Riverview's Sports Management Class Is Always 'Event-full'

Students can study sports, go on field trips to Heinz Field and organize school spirit events for their school.

It might sound too good to be true, but students in Riverview's Sports and Entertainment Management and Marketing class are experiencing the best of both worlds — learning, while having fun.

Students, mostly in 11th and 12th grade, study how to plan events from the brainstorming stages to execution using real events.

The students are responsible for a number of successful school spirit events over the past two years, including sporting events and pep rallies.

Teacher Patsy Kvortek heads the class and, according to Superintendent Charles Erdeljac, has created a passion among students due to her own enthusiasm.

"Patsy is magic," Erdeljac says.

The class focuses on sports and entertainment, but it is serious business, Kvortek says.

"If you think we're just going to sit around and talk about sports all day, you're in the wrong class," she says.

Students spend the first few months first learning about how to host an event, including the four main components — planning, organization, implementation and control.

The 15- to 17-year-olds are completely responsible for the event and in the process learn what it means to work as a team and meet real-world deadlines.

"I try to take a back seat as much as I can," Kvortek says.

She expects students to look to their individual student managers to solve problems as adults must do daily, she says.

"It's hard work, but it's fun," says senior Amanda Loeffler. "You have to be organized, and you have to be a good leader."

Students are responsible for everything from decorations to advertising, and they receive grades based on their performance and reflection papers that they write following an event.

Most recently, both sports management classes hosted a "Smack Down" event. One class hyped up a girls basketball game, and the other, a wrestling match in a competition to see who could draw the bigger crowd.

In the past, the class has hosted a runway fashion show modeling everything in the student store ad a Midnight Madness event for Riverview's basketball teams to kick off the season.

The class also has embarked on some high-culture field trips, from Heinz Field to PNC Park and the Peterson Event Center.

Oakmont Country Club Manager Tom Wallace hosted students last year and shared his expertise on how the club pulled off the most recent U.S. Open.

The class even had a chance to visit the Benedum Center for a backstage look at how shows are planned and performed

The course began as an idea after Kvortek attended a seminar for business teachers.

She was inspired by feedback from North Allegheny teacher Chris Sesatilli, who talked about how popular the class had become in his school district.

"After hearing his enthusiasm, I decided to look into it," she says.

Kvortek consulted with Bob Kostelnik, an associate professor in the sports management department at Indiana University of Pennsylvania's, who was able to help her get the class going.

"It was a lot of being at the right place at the right time," Kvortek says.

The idea became a reality in the 2009-10 school year and now is in its second year.

"It's different," she says. "You see this on a college level but not a high school level."

The class has achieved near-cult status among students, who have spread their enthusiasm by word of mouth.

It has even inspired students to pursue sports management as a career after school.

Amanda, who was a student in last year's class, now plans to study sports management at California University of Pennsylvania.

"I thought, I'm really good at this, and realized it's what I want to do in college," she says.

Kym Garibay, a sophomore, had a similar reaction.

"I didn't expect to want to study it, but now I'm considering it," she says.