No Role Is Small: A First-Year’s Lessons from the NCAA Championship
By Judith Kelliher
Krum Tsvetkov, a first-year Sport Management major at Springfield College, recognized right away that he could have a “once-in-a-lifetime” chance if he took advantage of an experiential learning opportunity through his major. With Springfield College hosting the NCAA Division III Men’s Volleyball Championships in April 2026, Krum made the most of it. Learn what meant the most to him through those experiences.
Q. Why did you get involved in the experiential learning opportunities for the NCAA volleyball tournament?
A. I got involved in the experiential learning opportunities because this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity as an undergraduate student. Not all Sport Management programs offer such opportunities, so it would've been ignorant of me to pass up the chance to learn about a large-scale event and what goes on behind the scenes.
Q. Can you describe your experiential learning opportunities at the tournament? What specifically did you get to do?
A. I got to be a ball chaser, usher, help break down the court, set up merchandise, and point fans in the right direction.
Q. Which opportunity had the biggest impact on you and why?
A. I did ball chasing the most, and I didn't realize that something like this could be so hard. You have to be precise, concentrated, and on point at all times because you don't want to ruin the pace of the game. This showed me that even the jobs that seem the easiest and most insignificant could actually be very important in how a game proceeds, and how both teams feel during the game.
Q. What skills did you learn from the experiential learning opportunities at the tournament that you might not have been able to learn in the classroom?
A. Most importantly, professionalism. For the most part, you either have it or you don't, but you can definitely practice your professionalism in such a setting. This is because at the national stage, you have to “suck up the joy” when your team is winning, focus, and do your job. I think that this is a skill that would open doors everywhere around the world.
Q. What skills did you learn that you also heard about in the classroom?
A. A skill that we have done a lot of work on is teamwork. We have done many exercises that involve teamwork, as well as group projects. The whole tournament crew is one team, and every piece of the team is as important as the other one.
Q. Did these experiences shape or change your career plans?
A. The whole experience strengthened my desire to work in sport. Seeing the whole event being brought together and all of the faculty and students being present at the game made an amazing atmosphere worth the hard work.
Q. What would you say about the importance of experiential learning opportunities available to Sport Management students?
A. I think that you can learn only a certain number of things about sport in the classroom. Most of the things that you will learn will be through such experiences because then you will see what you need for a sporting event, who you need, what people you want to work with, and how you work in a team setting. All of these things will help you figure out where you want to go in the world of sport.
Krum’s experience reflects the kind of high-impact opportunities available to students at Springfield College—opportunities that resonate far beyond a single event.
As Sport Management Program Director Daigo Yazawa explains, “The atmosphere at Blake Arena was second to none. The opportunity to play sports or work sporting events in this type of environment is one of Springfield College’s unique strengths. Our close-knit community and supportive campus culture attract competitive student-athletes and ambitious sport management majors who want to be part of a program with a proven track record of success in the sports industry. This championship moment was a powerful reflection of what Springfield College has to offer.”
