Springfield College Hosts Fourth Annual Education and Leadership Luncheon
Springfield College Communications/Sports Journalism students had the opportunity to attend the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2019 Press Conference on Thursday, Sept. 5. At left, Springfield College Department of Inclusion and Community Engagement Administrative Coordinator Lisa Holm, student Irene Rotondo, Springfield College Vice President for Inclusion and Community Engagement Calvin Hill, students Joe Arruda, Evan Wheaton, Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2019 inductee Sidney Moncrief, students Kris Rhim, Angelica Core, Helen Lucas, and Cam Smith.
Springfield College, the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, and the Beta Sigma Boulé chapter of the Sigma Pi Phi fraternity, announced that Class of 2019 Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame member Sidney Moncrief will be the keynote speaker for the fourth annual Education and Leadership Luncheon at Springfield College on Friday, Sept. 6, from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., in the Flynn Campus Union.
As part of the 2019 Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame enshrinement weekend festivities, the Education and Leadership Luncheon gives more than 75 Springfield area high school students the opportunity to listen to Moncrief speak, ask questions, and engage with representatives of Springfield College, the Beta Sigma Boulé, and Basketball Hall of Fame.
Moncrief enters the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a five-time NBA All-Star (1982-1986) and two-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year (1983,1984). He earned NBA All-Defensive Team honors four times (1983-1986) and All-NBA First Team in 1983. In 11 NBA seasons with the Milwaukee Bucks and Atlanta Hawks, he averaged 15.6 points and 4.7 rebounds.
Prior to his professional basketball career, Moncrief was a student-athlete playing collegiately for the University of Arkansas for four years from 1975-79, averaging 16.9 points and 8.3 rebounds per game. Moncrief led the NCAA in field goal percentage during the 1975-76 season at .665 and earned Consensus First Team All-America in 1979.
Keynote speakers at previous Education and Leadership Luncheons have included Basketball Hall of Fame inductees, Shaquille O’Neal (2016), Rebecca Lobo (2017), Mannie Jackson (2017), and Grant Hill (2018).
Springfield College is an independent, nonprofit, coeducational institution founded in 1885. Approximately 4,100 students, including 2,500 full-time undergraduate students, study at its main campus in Springfield, Mass., and at its regional campuses across the country. Springfield College inspires students through the guiding principles of its Humanics philosophy – educating in spirit, mind, and body for leadership in service to others.
