Watson Events

Presented by the Watson Institute for International Studies, Brown Sports Business, Career Development Center, Swearer Center for Public Service, and the Brown University Sports Foundation with:

Ross Greenburg '77, President, HBO Sports
Ross Greenburg was named president, HBO Sports in September 2000.  He is also an executive vice president of the company.  Greenburg was appointed senior vice president and executive producer, HBO Sports in October 1994, after serving as vice president and executive producer, HBO Sports since August l985.  He originally joined HBO Sports in 1978 as an assistant to the producer and within a year was a sports producer at the age of 24.  He is responsible for strategic direction and overseeing all aspects of the HBO Sports franchise, including HBO Pay-Per-View. Long acknowledged as one of sports television’s most innovative executives, Greenburg created in 1995 “Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel,” which has established itself as the leading sports journalism program on television.  

Rick Olczyk '92, Assistant General Manager and Director of Hockey Operations & Legal Affairs, Edmonton Oilers
Rick Olczyk enters his fourth season with the Oilers and third as the team’s Assistant General Manager & Director of Hockey Operations/Legal Affairs. Olczyk was promoted to the new position in August 2008, after serving as the Oilers’ Director of Hockey Administration and Legal Affairs during the 2007-08 season. As a member of the Oilers Hockey Management Team, Olczyk works closely on all hockey-related matters. His responsibilities include player contract negotiations, scouting and player evaluation, scheduling, salary arbitration, and salary cap management. He also is the liaison to the NHL regarding all matters pertaining to the Collective Bargaining Agreement. The younger brother of former NHL forward Eddie Olczyk joined the Oilers in June 2007, from the private sector, where he ran his own legal consulting firm in Chicago for six seasons, representing players and advising families.

Robert Kenneally '90, Associate Athletic Director, Brown University  
Robert Kenneally, a Warwick, Rhode Island native, became Associate Athletic Director for Student-Athlete Services in 2002. As Associate Athletic Director, Kenneally has a myriad of responsibilities within the athletic department. He is the liaison to the Office of Admissions and the Department of Financial Aid. Kenneally also serves as the department eligibility officer for student-athletes. Kenneally is the sport supervisor for 12 varsity sports at Brown, and supervises 7 head coaches as well as overseeing the Sports Information Office and the Marketing Office. He also is the Director of Student-Athlete Academic Support Services and is a University Academic Advisor.  Currently Kenneally has responsibilities within all intercollegiate sports at Brown.  He also serves on various committees both outside and within Brown including; The Dave Zucconi Fellowship Committee, The Derrick Canfield Barker Prize, The ECAC Award of Valor Committee, The ECAC Hockey League Finance Committee and the Brown Alcohol and Other Drug Committee.

Whitney Post '95, Director, Women's Sports Foundation  GoGirlGo! Boston
A former World Champion and four time national team member, Whitney is committed to creating tools and opportunities for girls and women to have positive self image. She holds a B.A. from Brown University and a Master’s Degree in Counseling Psychology from Lesley University. As a consultant, she has provided wellness trainings, workshops, and individual coaching to high school, collegiate and national team athletes, as well as designed and implemented eating disorder treatment programs at Boston hospitals.   She currently serves as the Director of the Women’s Sport’s Foundation’s GoGirlGo! Boston, and brings to the position her dedication to the transformative power of sport.  She presents at national conferences and contributes to national publications on the topic.

Allison Galer '11, President, Brown Sports Business
Allison Galer is the President of the newly founded student club Brown Sports Business, and the marketing consultant for Phoenix Mercury shooting guard Marie Ferdinand-Harris. Allison is a Brown University senior, Pi Sigma Alpha in Political Science and writing a senior honors thesis on the antitrust exemptions of the NBA and MLB. She played for the Brown varsity women's basketball team for one year. A native of Beverly Hills, California, Allison began interning in sports business as a senior in high school, working in basketball operations for the WNBA's Los Angeles Sparks. Subsequently, she interned in the Sparks marketing department, in television production for Fox Sports Net, and as an assistant to a sports agent at Lagardere Unlimited. Allison is currently focused on building Brown Sports Business through the creation of a connection between Brown alumni in sports business and undergraduates interested in pursuing a future in sports business. 

Moderator-
Eli Wolff, '00, Sport and Development Project, Brown University 
Eli coordinates the Sport and Development Project, a collaboration with Brown University's Watson Institute for International Studies and Swearer Center for Public Service. From 2001 to 2010, Eli was the manager of research and advocacy at the Center for Sport in Society at Northeastern University. He organizes the International Sport for Development and Peace Association, a professional network dedicated to advancing and connecting research, policy, and practice in the field of sport and social change. From 2004 to 2006, Eli led a global effort to include provisions addressing sport and recreation within the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Eli was a member of the United States Paralympic Soccer Team in the 1996 and 2004 Paralympic Games.