Faculty
The Faculty is composed of seasoned practitioners in the Sport Management field. Our location, and the high quality and relevance of our programs, gives us access to top faculty resources. They are eager to share their knowledge and experience with the next generation of sports industry leaders.
Jennifer Alpert
MSBM 5004 – Sport Marketing
With over eleven years of experience in sports marketing promotions and events management, Ms. Alpert current directs all business aspects and data-to-day operations as President of the Wildfire franchise. Her professional career in sports began with the New York Knicks, where she reported directly to the President and oversaw summer youth basketball programs in New York and Connecticut. She later founded Pro Management Plus, a company that specializes in event management, marketing and promotions for professional athletes and nonprofit organizations in the New York Tri-State area.
Ms. Alpert earned a BA degree from Providence College and an MA in Physical Education and Sports Management from Adelphi University. Since 2001, she has been an adjunct professor at the New York University School of Continuing Education where she teaches event marketing. She has also been involved in fund development and volunteer management for over fourteen years for not-for-profit agencies.
Art Berke
MSBM 5017 – Sport Communications
Mr. Berke is the Chief Operating Officer of the Yogi Berra Museum and Learning Center. Prior to joining the Center in 2007, he was Vice President of Communications for the Sports Illustrated franchise. In addition to his communications duties, he was the Senior Production Executive for three SI-branded network primetime specials--20th Century Sports Awards (CBS), Sportsman of the Year 2000 (CBS) and Night of Champions (NBC)--as well as Sports Illustrated’s Sportsman of the Year Show 2002 (Fox), an afternoon telecast.
Prior to joining SI, Mr. Berke served as Director of Sports and Prime Time Sales Development for the ABC Television Network; was the primary publicist for such ABC Sports series as “Wide World of Sports,” “Monday Night Football,” and Howard Cosell’s “SportsBeat”; and was Associate Director of Information in the office of Baseball Commissioner Bowie Kuhn, where he was also the editor of the Official World Series Program in 1978 and 1979. He has authored five books on sports and was the editor-in-chief of an award-winning sports encyclopedia for children.
Mr. Berke is a graduate of Indiana University and is on the Senior Advisory Board of the Sports and Entertainment Academy within the University’s Kelley School of Business MBA Program. Besides Manhattanville, his teaching experience includes being an adjunct professor for Sports Public Relations at New York University.
Marc Edelman, Esq.
MSBM 5003 – Economic and Financial Aspects of Sport Management
MSBM 5005 – Legal and Ethical Considerations in Sports
Marc Edelman graduated from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia with a BS in Economics (magna cum laude). He went on to complete an MA in Sport Management degree from the School of Kinesiology at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. In 2003, he was awarded a J.D. (cum laude) as John M. Olin Fellow in Law and Economics from the University of Michigan Law School.
Besides teaching at Manhattanville, Mr. Edelman has been an adjunct professor, teaching sports law and business ethics at Seton Hall University in South Orange, New Jersey. Baruch College at the City University of New York, and Metropolitan College of New York.
Mr. Edelman is currently an associate in the Sports & Entertainment Practice Group Dewey Ballantine LLP in New York City. Previously, he was an associate in the Antitrust Practice Group of Skannen, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP in New York City, a Summer Associate for the Major Indoor Soccer League in Westport, Connecticut, and Project Manager for The New England Consulting Group, also in Westport.
Vince Gennaro
MSBM – Business of Baseball
Mr. Gennaro is a consultant to several Major League Baseball teams and the author of Diamond Dollars: The Economics of Winning in Baseball. In his thirty-year business career, he served as CEO of a public company, President of a billion-dollar division of PepsiCo, and owner of a women’s pro basketball team. His innovative analytical work on the business of baseball has been featured in The Sporting News, The New York Times, and he has written for The Hardball Times, Yahoo Sports, Boston Baseball, Maple Street Press Red Sox Annual 2006 and 2007, and Bombers Broadside 2007.
Mr. Gennaro earned his MBA from the University of Chicago.
Mark J. Jeffers
MSBM 5004 – Sport Marketing
Mr. Jeffers is currently Vice President, Sports Marketing, for MARSAR Consulting. Previously, he held senior management positions at Giles Communications, Ascent Media Group, Viacom Video Services (part of CBS, Inc.), ORAD, and NBC. His professional activities include being local host and produce of the Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon, a columnist for Sport & Technology, and co-hose of the weekly radio program, “The Clubhouse.”
Mr. Jeffers earned an MS degree in Communication Arts at the College of New Rochelle, and a BS/BA in Television-Radio/Sociology from Syracuse University. Besides teaching at Manhattanville, Mr. Jeffers has been an adjunct professor in the graduate programs in Communication Arts at Iona College and the College of New Rochelle.
Heather Kerner
MSBM 5010 – Research Methods
Ms. Kerner is Group Director of Research for Octagon, working with such clients as Coca-Cola, IBM, NCAA, Madison Square Garden and MLB. She previously was a moderator with the Qualitative Research Division of TNS, the second largest global market intelligence company.
Ms. Kerner has a BA in International Business from Lehigh University and has been professionally trained in qualitative research at the RIVA Training Institute for moderator training.
Patrick Lyons
MSBM 5006 – Leading Sport Organizations
Mr. Lyons is currently the Athletic Director at Iona College. a position he has held since 2004. As an undergraduate, Mr. Lyons was a two-sport standout at Iona and received Joseph O’Connell Award in his senior year as Iona’s outstanding student-athlete. In 1999, he earned his master’s degree in teaching from Iona, and in 2004, he completed the MBA program at the Iona’s Hagan School of Business.
Besides teaching at Manhattanville, Mr. Lyons has also serve as an adjunct professor in the Biology Department at Iona. He is chair of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference and also serves on the football committee of the Conference. He is a member of the NCAA’s men’s water polo committee as well as of the Executive Committee of the Division 1 Football Championship Subdivision.
Walter Recher
MSBM 5001 – Dynamics of the Sport Business World
MSBM 5002 – Managing Sport Businesses Strategically
MSBM 5011 – Sport Business and Technology
MSBM 5015 – Entrepreneurship
Mr. Recher is managing partner of Diamond Sports Business Education Group. His long and successful career in professional services, new business development and education has included management positions with SmallBall Marketing, University of Phoenix, In-Touch Media, On-Ramp Associates, MCI, Cablevision, and Izod LaCoste. Mr. Recher has been a marketing and strategic management consultant for corporations, entrepreneurial businesses, education institutions, business organizations and not for profits. Mr. Recher earned his bachelors degree in Psychology from Oswego State University, and earned an MBA Fordham University.
Martin J. Rotberg
MSBM 5002 – Managing Sport Businesses Strategically
Mr. Rothberg received his BS degree in Business Administration with a concentration in Marketing and Advertising, from Northeastern University. He later earned an MBA from Boston College.
Besides teaching at Manhattanville, Mr. Rotberg is also an adjunct professor in Sports Management for New York University.
His business experience includes sales and marketing with the Alliances Group at Velocity Sports and Entertainment, Sponsorship Sales and Marketing for the PBS Sponsorship Group/WNET, and Promotion Services at Bristol Myers Squibb. In sports organizations, he has held executive positions with World Championship Tennis, the North American Soccer League, and the Tampa Bay Rowdies.
William G. Stopper
MSBM 5023 – Leading Change
William Stopper is a consultant and former HR executive at IBM. Besides teaching in the MS programs in International Management and Human Resources, he is an academic advisor on thesis projects and coordinator for accreditation of the School’s business programs. He earned his B.A. degree in English from St. Mary’s College of California and holds an MBA degree from the University of Connecticut.
John M. Vorperian, Esq.
MSBM 5001 – Dynamics of the Sport Business World
John Vorperian is currently Assistant County Attorney for Westchester County, New York. In earlier positions for the County, he was Housing Coordinator and Civil Service Technician. He was also Athletics Marketing Director for Concordia College in Bronxville New York from 1997 to 2002. Besides teaching at Manhattanville, Mr. Vorperian is an adjunct professor in Sports Law at Concordia College.
Mr. Vorperian earned a BS degree from American University in Washington, D.C., and Master of Public Administration degree from Dyson College at Pace University in White Plains, New York, and a JD degree from the School of Law at Pace University in New York City. His educational achievements also include a Certificate in Sports Marketing from New York University in New York City, a Certificate in Management of nonprofits from Pace University
Patricia S. Vreeland
MSBM 5019 - Information Technology Management
Ms. Vreeland has held management positions at Avon Products, Inc. in Rye, New York since 2000 and is currently IT Director, Global Workplace Computing & IT Service Management. Prior to joining Avon she held positions in IT and Finance at Sara Lee Intimate Apparel, Inc.; Asea, Brown Boveri, Inc., and PepsiCo.
She earned her BS degree in Finance from Ithaca College and her MBA from the Lubin Graduate School of Business at Pace University. Her MBA concentrations were Information Systems and Corporate Finance Management.