On April 30, the College of Journalism and Mass Communications Learning Community the “Press Box” traveled to Kansas City, Missouri and Kansas. The six students, in addition to Press Box mentor Alex Neill and adviser Alex Fernando, toured the Negro League Baseball Museum, visited the College Basketball Experience and attended a Sporting KC Soccer game.
The Press Box was the first of the University’s learning communities to take a trip outside of the state since 2019.
The purpose of the trip was to get students thinking about opportunities for a career in the sports media industry. They had opportunities to form new connections with sports media professionals and learn about the history of the industry, too.
The Negro League Baseball Museum was the first stop on the trip. The museum highlighted the history of segregated professional baseball and the historical figures who are not as well-known that helped change the game.
The College Basketball Experience in the Power and Light District of Kansas City was an interactive museum and gym space that housed multiple hoops, historical stories of different teams, players and coaches and a favorite among the Press Box students, a broadcast desk.
The trip concluded with a visit to Children’s Mercy Park where Sporting KC hosted the group for a behind the scenes look at the soccer team’s media operations. From the sidelines to the press box, the students saw everything in the stadium.
“This trip helped me solidify that I love what I’m studying and this is the field I want to work in,” freshman sports media and communication major Brody Wilken said.
Students in the Press Box Learning Community have the opportunity to meet other students interested in sports media while gaining insight into the industry and getting hands-on experience in the field.
“I’m looking forward to planning more Press Box trips for the next school year,” Fernando said. “I believe students who join this learning community really have an appreciation for the world of sports media and they feel prepared for the rest of their college experience.”
