#BSPNTX Event - New Jack City: Young, Black Sports Professionals on the Rise

Join Zoom Meeting:

https://us06web.zoom.us/j/82174789394

Meeting ID: 821 7478 9394

Our fresh, yet seasoned panelists will be talking about their journey in sports, highlighting their accomplishments and what work they’ve put in to get where they are today. From getting their foot in the door to making a name for themselves in North Texas, our panelists will give insights on the skills and tools needed to navigate in the sports industry and touch on the hot topics and give little nuggets of wisdom to our next generation of Black sports professionals.

Panelists:

Victor Ribakare

Victor Ribakare is a Sponsorship Activation Manager at the Dallas Mavericks. Ribakare has been a part of the franchise’s sponsorship activation team for nearly four years, first as an intern, then as a coordinator before moving into his manager role just 17 months ago. He came to North Texas to pursue his Master’s degree at Southern Methodist University. During his time in University Park, he worked as an intern in the athletics ticket office and an athletics hospitality ambassador with the Colonnade Group. Ribakare graduated from the Simmons School of Education & Human Development with a Master of Science in Sports Management in 2018, just one year after earning his Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration with a Marketing & Management focus from Regis University in Denver.

Charles Walls is a National Scout for the Cleveland Browns. Walls broke into the NFL in 2013 as an intern in the personnel department with the Green Bay Packers and worked his way up to being a highly regarded regional scout. Charles helped the Packers accumulate talent that produced 66 wins and four playoff appearances in seven seasons before taking an opportunity to join Andrew Berry with the Cleveland Browns as a National Scout in 2020. During Charles’s first season, the Browns shocked the league and finished with an 11-5 record and earned their first playoff win since 1994. Walls has been a resident of North Dallas for the past five years. He is a native of the Hampton Roads area in Virginia and earned two degrees from Old Dominion University –  Bachelor of Science in Sport Management, Marketing & Coaching/Education and Master of Public Administration, Organizational Leadership. Outside of his professional life, Charles has interests in fitness, youth recidivism, mentorship, financial literacy and is a writer.

Moderator:

Cherise Lee is the Corporate Partnership Service Coordinator with the American Airlines Center and serves as the Scholarship Chair for BSPNTX. Prior to joining the AAC, Lee worked in college athletics at Texas Woman’s University as the Marketing and Promotions Coordinator for two seasons and spent two seasons as an intern with the Cotton Bowl Athletic Association, which oversees the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic. A Fort Worth native, Lee received Bachelor of Science in Journalism and Bachelor of Science in Sport Management degrees from the University of Texas at Austin and her Master of Business Administration degree in Marketing Research from the University of Texas at Arlington.