Latest News

As a high school junior, Howard Ticker combined his passion for sports with an interest in business to guide his college selection process. Growing up, he had followed Mountaineer football, paying special attention to the Pat White Era, (former WVU quarterback who played all four seasons, 2005-2008, with the Mountaineers, becoming the first QB to finish 4-0 in bowl games, including two BCS wins in the 2006 Sugar and 2008 Fiesta Bowls).

Meanwhile, he liked the proximity from his home in Maryland to Morgantown. It was then that Ticker decided to attend West Virginia University to study sport management.

From learning in the class room to applying knowledge on the field, the WVU athletic coaching education program helps undergraduates acquire skills to compete in the coaching profession.

David Ferraro, assistant coach with the Wesley men’s lacrosse program, Dover, Delaware, says his athletic coaching degree from the College of Physical Activity and Sport Sciences helped him prepare for this position.

West Virginia University is home to about 28,000 students from all over the world. After earning undergraduate to graduate level degrees, WVU Mountaineers show their pride from around the globe. 

Julio Nakasato is one international student who is proud to be a Mountaineer, approximately 2,100 miles away in Panama. After earning his sport management master's degree (2016), Nakasato worked for Under Armour as a marketing manager in Peru and will now head to Panama as Under Armour’s Latin American brand marketing running manager.

Mt. Vernon, NY native Jared Bartee has found a new home in Washington state, working for the Seattle Mariners in client sales and service associates. The College of Physical Activity and Sport Sciences 2017 graduate earned two minors in business administration and communications to go along with his sports management major.

"With CPASS I was able to study in a great sport management program that is one of the top programs in the country. All while at a top D1 sports school, whose connections with the local minor league team helped me secure my first internship working in sports.," Bartee said.

Karin Torchia grew up as an army brat, moving every one to two years through junior high school. As she settled into new towns, she found that the best way to make friends was through sports.

"I was a tomboy; I loved playing every sport that I could. It was fun for me and it was something that I could do anywhere we lived," said Torchia.

A new city holds new adventures, which may be intimidating to most people but for West Virginia native Alyssa Johnston, it represented her career vision.

Johnston (SM 2018) took a chance and moved to Charlotte, North Carolina where she landed a job with NBA Charlotte Hornets.

Since the 1970s the child obesity rate in the U.S. has nearly tripled, according to the Centers for Disease Control. As the rates climb, the importance of physical education for children becomes more and more critical.

As a teacher, Shannon Nash, physical education teacher education (BS 2009), realizes the need for leaving a lasting impression for a healthy and active lifestyle for every student.  

It’s been eight years since Joe Mazzulla helped lead the West Virginia University Mountaineers to the NCAA Final Four, and now he’s returning to the basketball court. Except this time, he is on the sideline as head coach for the Fairmont State Fighting Falcons men’s basketball team.

Mazzulla, from Johnston R.I, spent four years playing for Coach Bob Huggins, 2007-2010. During his time at WVU, he recounts one of his favorite memories with the team.

Maryland native Erik Schwarz says his internship experiences as a West Virginia University sport management student convinced him to take the Division I Athletics path.

“I was a student football equipment manager for five years. During my last year of school, I did an internship with the football administrator. Working with the Mountaineer football team from 1988-1992 was unbelievable experience,” Schwarz explained.  

The National Athletic Trainers' Association has announced that West Virginia native Marisa Brunett will serve as its new vice president as of this summer.

Brunett has served on the NATA board since 2016. She says her new responsibilities as vice president is an honor.  

In early 2014, Mark E. Mitchell, a Pocahontas County native and 1979 graduate of the WVU School of Business and Economics, called his daughter Anne to pitch an idea. He wanted to start a trout lodge business out of his childhood home along the banks of Knapps Creek. And he wanted Anne, a 2012 CPASS graduate, and her partner Mark Hengemihle, also a WVU alum, to run it. 

Four years later, Anne and Mark H., both seasoned outdoor recreation professionals, have established Knapps Creek Trout Lodge within a unique, niche market in the West Virginia and outdoor recreation industry, reporting 30 percent growth in bookings, and developing special programs to support veterans and the local community. “It’s difficult, but fulfilling,” Anne says. “It’s a good feeling to try to add to the West Virginia economy. The scenic landscape that supports fishing is one of our greatest assets.”

What better way to introduce children to science, technology, engineering and math than through sports and exercise? During this summer’s WVU National Youth Sports Program, the Mountaineer Area RoboticS team, (MARS) stopped by to share their passion about competitive robotics and mental skills. 

Eleven MARS volunteers visited NYSP to promote interest in STEM education. They incorporated their knowledge about robotics in NYSP activities, engaging the campers through active learning. 

Even though Kyle Wilson is one of the most well-known athletic trainers in the country, his initial journey into the industry was not smooth sailing. 

Wilson, BS ’82, Secondary Education with an emphasis in athletic training, WVU, M.A.Ed ’84, minor in psychology, Nicholls State (Louisiana), received his share of rejection letters.

Minor League Baseball prioritizes the ballpark experience.

Enhancing the ballpark experience is in WVU graduate Vince Marcucci’s job description. Marcucci serves as director of corporate and community affairs for the New York Yankees’ Double-A affiliate, the Trenton Thunder.

For Melinda Grant, everything she does is a labor of love.

Grant, who graduated from WVU CPASS twice, first with a B.S. in Physical Education Teacher Education in 1976 and then a master’s in PETE in 1978, found that one way she could give back to CPASS was to donate her time and effort.