Featured Article on the PGA Program - Methodist University

More documents

Recommendations

Info

Methodist University’s PGAby Roxana Rossand its Links to National ProminenceJerry Hogge is wielding a yellow highlighter and mutteringnames of past and current students as he goes through a list ofgolf courses. He’s looking at the top 100 classic courses in thecountry according to “Golf Week” magazine, and the markersqueaks through another line every second as he methodicallymarks most of the courses on the first page. As he moves on tothe next page, only 12 are unmarked.After he’s finished, 64 yellow lines show where MU studentshave a current or past professional presence in the mostestablished golf clubs, resorts, and public courses in thecountry. A few pages over, he adds 32 more courses to the tally,counting from the magazine’s list of top 100 courses that werebuilt since 1960. Then he goes back to the top of the list andbegins making checks, starting at No. 1, Pine Valley Golf Club.“We’ve got the head pro at a few of these” he says, explainingthe check.Part way through the process, Sharon Kerr, the program’sadministrative assistant, comes in to help. It seems like theyremember everyone. They use verbal shorthand, as peoplewho have worked together for a long time, flashing througha shared mental scrapbook of the names and career paths offormer students. First names, last names, that time a student’sparent died, how another went on to open their own business,times an alumnus referred a student to the program – all sortsof tidbits are passed back and forth as they make sure theyhaven’t forgotten any person or place.48Engage. Enrich. Empower.
COVER STORYSince the first classes started in 1986, there have been morethan 1,000 alumni from the program, and Hogge probably doesremember all of them, as he promises each group of freshmenthat he will if they make it through the program. He says thateffort to remember and stay in touch with alumni is one of themain reasons the program has found such continued success.Along with those alumni, the program is beginning to come intoa new phase as those first graduates, now in their early 40s, findthemselves in positions where they can significantly give back tothe program in various ways.“They are making inroads in the profession,” Hogge said. “Wesee alumni recommending students to us that they see at theirfacilities. We’re starting to achieve this type of recognition.”“These individuals have done the work,” he modestly adds,“but it reflects back on the University. I would hope that we gavethem a good foundation. So many of them have been successfulin different areas. We have owner/operators, lawyers, CPAs,people in insurance, and at companies like Titleist and Footjoy.”Looking at the network of alumni and internships that theprogram has built, Hogge can only describe it as “amazing.”Internships have been a component of the program since dayone, and every summer since 1988 the staff has visited as manyof the internship sites as possible, visiting with professionalsall over America and “spreading the gospel” of the MU PGMProgram. In large part because of the internship component, theprogram boasts a 100 percent job placement rate for graduateswho want to go into the golf industry.“When you look at the footprint of MU’s PGA GolfManagement Program in America, it really covers from theright coast to the left coast and all points in between,” Hoggesaid. “Our footprint as a signature program of the University hasbrought national recognition to a very small school in NorthCarolina. Because of that, it’s becoming easier, even in thiseconomy, to network with where we’ve been and where we’retrying to go.”JourneyThe Methodist hUniversity49
Page 1: Spring 2013Methodist University’s
Page 5 and 6: COVER STORYDrew KingJourneyThe Meth
Page 7 and 8: COVER STORYGolf Range Association o
Page 9 and 10: COVER STORYStudents in MethodistUni
Page 12 and 13: Eric LedbetterThat decision has bee
Page 14 and 15: PGA Golf Management AlumniA HEAD OF
Page 16 and 17: PGA Golf Management AlumniTEE PARTY

Featured Article on the PGA Program - Methodist University

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?