‘Grads Are Back’ features sports media powerhouse

Photo courtesy: Jefferey Hood Jr

Florida A&M University School of Journalism and Graphic Communication held its annual Grads are Back event. Alums hosted events and shared their wisdom with the students. 

SJGC held a sports panel called “Navigating the Sports Media World” with FAMU graduate Ahmad Kebe, who works as a community impact intern for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as the moderator. 

The panelist featured Ahmon Lott, a social media specialist for the Jacksonville Jaguars; Kareem White, Director of Talent Production for ESPN; Marsha Oliver, senior vice president of community and public engagement for the PGA Tour; Zenna Lewis, Atlanta city commission, Dereyck Moore, senior director of content and digital strategy for Augusta National Golf Club; and Terri Hines, executive vice president of Communications for Fox Sports. 

“I walk into the room like I own the room,” Hines said. “That mindset comes from this institution, right? You are learning from an institution that is going to prepare you for great things. You have to believe that. So get comfortable being uncomfortable.”  

The panel’s purpose was to share the panelists’ stories of their upbringing as undergraduates, how they navigated the sports industry, and inspiring students in attendance. It also aimed to highlight their trials and tribulations and how they overcame them to get to the position they are in now. 

Micheal Trim Jr., a third-year broadcast journalism student at FAMU, spoke about how this panel inspired him to focus on one thing: to perfect his craft. 

“Being able to pick out my personal brand and figure out what I want to do after college,” Trim said. “Talking to Ahmon Lott, he influenced me to start thinking about it. Over these last couple of days, I’m narrowing it down to one or two things that I want to be great at and then figuring out what are going to be those secondary traits.” 

Lewis emphasized highlighting women’s sports and other sports more than just football. He was insinuating that all sports have a story. You just have to find it. 

“Another man’s trash is another person’s treasure,” Lewis said.  “Cover volleyball, cover women’s sports, especially women’s basketball. People notice those things when you take charge of small sports and brand it.” 

Gerald Thomas III, a graduate student at FAMU who also works at the Tallahassee Democrat, touched upon what he took away from this panel and how he will apply it to his profession. 

“So things that I want to apply from this panel is networking and being open to learn new things,” Thomas said. “Granit, I am already in my professional career, but you can never learn too much, so it was good to see people who may have already surpassed the level that I am at in my career.” 

Hannah Kirby, a third-year broadcast journalism student who aspires to be a woman in sports, spoke about how Hines and Oliver motivate her to believe she has a chance to be in those spaces just like them. 

“As a young black woman, being able to see other black women coming from the exact same institution and the same organization that I am and the same chapter is comforting to be able to know that they went so far from this very place,” Kirby said. 

At the end of the panel, Hines discussed taking that leap of faith and being unforgettable so that you can prepare for the next step or potentially end up with your dreams in your hands. 

“Sometimes you have to lean into those spaces that are really uncomfortable,” Hines said. “Because they are going to set you up for the next thing that you can’t see coming, which is going to blow your mind.”