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Sports, Media and Entertainment Professionals
to headline Business Seminar at ESPN Career
Expo
Shannon Brown, Kim Fields, Darrin Henson and
Theo Ratliff among Panelists Featured During
Ford MEAC-SWAC Challenge Weekend Sept. 1
August 30, 2006
Top professionals and executives from various
aspects of the sports, media and entertainment
industry will participate in The Business of
Sports, Media and Entertainment Seminar during
the ESPN Career Expo on Friday, Sept. 1 at
the Birmingham Jefferson Civic Center (East
Meeting Rooms) from 2-3:30 p.m. CT. The career
seminar will be presented in conjunction with
the career expo hosted by ESPN as part of the
2006 Ford MEAC•SWAC Challenge weekend
of events.
 The interactive panel discussion will focus
on how individuals hoping to start or advance
a career in the aforementioned industries can
leverage their experience, skills and enthusiasm
to meet challenges and take advantage of opportunities
in today's marketplace.
The Business of Sports, Media and Entertainment
Seminar will feature Shannon Brown, first-round
draft pick of the NBA’s Cleveland Cavaliers;
actress Kim Fields; actor and entrepreneur
Darrin Dewitt Henson; ESPN’s Andrew T.
Givens, senior director, partnership marketing,
Mobile ESPN; and Theo Ratliff, Boston Celtics.
The session will be moderated by Roland West,
one-time professional basketball player with
the former Baltimore Bullets and owner of Roland
D. West Diversity Consulting in Cincinnati.
About the Panelists The 25th pick in the 2006
NBA Draft, Shannon Brown will enter his first
year playing professional basketball as a Cleveland
Cavalier. A 6-4 guard from Maywood, Ill., Brown
recorded 1,183 points, 329 rebounds, 188 assists
and 124 steals in three seasons at Michigan
State University. During his collegiate career,
he was named All-Big Ten Second Team (2006),
Big Ten All-Defensive Team (2006), NABC All-District
First Team (2006), USBWA All-District honoree
(2006) and Big Ten All-Freshman (2004) Team.
Multi-faceted actress Kim Fields’ career
spans over 20 years, including two long running
TV series, "The Facts Of Life" and "Living
Single" and numerous starring credits
in commercials, guest-starring roles, theater
productions and TV movies. Fields continues
to receive critical acclaim as an actress in
comedy or drama, on stage or on television.
She has toured with the hit play 'Vagina Monologues'
and in 2003 received extraordinary reviews
in “Pandora's Trunk,” the one-woman
show in which she starred, as well as Neil
Simon's "Barefoot In The Park", which
she also served as Executive Producer. She
has also blossomed into a poet and spoken word
artist performing globally at jazz festivals
and spoken word lounges under the name “Blondielocks.”
Perhaps most noted for his success on the
Showtime series “SOUL FOOD,” Darrin
Henson's talents emerged at age five while
growing up in the birthplace of hip-hop, the
Bronx. After high school, he began choreographing
which led to landing his first job working
with director Lionel Martin. As a choreographer,
Henson has worked with many musical artists
including Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera
and Jennifer Lopez. Henson was nominated for
an MTV Music Award for his work on Jordan Knight's
video "Give it to You," and won the
award for Best Music Video at the 2000 MTV
Music Awards for N'Sync's "Bye, Bye, Bye" video.
Henson has also appeared on stage, film and
several television shows, including Stand Up
Tragedy, The Nutty Professor, Beverly Hills
90210, New York Undercover and NYPD Blue. He
continues to expand his talents as a choreographer,
screenplay writer and businessman and serves
as a judge on the hit dance reality TV show,
Bump & Grind.
Andrew T. Givens joined ESPN in 2006 as senior
director, partnership marketing for ESPN, Mobile
ESPN. Previously, he was strategic marketing
director for the Scripps Network (consisting
of Food Network, DIY, HGTV, Fine Living, Shop
at Home and Great American Country) and has
served as the director of multicultural marketing
for BET Movies, a Starz Encore Channel. In
addition, Givens worked for Home Box Office
where he managed sales and marketing and launched
award-winning series and films, such as Sex
In The City, Sopranos, OZ, Tuskegee Airmen,
Dorothy Dandrich Story and others. For his
efforts, Givens has won several national awards,
including the Beacon Award, the NAACP Image
Award, the NAMIC Excellence Award and several
BET Awards. Givens currently serves as Chairman
of the Board of Trustees for the American Kidney
Fund and has served on several boards, including
Soccer in the Streets, National Association
For Multi-Ethnicity in Communications and Athletes
Against Drugs.
A center and forward for the NBA’s Boston
Celtics, Theo Ratliff was selected by the Detroit
Pistons in the first round (18th pick overall)
of the 1995 NBA Draft. Ratliff has since emerged
as a defensive specialist. He finished fourth
in the league with 2.51 blocked shots per-game
in 2004-05; was voted Eastern Conference starting
center of 2001 All-Star Game (unable to play
due to injury); led the NBA in blocked shots
in 2000-01; named to the 1998-99 NBA All-Defensive
Second Team after leading the 76ers in blocked
shots (2.98 bpg, 3rd in the NBA) and rebounds
(8.1 rpg, 20th). Ratliff finished his career
at Wyoming as the NCAA's second all-time leading
shot blocker behind Georgetown's Alonzo Mourning.
The Business of Sports, Media and Entertainment
Seminar is open to the public free of charge.
It is just one of the events that make up the
Ford MEAC•SWAC Challenge weekend. The
weekend of events will be highlighted by an
exciting football match-up between defending
SWAC Champion Grambling State and MEAC Champion
Hampton University, which will be televised
nationally on ESPN2, September 2 at 11 a.m.
CT.
Ford MEAC·SWAC Challenge In addition
to the game, the following events will take
place during the 2006 Ford MEAC·SWAC
Challenge Labor Day festivities (Aug 31 – Sept.
2): VIP Welcome Reception, ESPN Career Expo,
Ford MEAC•SWAC Challenge Kick-off Luncheon,
High School Career Panel 101 presented by Team
ESPN and Bright House Networks, The Business
of Sports, Media and Entertainment Seminar
and the Ford MEAC·SWAC Step Correct
Step Show Challenge.
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