Terps Welcome Tom Thomas For Fall Speaker Series
9/26/2007 8:00:00 AM | The Barry & Mary Gossett Center for Acad
Sept. 26, 2007
The Academic Support and Career Development Unit (ASCDU) annually hosts the fall speaker series, and this year the University of Maryland invited Mr. Tom Thomas, President and CEO of Cardinal Advisors. Nearly 700 student-athletes from all of the Terps' 27 sports joined Thomas to discuss issues pertaining to professional etiquette and conduct.
Instructional points of emphasis included topics as posture, speaking, the handshake, interview techniques, politeness, respect, presentation, appearance, and international customs and norms.
"Mr. Thomas was able to provide a lot of insight that will be useful for us as student-athletes when it comes time for us to enter the `real world,'" noted Student-Athlete Advisory Committee president, Allie Houseal.
These sentiments were echoed by Matt Trautman, a senior on the men's lacrosse team, who stated, "Mr. Thomas was able to provide me with some new information that I know will serve me well as I prepare to enter the increasingly competitive job market."
Recognized as a national expert in the fields of Professional Development, Professional Conduct and Business Etiquette, Mr. Thomas founded Cardinal Advisors in 2002 as a training and development company that serves executives and their management teams. Since then, Mr. Thomas has made similar presentations to a number of Division I athletic departments across the country, including the athletic staff and administrators at the University of Maryland earlier this year. Mr. Thomas has also served as a presenter at the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) annual convention, as well as receiving letters of commendation from the College Athletic Business Management Association (CABMA), the National Association of Collegiate Marketing Administrators (NACMA), and the NCAA.
An integral component of the CHAMPS/Life Skills Personal Development program at the University of Maryland, the fall speaker series is an annual event that is charged with augmenting the personal development of the institution's student-athletes. Recent topics in the past have included drug and alcohol abuse, gambling, personal motivation, and career seminars.
