Hands-on experiences, coursework open career doors for alumnus Lou Groce

Lou Groce ’11/M ’14, former graduate assistant to the sports information director, has landed a new job—one that’s perfectly suited for him.

Starting May 7, he’s the new director of media and information for the Midwest Conference (MWC), similar to the College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW), but with 11 member institutions. He will handle all sports information duties for 20 sports among all the schools, manage the conference website and promote the MWC brand through various forms of written, visual and social media communications.

Groce knows all the ins and outs of tracking, reporting and promoting sports news—thanks to his years at North Central, starting with his undergraduate degree in sport management and graduate degree in leadership studies with a concentration in sports leadership.  

“I really didn’t know what I wanted to do when I came to North Central. I played and loved sports and then got a student job in sports information,” he says. “I thought it was great fun, went to games and did lots of hands-on work. I wrote news stories for the College’s website and magazine and took on internships with more and more responsibility, both on and off campus.”

Groce also served as the primary contact for men’s soccer, men’s and women’s golf, men’s and women’s swimming, softball, volleyball, wrestling and women’s lacrosse. He also oversaw the athletic social media pages.

After Groce graduated in 2011, he accepted a graduate assistant (GA) position at Frostburg State University in Maryland. After one year, his former boss North Central Sports Information Director (SID) Clark Teuscher called and let him know a GA position had opened up at North Central.

If he transferred, Groce knew he’d lose some credits and time. He made the move anyway and says, “It was all worth it. I got to work the home men’s basketball national tournaments, football playoffs, indoor national track & field championships and connect with SIDs in the conference. I never would’ve had these great opportunities if I had stayed where I was. These experiences at North Central really gave me an edge in my résumé, my career and competing for my new position.”

Groce focused his capstone project for his master’s degree on sports information professionals and effective social media practices—areas of responsibility in his new position.

The MWC is comprised of 11 private, liberal arts colleges and universities in Illinois, Iowa and Wisconsin: Beloit College, Carroll University (moves to the CCIW in 2016-2017), Cornell College, Grinnell College, Illinois College, Knox College, Lake Forest College, Lawrence University, Monmouth College, Ripon College and St. Norbert College.