By Craig Morgan, thesundevils.com Writer
When Ray Anderson took his post in 2014, ASU president Michael Crow bestowed an additional title on his new Vice President for University Athletics.
"Dr. Crow insisted that he appoint me as a professor of practice at the law school given the fact that I'm a lawyer and have been a lot of places where I used my legal skills," Anderson said. "One of his philosophies is that all the deans and all the vice presidents and including the president himself be teachers, educators, so there is a requirement culturally to get in the classroom whenever you can to actually teach and touch our student-athletes in the learning environment."
In his first three seasons at the helm of Sun Devil Athletics, Anderson sat on panels, served as a guest lecturer or occasionally helped put together programs. This year, he took it to another level, co-teaching a course on negotiations with Stephanie Jarvis at the Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law. In doing so, he became the only athletic director in the Pac-12 (we checked) who also teaches a class.
"It takes some time, to be sure, but it is something we believe is necessary and important and I am 100 percent behind it because I really enjoy it," Anderson said. "The youthful energy you get to interact with challenges you as the professor in class and really forces you to be on your game. I look forward to it more than I would have ever thought."
So did his students, many of whom were student-athletes earning their master's degrees.
"It was incredibly valuable," swimmer Reid Elliott said. "Obviously our professors are very successful people as well. They tell us about scenarios that could happen and they prepare us for what we'd need to know in those situations, but whenever we have someone like Ray, he's able to share legitimate, real-life situations that he's been in. He worked with a lot of great athletes and he worked in the NFL so sometimes, the class might have even heard about the case he was talking about so we're like, 'wow, Ray was actually behind that!' It really brings it to life and you really get an understanding of how he was able to get through those situations."
That unique interaction with their athletic director might seem foreign at other schools, but it has become the norm at ASU. Elliott has vivid memories of swimming his events, climbing out of the pool and finding Anderson there to high-five him and tell him he did a "good job." Former tennis player Alex Osborne said the Andersons (Ray and Buffie) were fixtures at her matches.
"I've talked to my friends at other schools and they have no idea who their athletic director is. I tell them I know my athletic director and his wife very well," Osborne said, laughing. "It surprises so many people. We're fortunate here at Arizona State to have that kind of culture that Ray has created since he came."
In the classroom, Anderson drew on a wealth of experiences from his time as an attorney, an agent and an executive with the NFL.
"Preparation is your best ally and always will be so we would talk about specific negotiations and provide insight into how some of those went, like the Herm Edwards negotiations and the Bobby Hurley negotiations, how those came about, what were the challenges and positives that came out of them," he said. "We talked about our negotiations with Adidas when I first came in here and how we came to Adidas when we had been with Nike for so long and had Nike, Adidas and Under Armour vying for our business. My view has always been this: real life experiences and story-telling to teach from those real-life experiences are the most effective methods."
Osborne is currently on the pro tennis circuit but hopes to parlay her master's degree into a career in player representation on the marketing side. She echoed Elliott's thought on the value of having Anderson's real-world experience in the classroom, but she said the impact he has had on her extends well beyond that course.
"He has honestly changed my life by being able to give me so much direction with what I want to do in my future, by meeting and talking with me," she said. "He's very personable. You can just go up and talk to him and he'll always chat with you. He loves to share his wisdom among the student-athletes."
Elliott said he also appreciates Anderson's commitment to the Olympic sports.
"I don't think a lot of other athletic departments can say the same," Elliott said. "It's always about football, men's and women's basketball and baseball, but Ray is in touch with every single sport, cares about every single sport. It's pretty crazy to see somebody so involved. I know our athletes, we all appreciate that so much. It's good to know your athletic department will back you up so much."
Anderson said he knows other athletic directors who teach classes, including Jack Swarbrick at Notre Dame, Kevin White at Duke and Bubba Cunningham at North Carolina. He recommends it to his fellow Pac-12 ADs.
"It's not just important for the student-athletes, it's also important for our academic peers on campus to know that the academic part of the experience is important to our student-athletes, it's important to us and we want to be able to relate to their challenges and their goals as teachers," he said. "For the AD also to be in the classroom as an educator, as a teacher, I think is a strategic move and a good message and signal that I appreciate and acknowledge the quality and necessity of the work they do."
When Ray Anderson took his post in 2014, ASU president Michael Crow bestowed an additional title on his new Vice President for University Athletics.
"Dr. Crow insisted that he appoint me as a professor of practice at the law school given the fact that I'm a lawyer and have been a lot of places where I used my legal skills," Anderson said. "One of his philosophies is that all the deans and all the vice presidents and including the president himself be teachers, educators, so there is a requirement culturally to get in the classroom whenever you can to actually teach and touch our student-athletes in the learning environment."
In his first three seasons at the helm of Sun Devil Athletics, Anderson sat on panels, served as a guest lecturer or occasionally helped put together programs. This year, he took it to another level, co-teaching a course on negotiations with Stephanie Jarvis at the Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law. In doing so, he became the only athletic director in the Pac-12 (we checked) who also teaches a class.
"It takes some time, to be sure, but it is something we believe is necessary and important and I am 100 percent behind it because I really enjoy it," Anderson said. "The youthful energy you get to interact with challenges you as the professor in class and really forces you to be on your game. I look forward to it more than I would have ever thought."
So did his students, many of whom were student-athletes earning their master's degrees.
"It was incredibly valuable," swimmer Reid Elliott said. "Obviously our professors are very successful people as well. They tell us about scenarios that could happen and they prepare us for what we'd need to know in those situations, but whenever we have someone like Ray, he's able to share legitimate, real-life situations that he's been in. He worked with a lot of great athletes and he worked in the NFL so sometimes, the class might have even heard about the case he was talking about so we're like, 'wow, Ray was actually behind that!' It really brings it to life and you really get an understanding of how he was able to get through those situations."
That unique interaction with their athletic director might seem foreign at other schools, but it has become the norm at ASU. Elliott has vivid memories of swimming his events, climbing out of the pool and finding Anderson there to high-five him and tell him he did a "good job." Former tennis player Alex Osborne said the Andersons (Ray and Buffie) were fixtures at her matches.
"I've talked to my friends at other schools and they have no idea who their athletic director is. I tell them I know my athletic director and his wife very well," Osborne said, laughing. "It surprises so many people. We're fortunate here at Arizona State to have that kind of culture that Ray has created since he came."
In the classroom, Anderson drew on a wealth of experiences from his time as an attorney, an agent and an executive with the NFL.
"Preparation is your best ally and always will be so we would talk about specific negotiations and provide insight into how some of those went, like the Herm Edwards negotiations and the Bobby Hurley negotiations, how those came about, what were the challenges and positives that came out of them," he said. "We talked about our negotiations with Adidas when I first came in here and how we came to Adidas when we had been with Nike for so long and had Nike, Adidas and Under Armour vying for our business. My view has always been this: real life experiences and story-telling to teach from those real-life experiences are the most effective methods."
Osborne is currently on the pro tennis circuit but hopes to parlay her master's degree into a career in player representation on the marketing side. She echoed Elliott's thought on the value of having Anderson's real-world experience in the classroom, but she said the impact he has had on her extends well beyond that course.
"He has honestly changed my life by being able to give me so much direction with what I want to do in my future, by meeting and talking with me," she said. "He's very personable. You can just go up and talk to him and he'll always chat with you. He loves to share his wisdom among the student-athletes."
Elliott said he also appreciates Anderson's commitment to the Olympic sports.
"I don't think a lot of other athletic departments can say the same," Elliott said. "It's always about football, men's and women's basketball and baseball, but Ray is in touch with every single sport, cares about every single sport. It's pretty crazy to see somebody so involved. I know our athletes, we all appreciate that so much. It's good to know your athletic department will back you up so much."
Anderson said he knows other athletic directors who teach classes, including Jack Swarbrick at Notre Dame, Kevin White at Duke and Bubba Cunningham at North Carolina. He recommends it to his fellow Pac-12 ADs.
"It's not just important for the student-athletes, it's also important for our academic peers on campus to know that the academic part of the experience is important to our student-athletes, it's important to us and we want to be able to relate to their challenges and their goals as teachers," he said. "For the AD also to be in the classroom as an educator, as a teacher, I think is a strategic move and a good message and signal that I appreciate and acknowledge the quality and necessity of the work they do."
