athletes will participate in the educational forum and a community service project during the weekend.

The Sports and Entertainment Summit was created to provide student-athletes with an educational experience that helps them gain a better understanding of the different careers in the sports and entertainment industry and what they need to do as students to position themselves for the future if they plan to enter sports and entertainment fields. The students will have opportunities to communicate with and ask questions of individuals who are currently working in a variety of fields related to sports and entertainment. The summit will also help the student-athletes gain better insight with regard to day-to-day work experiences and expectations following graduation.

The summit will include speakers from television networks, print media, academia, professional sports, the music and film industries, and general business. Session topics will include the evolution of social media, steps to gaining success in the sports and entertainment industry, understanding the cinematic arts, and interactive panel sessions.

In addition to the educational experience, the student-athletes will conduct a 'Build a Bicycle' community service project on Saturday, Mar. 5, during which they will build 20 bicycles with the help of 100 local youth who participate in programs at the EXPO Center in Los Angeles. The EXPO Center is affiliated with the City of Los Angeles Department of Recreation and Parks. Once completed, the bicycles will be provided to the EXPO Center to be given to underpriveliged youth.

The event, administered by the Student-Athlete Affairs unit of the NCAA, is an extension of the NCAA's Career in Sports Forum, which seeks to educate student-athletes about potential employment opportunities in athletics-related professions.