News
By Reilly Cahill
The Ohio State University Sports and Society Institute honored six leaders whose work has expanded opportunities for students, advanced research and shaped the…
By Noah Adkins
Travel teams, private coaching and year-round training are changing the youth sports experience, raising questions about cost, pressure and whether children still…
By Noah Adkins
Ohio State students interested in careers in sports now have a new way to start building connections and professional skills early in college.
The Sports and…
SSI affiliate Dominik Stecuła recently wrote a guest column for The Columbus Dispatch on how Ohio State football can create common ground across political differences.
Stecuła, an Ohio…
by Noah Adkins
To much of the world, Jesse Owens is the four-time Olympic gold medalist who made history in Berlin.
To his grandchildren, he was simply Granddad.
The…
By Reilly Cahill
For Stuart Owens Rankin and Marlene Hemphill Dortch, memories of their grandfather Jesse Owens are not limited to four gold medals or Olympic history.
They…
Students interested in building a career in sports will have a new opportunity to prepare throughout the academic year through the Sports and Society Institute’s Career Readiness Series.
SSI…
The Sports and Society Institute is giving students a new way to explore Ohio State athletics, connect with the sports community and earn prizes along the way.
The new SSI Sports…
Nicole Kraft, director of The Ohio State University Sports and Society Institute, has been named the Summer 2026 Columbus Sports Community Champion by the Greater Columbus Sports Commission.
By Reilly Cahill
Megan Chawansky thought she had her career path figured out.
After earning three All-Big Ten honors and becoming the sixth-leading scorer in Northwestern…
By Noah Adkins
On Aug. 3, 1936, Jesse Owens stood atop the podium in Berlin after winning gold in the 100-meter dash.
Over the next coming days, Owens added three more gold…
The Ohio State University Sports and Society Institute will recognize six leaders whose work has made a lasting impact on sports, research, career development and the next generation of sports…
By Reilly Cahill
Before thousands of Ohio State students crossed the Oval for the first day of classes, the Sports and Society Institute brought together new and returning students…
Nicole Kraft, director of The Ohio State University’s Sports & Society Institute, and veteran sports journalist and Ohio State alumnus Jean-Jacques Taylor have released a new book aimed at helping…
Nicole Kraft, director of Ohio State’s Sports and Society Institute, was quoted in an Aug. 11 The Hill story examining how the WNBA’s growing popularity has placed the league at the…
Two new sports and society research projects using data from the SSI-sponsored National Sports and Society Survey were recently published in the Sociology of Sport Journal.
The…
The Ohio State Sports and Society Institute is seeking nominations for an advanced student communication and reporting team that will support storytelling and communications efforts surrounding…
The Sports and Society Institute is launching a monthly Lunch N Learn series designed to connect students with sports professionals, recent graduates and others working across the sports industry…
The Sports and Society Initiative has been elevated to the Sports and Society Institute under The Ohio State University College of Arts and Sciences, marking a significant new…
Are you a first- or second-year Ohio State student interested in a career in sports but unsure where to start?
The Sports & Society Institute is excited to launch the SSI Foundations…
by Olivia Rinaldi
Breaking into the sports industry is no longer as straightforward as it once seemed.
With internship opportunities shrinking and competition growing,…
By Reilly Cahill
Stadiums provide sports fans with an opportunity to cheer on their favorite teams and connect with others in an engaging atmosphere.
But the impact of…
By Reilly Cahill
In an era of college sports shaped by revenue sharing and Name, Image and Likeness, the role of athletic funding has become increasingly important.
Niraj Shah, co…
Nicole Kraft, a professor of journalism practice and SSI director, has contributed a chapter titled “Teaching Sports Media Ethics” to the new edited volume Teaching…
By Reilly Cahill
With women’s professional leagues expanding and collegiate viewership rising over the past decade, investment in women’s sports is gaining momentum.
SSI on…
For seven years, Sabrina Little tested the limits of human endurance — setting American records and winning world championships in ultrarunning.
Now, the philosopher and author is examining…
By Reilly Cahill
Less than a year ago, Brittani Becher was finishing up her final year of her Ph.D in sport and fitness administration/management at Ohio State.
Now, she is a…
The 2026 OSU Sports Analytics Conference will host a Hackathon in partnership with Sports Info Solutions (SIS) again this year. This year's prompt asks students to determine how the MLB rule…
Pickup basketball and neighborhood kickball are less common now than for generations past, giving way to more organized and formal youth sports intended to help kids get ahead, a new study…
SSI director Nicole Kraft visited the Ohio State University Newark campus Feb. 25 to meet with students interested in journalism and media careers. Kraft spoke about her own path in the sports…
The Ohio State Sports and Society Initiative hosted its third annual Sports Career Readiness Fair Feb. 6 at Ohio Stadium in partnership with the Career Success department in the College of Arts…
With the Career Readiness Fair: “So You Want a Career in Sports” just days away, Zach Howman wants students to treat the event as more than a job fair--he sees it as a low-stakes way to practice…
by Reilley Cahill
Elizabeth Conlisk’s career in sports did not begin in athletics.
After graduating from The Ohio State University, Conlisk worked three jobs and earned a…
By Reilly Cahill
With the 2026 Winter Olympics right around the corner, elite athletic performances will soon captivate audiences around the world.
But understanding what it…
A limited number of SSI Student Research Grants will be awarded to graduate students who commit to conducting sports and society research with an SSI faculty affiliate for one year, beginning in…
Sports and Society Initiative students turned a postseason football trip into a formative professional experience, thanks to the generosity of board member Dru Hancock, whose sponsorship made…
Many children grow up dreaming – or maybe even expecting – that they will become a star in football, basketball or whatever their favorite sport may be.
Most parents have more realistic…
WATCH VIDEO
By Reilly Cahill
Last season, Ohio State captured the first 12-team College Football Playoff, but there was one team that still had…
By Jeff Grabmeier
Many children grow up dreaming – or maybe even expecting – that they will become a star in football, basketball or whatever their favorite sport may be.
By Reilly Cahill
Zach Howman struggled with determining his career path in college.
“I changed my major three times before I found sports and really found something I was…
By Reilly Cahill
Lindy Noel couldn’t imagine working in sports after college.
Now, she has a Stanley Cup ring from the St. Louis Blues and serves as the corporate…
By Reilly Cahill
With the annual Sports Analytics Conference approaching, the Sports and Society Initiative presented an opportunity for students to learn more about sports research…
By Reilly Cahill
With sports betting promotions sweeping the nation, there lies uncertainty and addiction among many users.
The Sports and…
Sports betting has become a fixture of American sports culture—fueled by new technologies, advertising, and the excitement of being part of the action. But as the industry expands, so do the risks…
By Liv Rinaldi
Sports journalists have more tools than ever to cover stories that matter to their audiences — and many of them are sitting in public databases.
That was the…
By Reilly Cahill
Sports and society have undergone profound changes in the world over the last decade. Sports gambling has become legalized in numerous states,…
Longtime SSI affiliates Dawn Anderson-Butcher and Chris Knoester were interviewed about their youth sports research for the podcast Now, at Ohio State.
Anderson-Butcher highlighted her…
By Jeff Grabmeier, Ohio State Research
A new study provides evidence of the explosive growth of private clubs and travel teams in youth sports over the past 60 years.
In recent research, published in Leisure/Loisir, SSI Research Chair and Sociology Professor Chris Knoester teamed with Dr. Chris Bjork (Vassar College) to study changes in parents’ involvement in…
By Reilly Cahill
Sports and Society Initiative held its first Lunch ‘N’ Learn of the 2025-26 academic year, featuring Danny Kraft, director of creative design…
By Jay Wolf
The Little Brown Jug and the Delaware County Fair named veteran journalist Nicole Kraft as the recipient of the 2025 Tom White Media Award.
Kraft’s roots in…
Students from communication, journalism, sport industry, and other majors gained a unique, behind-the-scenes perspective of sports media during the Ohio State football game versus Grambling State…
The Friday night before the Texas–Ohio State game brought a unique opportunity for Ohio State students as ESPN Radio’s College Football Tailgate broadcast live from the Journalism Building.
Watch the Video
by Reilly Cahill
The World Cup will be held in the United States in 2026, the first time in more than three decades, and Ohio State received a special…
A limited number of SSI Student Research Grants will be awarded to graduate students who commit to conducting sports and society research with an SSI faculty affiliate for one year, beginning by…
A guest post by Marge Stafford (pictured)
The Department of Slavic and East European Languages and Cultures offers courses on Indigenous Siberian literature that introduce students…
Thanks to the generosity of our donors, especially Dru Hancock, the Sports and Society Initiative was able to sponsor students to gain invaluable work experience at both the NCAA Men’s…
For Immediate Release
COLUMBUS, Ohio-- A new partnership has been announced between TeamWork Online and Ohio State. Ohio State students will now be able to use the exclusive program benefits…
Ohio State alum Matt Brown, creator of the Extra Points newsletter, comment on his recent experience as part of "The Price of College Football" conversation held March 21:
Last Friday, I…
SSI Director Nicole Kraft appeared on Spectrum News recently to discuss the continued popularity of women's sports, in light of the NCAA basketball tournament.
Kraft spoke with reporter…
New research by sociology Ph.D. graduates Dr. Mariah Warner and Dr. James Tompsett sheds light on sports-related mistreatment and patterns of high school sports participation. Their studies,…
New rule changes have dramatically altered the landscape of college football, and WOSU's "All Sides with Amy Juravich" tackled the topic on March 17 with these guests:
Nicole Kraft, associate…
By Olivia Riley
It was August 2023, and Keandre Jones had just been cut from the Washington Commanders.
It was not the first time he had been cut by an NFL team. Or the second…
The Sports and Society initiative is launching a new podcast, "Graduates in the Game," aimed at helping Ohio State students navigate their paths to careers in sports.
The first episode,…
By: Garrison McDaniel
When Tracy Hedrick, the chief marketing officer at Ohio State Athletics, learned that the NHL was coming to the university for the 43rd outdoor game in NHL…
From strength and conditioning to sports psychology, many careers in the sports industry operate behind the scenes, playing a crucial role in athlete success. However, many students may not…
SSI board member John Davidson, Ohio State's faculty-athletics representative, was recently part of an article in the New York Times looking at whether sports should now be considered a major in…
by Garrison McDaniel
Ohio State’s Sports and Society Initiative is teaming up with TeamWorkU, a leading platform for sports industry careers, to give students a competitive edge in…
SSI Director Nicole Kraft and Betsy Ross of the University of Notre Dame talk about their careers in sports media and the importance of teaching students about the intersection of sports and…
An article questioning the rationale for a House bill to ban transgender athletes from school sports drew upon research by sociology professor Chris Knoester that found that…
A limited number of SSI Student Research Grants will be awarded to graduate students who commit to conducting sports and society research with an SSI faculty affiliate from Summer 2025 through…
By Olivia Riley
For Greg Houston, Ohio State is “where the heart is.”
The 1980 Ohio State alum is one of SSI’s newest advisory board members. He plans to use his four decades…
By Garrison McDaniel
Kevin Griffin, a former Ohio State football captain and journalism graduate, is returning to his alma mater with a clear goal: to help students achieve their…
Evan Davis, a former OSU Sport Management graduate student and recipient of the SSI Graduate Student Research Grant, recently published an analysis of “The Great Sport Myth” in the Journal of…
From OhioMHAS
The Ohio Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services awarded a $250,000 SOAR Network Innovation Grant to LiFEsports to extend its “Coach Beyond”…
By Garrison McDaniel
Chris North, one of the newest board members of the Ohio State Sports and Society Initiative (SSI), is bringing exciting possibilities for Ohio State students through…
by Garrison McDaniel
While Ohio State athletics often takes center stage at the university, there’s a dedicated team working behind the scenes to ensure student-athletes get the…
By Garrison McDaniel
The Columbus Blue Jackets are coming to Ohio Stadium March 1for a long-awaited outdoor game, but for one player it means more than just the game.
When the…
By Garrison McDaniel
Peter Tortorici is a former CEO, president, and executive producer, but most importantly, he is an Ohio State graduate returning to his roots to help the Sports…
By Olivia Riley
Ross Bjork was on his 83rd day as Ohio State senior vice president and Wolfe Foundation-Eugene Smith Endowed athletics director when he sat down Sept. 16 with SSI…
By Jordan Zimmerman
The Sports and Society Initiative in collaboration with Arts and Sciences Career Success hosted a sports involvement fair on Sept. 9 in the Journalism…
By Garrison McDaniel
Ohio State is a school unparalleled when it comes to opportunities in the sports industry--just ask Gabby Khodadad.
Khodadad maximized her time at Ohio…
SSI research chair Chris Knoester recently published on a national survey found that about 70% of Americans born in the ’90s and reaching age 18 by 2015-'16 said they took part in organized sports…
Of all the students who play sports in high school, between 3% and 5% go on to play sports in college and less than 1% will play professionally. Still, sports are an excellent vehicle for…
by Lauryn Luderman
It seems like Buckeyes always have a way of giving back to the university that gave them so much. Christopher Roy is giving back by…
New mixed-methods research by SSI Research Chair and OSU Sociology professor Chris Knoester and PhD Candidate James Tompsett, in collaboration with professor Kirsten Hextrum (Oregon State),…
By Katy Popavitch
Sports and Society Initiative awarded $500 research grants to two Ohio State Ph.D. candidates, helping to fund their sports-focused research projects.
…
By Nigel Becker
Who should play girls’ and women’s sports?
That was a major issue of contention during the Center for Ethics and Human Values’ Civil Discourse Forum, …
Ohio State students were front and center for the most watched women's basketball game ever, as they were part of the media relations team at the Women's Final Four in Cleveland.
The…
Sports and Society Initiative and Ohio State’s Sports Analytics Association hosted the fourth annual Sports Analytics Conference on April 5, featuring student presentations and panels featuring…
By Katy Popovitch and Lauryn Luderman
The Big Ten Conference hasn’t been the “big ten” since expanding to 11 teams in 1990 with the addition of Penn State. As of Aug. 2, it…
By Lauryn Luderman
One percent of Americans suffer from gambling disorders, and Tom Shoemaker used to be one of them.
Thanks to easily accessible and cost-friendly…
The Sports and Society Initiative was honored to welcome Ohio State alum Dennis Drazin to a special webinar, talking about his involvement in the key case that led to mass legalization of sports…
The Ohio State University College of Arts and Sciences Center for Career and Professional Success and SSI partnered Feb. 2 for our second Sports Career Readiness Fair.
The event was held in…
The National Academy of Kinesiology inducted SSI affiliate Dr. Brian Turner as a fellow at its annual conference in late September.
The academy is the premier professional organization…
By Lauryn Luderman
With the goal of inspiring women to pursue a career in sports, Ohio State’s Block O, a student-run organization that supports Buckeye…
By Katy Popovitch
Dru Hancock, retired Big 12 conference senior associate commissioner, is the newest SSI board member.
“As a retired person, sometimes it is hard to…
The University of Texas' Center for Sports Communication and Media today released its third report on Politics in Sports Media, an annual study of political concerns present in and around sports.…
by Jeff Grabmeier (Ohio State News)
The number of Americans who watch or follow girls’ and women’s sports goes well beyond those who view TV coverage of women’s athletic…
By Lauryn Luderman
Stacy McGranor, the director of customer experience strategy for the San Jose Sharks, is the newest addition to the Sports & Society initiatives…
By Katy Popovitch
Ginger Yang has joined SSI as a new faculty affiliate. Yang is a professor of pediatrics and epidemiology at Ohio State and a principal investigator at…
By Katy Popovitch
SSI created a new internship and job board this semester for students to find sports-related opportunities. The board can be accessed by scrolling down on…
by Katy Popovitch
SSI created a new community on Slack, a messaging service for teams, called “Ohio State Women in Sports” to…
A limited number of SSI Student Research Grants will be awarded to graduate students who commit to conducting sports and society research with an SSI faculty affiliate from Summer 2024 through…
Sports and Society's first "Getting Started on Sports Research" session was held Nov. 8 at Thompson Library. Organized by SSI assistant director Ryan Ruddy, the session attracted more than 40…
By Katy Popovitch
SSI began a partnership with empowHERed, a new community providing opportunities and resources for women in the sports industry, this semester. With this…
SSI was honored to be featured in the Arts and Sciences newsletter "Around the Article," in an article by senior content specialist James Grega. Grega is a graduate of Ohio State's journalism…
By Lauryn Luderman and Katy Popovitch
If it’s not the struggling run game or the fear of losing to Michigan for a third-consecutive time that’s causing Buckeye fans the…
By Lauryn Luderman
Malcolm Jenkins.
Super Bowl Champion, two-time pro-bowler and one of the best safeties the NFL has ever seen with a 13-year career split between…
By Katy Popovitch
Jan. 1, 2023, not only marked the start of a new year, but also the birth of sports gambling in Ohio.
SSI hosted “Economics of Sports Gambling”…
By Lauryn Luderman and Katy Popovitch
An important quality of an Ohio State president is that they understand the value of athletics.
No one appreciates that more…
Professor of Sociology and SSI Research Chair Chris Knoester was recently featured in an OSU College of Arts & Sciences “Voices of Excellence” podcast, describing his research focus transition…
By Lauryn Luderman
Every year, SSI looks for ways to improve its research and expand its reach across Ohio State and beyond.
With staff and faculty from many…
Ohio State University’s Mark Pantoni is considered a guru of college football recruiting. He knows what does and does not work in enticing young talent to join a blue-chip program.
Right…
Two Ohio State emeritus sociology professors were honored with recognitions of their outstanding sports and society research contributions.
Professor Tim Curry (pictured) and professor…
Ohio State’s application to become an Associated Press Sports Editors student chapter was approved by the executive committee making the Buckeyes APSE’s 12th student chapter.
Dr. Nicole…
Tim Miller, who spent a dozen years in communication with Major League Soccer clubs, will be teaching at Ohio State this fall and supporting the Sports and Society's podcasting and communication…
Sports and Society faculty members Dr. Brian Turner and Dr. Nicole Kraft spent the heart of May guiding a study abroad across four countries to explore the “European Model of Sport.”
SSI Affiliate Research Awards
2022 Fellow for the American Academy of Social Work and Social Welfare (Dawn Anderson-Butcher)
2022 Sport Management Education…
New research by OSU Sociology PhD Candidate James Tompsett and SSI Research Chair and Sociology professor Chris Knoester, published with open access in PLoS ONE, analyzes connections between…
Sports & Society Initiative will on May 5 host the second Creative Con, a day-long career readiness event training collegiate sports creatives.
The conference will be held in the Fawcett…
The Ohio State student newspaper, The Lantern, will be crashing through the glass ceiling next year with women as sports editors for the first time.
Lauryn Luderman, right, a fourth-year…
Sports & Society Director Dr. Nicole Kraft earned the Arts and Sciences Faculty Champion Award on April 13 for her collaboration and dedication to the future success of students campus-wide.
…
March is Women’s History Month--a time to celebrate women and what they’ve accomplished. At Ohio State, we wanted to recognize the university for being a pioneer in gender equality in sports and…
By Lauryn Luderman
The Ohio State Sports Analytics Conference, hosted by the Sports and Society Initiative and the Sports Analytics Association, will be held this Friday…
By Lauryn Luderman and Tyler Boroshok
Ohio State's School of Communication and SSI were honored to connect students with the experience to work as part of the media…
by Lauryn Luderman
As of January 2023, sports gambling is legal in Ohio, but that same legalization does not apply to collegiate athletic departments.
The rule is,…
SSI is thrilled to announce the launch of "The SSI Conversation". In this new sports talk show, Megan Husslein furthers the discussion surrounding how sports and society connect.
There will…
By Greg Wilson
SSI was privileged to screen the movie “Behind the Shield: The Power & Politics of the NFL,” which deals with the reality of politics in the NFL at the…
By Lauryn Luderman
There are few better ways to acknowledge the life and work of Martin Luther King Jr., than spending an afternoon with NFL and Buckeye star Malcolm…
After Damar Hamlin’s tragic football injury, there was renewed interest in the safety and appropriateness of tackle football.
OSU sociology PhD candidate Mariah Warner and associate…
By Lauryn Luderman
SSI Assistant Director Ryan Ruddy and the Ohio State’s Sports Analytics Association visited the Columbus Metropolitan Library Friday to help school-age…
By Lauryn Luderman
After the death of Mahsa Amini, killed in police custody after her arrest for improperly wearing her hijab, protests erupted throughout Iran and were…
SSI is honored to have supported and contributed to research in a variety of forms and over many topics. Here is our annual report of research productivity.
SSI Affiliate Research…
Injuries are an unfortunate part of any sport – none more so than in the NFL, where players can be felled in front of a TV audience in the tens of millions.
Typically, when a player suffers…
A limited number of SSI Student Research Grants will be awarded to graduate students who commit to conducting sports and society research with an SSI faculty affiliate from Summer 2023 through…
The Aspen Institute’s Project Play initiative today released "State of Play 2022," the seventh edition of its annual report, which this year features work from SSI affiliate Dawn Anderson…
SSI hosted the first-ever “Offense and Defense of NIL” event on Monday where the Ohio State community was able to learn the ins and outs of name, image and likeness.
A panel of NIL experts,…
By Lauryn Luderman
Logan Hittle’s Ohio State career has been filled with unexpected turns.
He started as a janitor in the Woody Hayes Athletic Center and parlayed…
by Lauryn Luderman
The Sports and Society Initiative is excited to announce the appointment of Ryan Ruddy as its assistant director.
Ruddy has been part of Ohio…
By Lauryn Luderman
Sports and Society Initiative hosted a lunch on Monday at the Ohio State Faculty Club where members from several colleges with different areas of…
By Lauryn Luderman
The Sports and Society Initiative is to welcome a pair of new affiliates who will contribute significantly to our mission.
Samantha BatesSam is…
The Sports and Society Initiative is excited to host the following events in 2022-2023. Some dates are still to come and we will be updating our calendar throughout the year:
Workshop on…
By Lauryn Luderman
The Concussion Legacy Foundation Media Project on Sept. 29 brought first-of-its-kind programming to Ohio State to train student and…
by Lauryn Luderman, SSI Editorial Intern
Within the span of one month, Serena Williams, Sylvia Fowles, Sue Bird and Allyson Felix all retired from the sport they…
Here’s another good reason for kids to participate in organized sports: They can develop the “grit” that helps them overcome challenges as adults, a new study suggests.
Grit is defined as…
At least 50 high school football players in the U.S. have died from heat stroke after falling ill on the field in the past 25 years. And high school athletes in other sports are not immune from…
Congratulations to SSI Affiliate and OSU Sport Management Prof. Kwame Agyemang for being recently awarded with a 2021 Best Paper honor from the Sport Management Education Journal.
His co…
Allowing fights among players in the National Hockey Leagues does not deter greater violence in the modern game, according to a new study.
In fact, teams and players that fight more often…
In this edition of "Scoreboard" on "In The Loop" with Christian Bryant, Bryant explores with Sports and Society Executive Director Trevon Logan how sports have adapted to a wider-than-ever…
Ohio State University’s School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences will lead a study on head impacts in youth tackle football in partnership with sensor technology company Athlete Intelligence…
SSI Research Chair and sociology professor Chris Knoester recently wrote in The Plain Dealer and on Cleveland.com about the Cleveland baseball team name change, the elimination of Native…
The fourth annual SSI Undergraduate Research Fair took place in-person and via zoom on April
14 with eight high-quality presentations from undergraduate students representing seven different…
By Ashley Grimmer
More than 170 people in-person and virtually joined Creative Con April 14, the first-ever student sports creative conference held at Ohio State.
Creative Con was…
With Creative Con '22 is TODAY! Let’s meet some of our presenters!
Next up is Kennon Pearson, the assistant director of creative services and graphic design for Duke…
SSI is excited for Thursday's 4th annual SSI Undergraduate Student Research Fair, taking place from 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m., in the Ohio Union and via zoom.
We have 9 student presentations…
With Creative Con '22 right around the corner, let’s meet some of our presenters!
Next up is Mary Kate Ramker, director of creative services at Loyola University Chicago…
With Creative Con '22 right around the corner, let’s meet some of our presenters!
Next up is Monique Bowman, the director of digital and social media for the Big Ten Conference…
With Creative Con right around the corner on April 14, let’s meet some of our presenters!
First up is Andy DeVito, director of creative and branding for the Ohio State University…
by Ashley Grimmer
The Sports and Society Initiative was honored to host a screening of the film “The Loyola Project” on March 10 at the…
Football may be America’s most popular sport, but the nation is deeply divided about whether youth should play the tackle version of the game.
In a new study, about 45% of Americans agreed…