"I wanted to be the best dad in the world."
For Leroy Hollins, fatherhood is a driving passion. As the founder and director of several non-profit organizations in his native Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Hollins has spent nearly two decades bringing sport education to low-income youth in the community.
''It started with my 5-year-old son when he said he wanted to play football," remembers Hollins. "I found a team in our neighborhood and dropped him off. But I thought, 'I can do more than just watch practice.' I wanted to be the best dad in the world." Throughout his son's adolescence, Hollins volunteered in local youth sporting leagues, coaching not only his son but many other children in the community.
It was his son who inevitably inspired Hollins to take his youth involvement a step further. "One Christmas, a kid was bragging about a scooter he was getting, and my son told me, 'That’s a stocking-stuffer for me.' I got him involved in the low-income program here so that he could realize his life was different from others," Hollins explains. "I realized I had to be a dad, not just to him, but also to kids in the community. My son is 23 now, and I’m still involved."
Hollins founded the Louisiana Youth Sports Network (LYSN), the largest youth football network in Louisiana. Now in it's nineteenth year, the organization partners closely with the NFL, particularly the New Orleans Saints, and emphasizes character building, safety awareness, and coaches education. To foster academic and soft skills off the field in the youth that participate in the program, he also founded a spin-off organization, Louisiana Academy./p>
"When I started being a great dad to my son, I realized I needed to do that for every kid in our community, especially those who came from a background like me."
Impressively, Hollins' nonprofit work is extracurricular. His full-time career as IT director for the Louisiana Racing Commission keeps him busy, in addition to several entrepreneurial ventures. It was his nonprofit work, however, that pushed him to earn his Master's in Sport Administration. "My grandfather told me to look at whatever you do for free in life and know it’s your calling," said Hollins. "If this really is my passion, I need to go back to school. I’ve been putting myself in the right places, but I need to do something to catapult me into that position."
Fortunately, Hollins discovered UOnline and the Master's in Sport Administration program while he was browsing the web. He began his courses in January and even ordered his books early to begin reading before the first class started. "You don’t know the joy I have, the excitement in my program," Hollins shares.
"It was meant for me to be here. Once I started the first class, I was sure it was meant for me."
Since beginning the program, Hollins has already attended campus to meet professors and fellow classmates at the inaugural UM Sport Industry Conference in April. He was excited to share that his career aspirations have only grown as he learns more about the sports business industry. Hear his enthusiasm in the video below:
Most of all, Hollins is excited to take what he learns back to his Baton Rouge community, to build upon LYSN and Louisiana Academy with his newly earned knowledge. "The one thing I’m really looking forward to is the course on sponsorship," explains Hollins. "I have created a great program, but it’s still a best-kept secret because I haven’t focused on sponsorship or public relations. We do have smaller, local sponsors, but we could do a better job. I want to integrate my learning into the nonprofit."
"This is what I needed to be able to move my vision for my career forward. I had to go through the University of Miami. There is no better place to learn about athletics."
From coaching his son to enrolling at UOnline, Hollins has forged an 18-year path toward a successful sport business career, and he feels confident that his master's degree will give him the additional edge to turn his passion into a full-time career.
