Alumni Spotlight: Rob Sayre-McCord

Rob Sayre-McCord, 2014 Parks, Recreation and Tourism Management alumnus, is a proud North Carolina native who was born and raised in the Bull City. He received his Bachelor of Arts in History from UNC-Chapel Hill and then came over to NC State where he received his Master of Science in Parks, Recreation and Tourism Management.
Rob wasn’t sure what he wanted to do professionally when he graduated from UNC. Although he considered a variety of graduate programs, he ultimately decided to work for a couple of years to get a better sense of what he enjoyed doing. In retrospect, Rob feels it was one of the best decisions he ever made.
“I cannot stress enough to prospective grad students how important it is to head into your chosen program with some sense of what you’d like to get out of it,” Rob said. 
 

A Conversation with Rob

What made you decide to attend the PRTM graduate program at NC State?

I worked in Club Sports for Carolina, then Durham Parks and Rec, and I discovered that parks and rec management (sorry, never did much of the tourism stuff!) was a great intersection of my interests in public administration, service, sport, and youth development. I was very intrigued by the research being conducted by various faculty, especially Drs. Jason Bocarro and Jonathan Casper, so I reached out to inquire about the possibility of joining the department as a masters student. I am forever grateful that Dr. Bocarro took me on.

What was your favorite memory from NC State?

My favorite memories, hands down, are the conferences I attended. I grew up as the son of an academic and I’m sure I’ve been to more than my fair share of academic conferences over the years. Even as an undergrad, they never really gripped me, but I loved the ones I went to while I was at NC State. They offered such great opportunities for personal growth and development, and were the places that my graduate cohort really got to know one another. I also fondly remember some cold, cold nights collecting data at youth hockey practices!

How was your teaching assistant experience? 

Joyous, stressful, amusing and infuriating all at once. I was really blessed to work with the professors I had the opportunity to TA for, including a great time with Dr. Ed Lindsay and two wonderful semesters with Dr. Annette Moore, one of the nicest, most understanding professors out there. I can’t say I miss wading through a stack of 200 term papers with grading deadlines looming! Mostly I remember watching students come out of their shells as they recognized a future in PRTM fields and began to enthusiastically engage with class and other opportunities the department presented. Something I’ve really enjoyed in my professional career is taking the opportunity to mentor interns and younger employees and I feel like my interest in doing this really started as a TA.

Was there a teacher that has an effect on your career/life? 

All of the members of my thesis committee were invaluable to me. I really appreciate the time and effort of Dr. Bocarro, who brought me into the program in the first place. Dr. Bocarro introduced me to a number of interesting academic topics and worked hard to help set me up for my post-master’s career. The work that he and Dr. Michael Kanters conducted still informs my day-to-day work in my every position I’ve held since graduating. Additionally, Dr. Karla Henderson brought a unique approach to my work and I always enjoyed our discussions and her approach to life. I really valued getting out on the front lines as a practitioner and making sure that research was grounded in real world issues.

What did you learn with from graduate school that you’ve been able to translate to your career?

So many things! I wasn’t sure when I began my masters if I was going to continue on to get a PhD or not (I thought I probably would). During my time in the program, I really valued getting out on the front lines as a practitioner and making sure that research was grounded in real world issues and being used to help combat real world problems. Conversely, it made me realize how important it was to put research into practice and to use a data-driven approach for program improvement and departmental evolution. I’ve had many opportunities to work on joint use agreements in my various roles since graduation, and I’ve discovered a real passion for bringing community groups and organizations together in various collaborating forms to best pool strengths and resources. I’ve enjoyed putting my research in early youth sport specializations into practice by helping organizations provide guidelines and safety nets to prevent youth athlete burnout. Helping to build a better youth sport ecosystem that guards against some of the negative experiences I had growing up has brought me immense joy.

What do you enjoy most about your new position as a Parks Project Manager and living in Washington?

I have really enjoyed my new position here with the City of Kenmore. It’s an opportunity to work with a relatively new city (incorporated in 1998) as it develops in an area of the country that is booming. There are a number of exciting park projects taking place now or scheduled for the future, that are only going to continue to help city residents love where they live. I was initially skeptical about moving 2,817 (I mapped it) miles from home, but I  love living here.
Both my wife and I love the city of Seattle, our jobs, and the outdoors here are next level. As someone who always teased my CA-born wife for claiming that the Appalachians weren’t real mountains, while I still will defend the Appalachians to the death, I have to say, being able to look out the windows of our house and see Mt. Rainier, the Cascades and the Olympics on three sides of us is pretty stunning. Plus – the rain is overstated, the soccer is good, the people are friendly, and the beer is delicious. Maybe I could have done tourism management after all…

Has there been a life lesson you’ve had since graduating?

Since graduating I’ve lived outside of NC for the first time in my life, met many new people, traveled to different continents and enjoyed working in a lot of different settings from municipal parks and recreation departments, to youth sport organizations, to nonprofits, to breweries. Each has been its own unique experience and my life has always been the better for the adventure. So I’d say, seek adventure and ideally find someone to do it with.