Arizona State University

Undefeated and ranked 4th in the BCS standings, the Arizona State football team is coming off a strong, 44-20 victory against Washington and is eligible for post-season play. With the team off to a 7-0 start, Sun Devil fans can now begin making their travel plans to follow the Sun Devils this bowl season. ASU Athletics, the Sun Devil Club, and the Arizona State University Alumni Association will partner with Premiere College Sports, one of the nation's leading sports travel firms, to offer fans unique, first-class travel and hospitality packages for any bowl game in which ASU participates through the creation of "Sun Devil Sports Travel."

"Dennis Erickson, his staff, and team are really giving the Sun Devils an exciting 2007 season. We are proud of our football team and pleased to introduce Sun Devil Sports Travel to our fans. We hope that all of our fans take advantage of this great program and support our team during bowl season" said Lisa Love, Director of Athletics.

"Sun Devil Sports Travel" will offer an array of travel packages for all Sun Devil fans to follow their team in the postseason. Packages could include air transportation, deluxe accommodations, hospitality as well as other tour amenities.

"The Sun Devil Club is very excited to partner with Premiere College Sports to create a travel program in which all fans can participate" said Stephen Ponder, Senior Associate Athletic Director for Development. "Sun Devil Sports Travel will offer our fans first class travel options that will make following the Sun Devils on the road this bowl season, convenient and fun."

Fans can visit the dedicated website for ASU bowl travel now to sign up for travel information on any number of bowl games in which ASU could participate.

"The Alumni Association is pleased to join the Sun Devil Club and ASU Athletics in offering travel packages to our alumni and fans for a post season bowl game" said Christine Wilkinson, President of the ASUAA. "Let's show how strong our ASU spirit is by filling the stadium with gold. Go DEVILS!"

To learn more about travel and hospitality packages for Arizona State visit www.sundevilsportstravel.com or call 800-924-9993.

About the Sun Devil Club
Since 1947, the Sun Angel Foundation's membership has been making a difference in the lives of the men and women who proudly wear the Maroon and Gold. While the names on the backs of the jerseys change from year to year, the Sun Angel Foundation's mission has remained the same: to raise private support for scholarships and facilities for Sun Devil student-athletes. In February of 2007, the Sun Angel Foundation decided to rename the annual fund drive to the Sun Devil Club. For more information on the Sun Devil Club, visit www.sundevilclub.com or call 480-727-7700.

About the Arizona State Alumni Association
The ASU Alumni Association is a membership-based organization that supports the 290,000 living alumni of Arizona State University by creating a community of engaged and informed alumni. The association oversees the activities of more than 50 alumni chapters and clubs, and hosts a variety of events such as tailgates, reunions, Homecoming and Founders' Day. Additionally, the association provides a variety of programs and services that enrich the lives of alumni both personally and professionally. Membership is open to any supporter of Arizona State University. More information can be found at www.asu.edu/alumni.

About Premier College Sports
Premiere College Sports, a division of North America Sports Media, is a dedicated, full-service college sports travel and hospitality company exclusively focused on official collegiate, conference and bowl partnerships. Premiere College Sports utilizes its travel, hospitality, collegiate athletic, sports marketing and sales experience to execute custom collegiate sports travel and hospitality programs for their partners. They remain on the forefront of the sports travel industry by being committed to bringing fans the finest packages to the best sporting events, with the highest level of service. To learn more about Premiere College Sports, log onto www.CollegeSportsTravel.com or call 800-924-9993.

TEMPE, Ariz. - Craig Bray, the defensive coordinator of the Arizona State University football program, has been selected for a Master Coaches Survey (MCS) Nike Game Ball as the National Defensive Coordinator of the Week, the Master Football Coaches announced Wednesday. Bray's defense once again posted a strong second-half showing that enabled the Sun Devils to remain undefeated after scoring a 31-20 defeat of California.

Trailing 13-0 to the Golden Bears, the Sun Devil defense limited the visitors to just seven points in the second quarter and no scoring the remainder of the game to move ASU to 8-0 on the year. Big plays enabled the defense to secure the victory as Justin Tryon and Robert James recorded interceptions late the game, giving the Sun Devil defense at least one interception in each game this year and 14 total in 2007.

Overall this season, Bray's defensive unit is ranked 19th nationally in total defense (311.3 yards per game), ninth in rushing defense (89.4 yards per game) and seventh in scoring defense (15.6 points per game). The 14 interceptions posted by the Sun Devils ranks tied for ninth in the nation this year.

Each week during the 2007 college football season, the 17 Master Football Coaches will award an MCS Nike Game Ball to the respective schools of a National Offensive, Defensive and Special Teams Player of the Week. The Master Coaches will also present a game ball to the offensive and defensive coordinator whose game plans made the biggest impact in their respective teams' victory.

In addition to Bray, the Master Football Coaches will also award MCS Nike Game Balls to Georgia running back Knowshon Moreno, Oregon safety Matthew Harper, Tennessee kicker Daniel Lincoln and Ohio State Offensive Coordinator Coach Jim Bollman.

TEMPE, Ariz. - The Arizona State women's basketball team is ranked No. 12 in the country, according to the ESPN/USA Today Top 25 coaches' preseason poll released Wednesday. For ASU, the No. 12 ranking ties the highest rating it has ever received in a preseason poll. Last season the Sun Devils were also tabbed preseason No. 12 in the coaches' poll before eventually finishing the season No. 8.

The 2007-08 Sun Devils return 10 players, including three starters - guards Briann January, Jill Noe and Reagan Pariseau - and several other significant contributors from last season's Elite Eight squad, which set single-season school records for most overall wins (31), most Pac-10 wins (16) and most road wins (10). In addition to regaining the services of All-Pac-10 Freshman guard Dymond Simon, who missed the last 16 games of last season with a knee injury, the Sun Devils will also receive a boost from the addition of junior posts Sybil Dosty (transfer from the University of Tennessee) and Lauren Lacey (transfer from the University of Minnesota), who both sat out last season due to NCAA transfer rules, and from talented incoming freshmen Becca Tobin (Glendale Cactus) and Stephanie Wilber (Auburn Riverside, Auburn, Wash.).

The 2007-08 Sun Devils will make their debut next Thursday (Nov. when they host the USA National Team in an exhibition contest at 6:30 p.m. in Wells Fargo Arena. Tickets are still available and can be purchased by calling (480) 727-0000. ASU officially opens its regular season on Sunday, Nov. 11 (2:30 p.m. ET/12:30 p.m. MT) when it travels to Chapel Hill, N.C., to take on No. 7 North Carolina in the 2007 State Farm Tip-Off Classic. The game will be televised live by ESPN.

Kids of all ages, and their parents and teachers too, are invited to learn more about Earth and space through hands-on activities, experimental demonstrations and public lectures by ASU scientists from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Nov. 3, in the Bateman Physical Science Building, F-Wing, at ASU’s Tempe campus.

The annual Earth and Space Exploration Day, hosted by ASU’s School of Earth and Space Exploration, provides a variety of educational activities “for kids ages 5 to 95,” says professor Tom Sharp, a mineralogist and associate director of the NASA Arizona Space Grant Consortium.

“The purpose of this event is to provide an up-close opportunity for the public to see some of the great science we do at ASU, while we engage students of all ages in fun, hands-on scientific learning activities,” says Sharp. “There is plenty of depth for adults too.”

For example, ASU planetary scientist David Williams will present a lecture on solar system exploration at 10 a.m., and give an overview of results from NASA’s and the European Space Agency’s 2007 planetary missions. Other lectures on black holes, volcanology, the Mars rovers and whether there will be an energy crisis are scheduled on the hour throughout the event.

In conjunction with the day of exploration, ASU’s Space Photography Laboratory is hosting an open house and will show the latest NASA planetary images.

There also will be special shows in the planetarium, including one on “Stars over Arizona.” Other educational activities include learning about minerals while panning for gold, examining rocks and meteorite sections under a microscope, viewing the sun with a solar telescope, and learning about volcanoes and their explosive eruptions.

The public can “take a tour” of Mars with the aid of a GeoWall 3-D projector. Children, and adults can bring in rocks for “Dr. Rock” to identify or water samples for “Dr. Water” to analyze. Minerals, gems, fossils from around the world, the only active seismograph in central Arizona, a six-story Foucault pendulum, and Columbian mammoth bones from Chandler, Ariz., will be on display in the Dietz Museum of Geology.

Also scheduled is a geology field trip to “A” Mountain (Hayden Butte) to learn about sedimentary rocks, volcanic rocks and geological structures exposed in Tempe.

There will be handouts and outreach information for teachers from the School of Earth and Space Exploration and other academic and research units in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, including the Institute for Human Origins and the School of Geographical Sciences.

“We hope the event will encourage children to learn that science is fun as they learn about how the Earth works and how we study it,” Sharp says.

The Bateman Physical Science Building is just south of University Drive, between McAlister and College avenues in Tempe. Public parking is free in any ASU lot south of University Drive on Nov. 3. Parking options include the Tyler Street Parking Structure (#2), on the corner of Tyler and McAlister, and in the Rural Road Parking Structure (#4) on Lemon Street and Rural Road. For more information, contact the School of Earth and Space Exploration at (480) 965-5081 or www.sese.asu.edu.

Carla Mitchell, carla.mitchell@asu.edu
(480) 965-1441

Nan Ellin, associate professor and director of the urban and metropolitan studies program at the Arizona State University School of Public Affairs, was honored in the Oct. 12 “Power Book” edition of the Phoenix Business Journal and at the publication’s second annual awards dinner. The criteria for the publication’s “power player” recognition included “leadership, professionalism and dedication to our community,” and Ellin was spotlighted in the category highlighting 10 businesspeople “playing at new positions.”

Ellin, whose expertise is in the design and revitalization of urban environments, joined the School of Public Affairs in 2006 and has been instrumental in the launch of the new undergraduate degree in urban and metropolitan studies. The program was designed to prepare a new generation of civic leaders to assume leadership positions across sectors, or to pursue advanced degrees in urban planning, public policy, public administration, law, business, arts administration, historic preservation and other related careers.

“It is an honor to be recognized by the editorial team at the Phoenix Business Journal for doing the work I am passionate about: connecting people, resources and ideas to enhance the quality of life and quality of place in the Phoenix metropolitan region,” notes Ellin.

Her focus on solutions to today’s multilayered urban issues puts her in high demand as a speaker, policy consultant, media commentator and researcher. Through “Phoenix: 21st Century City,” which she was instrumental in producing with Edward Booth-Clibborn, she has helped promote the city as an emerging center of creativity through a cross-continental book tour. She is also the author of “Integral Urbanism” (Routledge, 2006).

Ellin earned the ASU President’s Medal for Social Embeddedness and the ASU School of Public Affairs Distinguished Research Award in 2007. She is co-principle investigator on a grant that is studying strategies for building sustainable neighborhoods in Phoenix.

Prior to joining ASU in 1998, Ellin was a Fulbright Scholar in France. She was on the faculty of the ASU College of Design for eight years and has also taught at the University of Cincinnati, the Southern California Institute of Architecture, the University of Southern California and New York University.

With an undefeated record of 8-0, Arizona State University football is on a roll, and FSN Arizona is the only place where Sun Devil fans living in Arizona and New Mexico will be able to watch fourth-ranked ASU take on fifth-ranked Oregon in what many analysts are calling college football's biggest game of the year. FSN Arizona will again produce the game in High Definition, with coverage from Eugene, Ore., beginning this Saturday at 3:30 p.m.

The game can be seen in Arizona, New Mexico and in other regions on the West Coast only on FSN Arizona, FSN West and FSN Northwest. Although ESPN has picked up the telecast for national broadcast, it will be blacked out on ESPN in these regions, since FSN owns the Pac-10's local television rights in these areas.

In addition to FSN Arizona's telecast, fans living in Southern California, Las Vegas and Hawaii will be able to watch the FSN Arizona production only FSN West, while fans in Oregon can see it only on FSN Northwest. The game will also be televised nationwide on Fox College Sports via its FCS Central channel.

Trey Bender and Juan Roque will handle the call of the game for FSN Arizona, while Jody Jackson will report from the sidelines at Autzen Stadium. In Arizona, here are the systems and channel locations in which FSN Arizona's HD telecasts can be found: Cox channel 721, DirecTV channel 95, DISH channel 365, Comcast (Tucson) channel 258, Qwest (Tempe) channel 329 and Western Broadband channel 726.

This huge game will then be condensed into a 30-minute program on Tuesday, Nov. 6, at 7 & 10 p.m. when Sun Devil Rewind - Arizona State at Oregon airs on FSN Arizona. The show looks back at Saturday's game with exclusive field level camera angles and sideline access while using the radio calls from Tim Healey & Jeff Van Raaphorst of the Sun Devil Sports Network.

And for fans wanting to see how Arizona State stands in the latest BCS rankings, FSN Arizona has it covered each week with bookend programs breaking down the championship contenders. Each Friday at 6 p.m., BCS Breakdown host Tom Helmer along with analysts Eddie George, Petros Papadakis and Gary Barnett and reporter Charissa Thompson preview the weekend's upcoming games and discuss which contests will have the biggest impact on the BCS standings.

Then on Sundays at 10:30 p.m., the crew reconvenes to take a look at the latest edition of the BCS rankings on the BCS Ratings Show. Helmer, Papadakis and Barnett look at the college football landscape to see how Saturday's games affected the newest BCS ratings

FSN Arizona televises the most regional sports action in the state and is the exclusive cable television home of the Phoenix Suns, Arizona Diamondbacks, Phoenix Coyotes, Arizona Cardinals, Arizona State University, University of Arizona, Arizona Rattlers and Phoenix Mercury. FSN Arizona is currently seen in 2.8 million households in Arizona & New Mexico and can also be seen across the country via home satellite services.

Nursing and auto racing are not words used together very often. However, the two professional occupations have formed a partnership to benefit a common cause: seriously ill children.

NASCAR NEXTEL Cup series driver Kyle Petty and Phoenix International Raceway (PIR) have joined the ASU College of Nursing & Healthcare Innovation to raise funds for the Victory Junction Gang Camp and the college. The partners will sponsor Kyle Petty’s Victory Invitational Golf Tournament in the Phoenix area Feb. 27-28.

By joining forces, both organizations can use their combined strength to build a better tomorrow for children stricken with serious illness.

Proceeds from the tournament and surrounding events will help support ongoing efforts to improve the quality of life for children diagnosed with life-threatening illnesses, provide support for their families and contribute to the ongoing training for the professionals who treat them.

Founded in 2004, the Victory Junction Gang Camp enriches the lives of children with chronic medical conditions or serious illnesses by providing life-changing camping experiences that are exciting, fun and empowering in a safe and medically sound environment. The camp was founded by Kyle and Pattie Petty in honor of their son, Adam, on 72 acres of land in North Carolina that was donated by Richard and Lynda Petty. More information on the camp can be found online at www.victoryjunction.org.

“The Victory Junction Gang Camp looks to do three or four major events each year, and this will be one of them,” Kyle Petty says. “The help of the people at Phoenix International Raceway and the Arizona State University College of Nursing & Healthcare Innovation is going to really accelerate this tournament into a premier charitable event for the camp. I can’t thank them enough for what they have done to this point.”

For more information about Kyle Petty’s Victory Invitational Celebrity Golf Tournament, please contact Kristie Maggs of Phoenix International Raceway at (623) 463-5400 or kmaggs@phoenixinternationalraceway.com. Interested sponsors can reach Jon Sata at the same phone number or at jsata@phoenixinternationalraceway.com.

The Arizona State men's basketball team's exhibition games against Grand Canyon (Saturday, Nov. 3, at noon) and Western New Mexico (Wednesday, Nov. 7, at 7 p.m.) both will have free admission and free parking, and Arizona State ticket office employees will be on hand for select-a-seat opportunities as well. Both games will be broadcast by KTAR 620 AM.

After the Nov. 3 Saturday game, junior Jeff Pendergraph and sophomore Eric Boateng will be available for autographs. ASU opens its regular season on Nov. 19 against Illinois in the Maui Invitational.

The Arizona State men's basketball program has announced several different types of ticket pages for this season. Several options are listed below. For more information or to purchase these various ticket options please contact the Sun Devil Ticket Office at 480-727-0000.

SEASON TICKETS

Season tickets start at just $99 - for the Family Seat Price with a minimum order of three tickets. These are in the upper level end sections Z1-A2. Good upper level side season tickets still remain for $250. A season parking pass is just $35 for 19 games.

GROUP TICKETS

Group prices start at as low as $8 per ticket with a group of 15 or more. Youth groups with less than 15 people can still receive the discount if they contact Beth Fredricks (beth.fredricks@asu.edu or 480-727-0001) directly.

MINI-PACKS

Several partial ticket packages are now available and include the following:

The "Online U-Pick Plus"

**Any 6 games, plus home opener (Nov. 26) vs. Cal Poly.

Available online through thesundevils.com and can include Arizona (Jan. 9).

Lower Level: $135

Upper Level Sides: $99

Upper Level Ends: $75

The "Weekend Pack Plus"

**Five games plus home opener (Nov. 26) vs. Cal Poly.

ASU will sell through Dec. 15, 2007

Includes Cal Poly, Xavier (defending Atlantic 10 champion and 2007 NCAA Tournament), Oregon State, Washington State (2007 NCAA Tournament), California, and USC (2007 NCAA Tournament).

Lower Level: $100

Upper Level Sides: $80

Upper Level Ends: $60

The "Four Pack Plus"

**Four Pac-10 games plus home opener (Nov. 26) vs. Cal Poly. ASU will sell through Jan. 3, 2008.

Includes Cal Poly, Oregon (2007 Pac-10 Tournament champion), Washington, Stanford (2007 NCAA Tournament) and UCLA (defending Pac-10 champion and Final Four participant)

Lower Level: $99

Upper Level Sides: $70

Upper Level Ends: $55

Also, all single-game tickets go on sale November 20.

WALNUT CREEK, Calif. - Arizona State junior guard Briann January was one of five players named to the preseason All-Pac-10 team, according to an announcement by the Pac-10 office on Tuesday. The team was chosen by members of the conference's women's basketball media.

January is coming off a season in which she earned All-Pac-10 honorable mention honors in helping lead ASU to a school record 31 wins and its first Elite Eight appearance in school history. In 2006-07, the 5-8, Spokane, Wash., product finished third in the Pac-10 in steals (2.1 per game), fourth in assists (4.0 per game) and assist-to-turnover ratio (1.67), and sixth in free throw percentage (81.7). A starter in 34 games, January concluded her sophomore campaign first on the team in both assists and steals and second in both scoring (10.2 points per game) and free throw percentage.

During the second half of last season January led the Sun Devils in scoring (11.8 ppg), assists (3.6 per game), steals (2.0 per game) and tied for the team lead in free throws attempted (75), free throws made (64) and three-point field goals (19). In postseason play (Pac-10 and NCAA Tournaments), January averaged 14.0 points while connecting on 93 percent of her free throws (26-28) and 53 percent of her three-point attempts (10-19).

The 2007-08 Sun Devils will make their debut next Thursday (Nov. when they host the USA National Team in an exhibition contest at 6:30 p.m. in Wells Fargo Arena. Tickets are still available and can be purchased by calling (480) 727-0000. ASU officially opens its regular season on Sunday, Nov. 11 (2:30 p.m. ET/12:30 p.m. MT) when it travels to Chapel Hill, N.C., to take on North Carolina in the 2007 State Farm Tip Off Classic. The game will be televised live by ESPN.

TEMPE, Ariz. - Arizona Diamondback outfielder Eric Byrnes and the Arizona Fall League are joining forces to raise money for the Pat Tillman Foundation on Friday, November 2 at Phoenix Municipal Stadium when the Scottsdale Scorpions face the Phoenix Desert Dogs at 7:05 p.m. ASU head baseball coach Pat Murphy will participate in the pre-game ceremonies as well.

Prior to the 2007 Sun Devil baseball season, Murphy donated $100,000 towards the construction of the Tillman Training Room at Winkles Field-Packard Stadium at Brock Ballpark. The room will honor Pat and his brother Kevin, who played for Murphy at Arizona State. Murphy wears #42 on his jersey in honor of Tillman, and every member of the ASU baseball team wears a PT*42 patch in memory of Tillman.

A silent auction of an impressive array of sports memorabilia will he held before and during the game. A complimentary Byrnes-autographed baseball will accompany every silent bid award. All proceeds from the silent auction and one-half of the game's gate receipts will be donated to the Pat Tillman Foundation.

Byrnes will be recognized for his fund-raising efforts on behalf of the Pat Tillman Foundation in pre-game ceremonies that will include his ceremonial first pitch.

"Pat Tillman's inspirational life story is well known across America but very personal in our community," offers Fall League Executive Director Steve Cobb. "The Fall League is honored to dedicate the first fund-raiser in its 16-year history to an American icon, Pat Tillman."

Alex Garwood, executive director of the Pat Tillman Foundation, offers, "We're appreciative of the efforts of Major League Baseball, the Arizona Fall League, Eric Byrnes, and the great Frank Robinson. Arizona has continued to embrace Pat and his foundation and that support helps us look forward to the future."

The Pat Tillman Foundation seeks to carry forward the legacy of former Arizona State University and Arizona Cardinals football standout and U.S. Army Ranger by inspiring and supporting young people striving to promote positive change in themselves and the world around them.

For more information on the Pat Tillman Foundation, visit www.pattillmanfoundation.org. For updates on the Pat Tillman Foundation Benefit Night, consult www.mlbfallball.com.

TEMPE, Ariz. - Junior quarterback Rudy Carpenter has been named a Semifinalist for the Davy O'Brien Award, presented to the nation's top quarterback.

The Westlake, California product has thrown for 1,949 yards on 149-228 passing (.654) with 17 touchdowns. He is 10th in the nation in pass efficiency at 155.62.

When voting, the Selection Committee for The O'Brien is asked to evaluate each candidate on quarterback skills, athletic ability, academics, reputation as a team player, character, leadership and sportsmanship. The combination of votes from the Selection Committee and fan vote will determine the Finalists as well as the Winner this season, with 5% of the total vote coming from dedicated fans.

"The Semifinalist List confirms that being a player of strong character and leadership combined with talent and academics can translate into more than just wins on the field," said Danielle Moorman, executive director of the Davey O'Brien Foundation. "The O'Brien recognizes the diligence and commitment of these young men to their teams, their schools and the true spirit of the game."

This talented group of 15 quarterbacks will continue to jockey for position until the balloting for the three Finalists closes at noon Central Time on Sunday, Nov. 18. All Finalists will be in attendance in Orlando, Fla., where The O'Brien Winner will be announced on The Home Depot College Football Awards Show on ESPN Dec. 6.

Fans are able to vote for Semifinalist candidates once daily on The O'Brien's Web site, www.DaveyOBrien.com. The voting will continue throughout the Semifinalist and Finalist rounds until The O'Brien winner is announced, with 5% of the final tally coming directly from the Fan Vote.

TEMPE, Ariz. - This Thursday marks the annual Arizona State University Volleyball Pink-out game to spread breast cancer awareness, celebrate the brave survivors of the disease and gains in treatment, and reflect upon several years of progress worldwide in the search for a safe and effective cure for breast cancer. Fans wearing pink colored clothing will receive $2 admission to the game when the Sun Devils host the Washington State Cougars on Thursday night at 7:00pm.

Other promotions remaining this season include Volleyball Club Night on November 23rd where fans will receive $2 admission if they wear their volleyball club t-shirt and Family Weekend on November 23-24 where families will receive $10 admission for the entire family. Youth teams and other groups, who receive $2 admission, have shown a great deal of support this season and are encouraged to come out and watch their Sun Devils finish their season strong!

For more information on these events, please contact Philip at (480) 727-0200 or Philip.Birkbeck@asu.edu. To access all ASU Volleyball promotional information, including coupons and a schedule of events, please visit the ASU Women's Volleyball  page on thesundevils.com and click on the links on the right side of the page.

Fox Sports Net and ESPN have agreed to distribute Saturday's game between No. 6 Arizona State and No. 4 Oregon at Eugene to a national audience.

Originally scheduled to be televised locally in Oregon and Arizona, the matchup of Top 10 teams will be televised to a national audience through the agreement of the two networks.

FSN will air its production on FSN Arizona, FSN West and FSN Northwest in the state of Oregon. The Oregon Sports Network will distribute the game in the state of Oregon. ESPN will originate its own production to air in all other U.S. television markets not covered by the FSN telecast, including the state of Washington and Northern California.

ESPN College GameDay also will originate from Eugene.

"The Pac-10 is grateful for the cooperation of FSN and ESPN to allow the Arizona State-Oregon game to be shown to a national audience," said Commissioner Tom Hansen. "They have proven to be great partners and the college football fans across the nation will be the winner."

If only Janene Paxton was back in elementary or high school.  Oh, the paper she could write about what she did during her summer “vacation.”

The Arizona State University School of Global Management and Leadership senior might start her essay with, “On my summer vacation, I traveled to Germany.”  Or, maybe this: “On my summer vacation I worked for one of the world’s largest industrial distributors of electronic components.”  Even this would be an accurate account of her summer activities:  “On my summer vacation I played a lead role in the completion of several critical projects involving internal communication, crafting and refining presentations that needed to be done quickly and meticulously.”

What Paxton actually said recently about her summer internship with Avnet EM EMEA (Electronics Marketing, Europe-Middle East-Africa) was, “I learned to apply textbook and classroom knowledge in a real-world environment with a dedicated team of professionals.”

The Phoenix student worked with Avnet’s office outside Munich, serving as a communication assistant in the marketing communication department.  She wrote and edited internal and external publications, created power point presentations for upper-level management, conducted promotional photo shoots, was a contributor at company and department conferences, and generally assisted wherever and whenever she could.

In return for her best efforts, Avnet provided Paxton with some life-long, real-world experiences in the areas of learning and personal growth.

“This was a great experience for me, and I know it will benefit my future greatly,” says Paxton, who found time to visit Switzerland, Italy and Spain when not assisting Avnet.  “I wanted to experience other cultures and locales outside the United States to truly broaden my perspective of the world.

“Additionally, I wanted to experience a world-class functioning marketing team prior to my graduation and my first career position.  Avnet EMEA in Germany met those requirements in an amazing way.”

The internship with Avnet also provided a bonus.

“It not only reaffirmed my intended career path, it energized me to continue pushing forward,” says Paxton, who has her eye on a marketing position after her graduation in May.

Transferring textbook lessons and classroom theory from campus to career is not always a seamless proposition, which is where an internship such as Paxton’s can provide the finishing touches on a college education.

“Internships represent a very individualized opportunity by which a student further explores career interests, skills and talents,” says Ursula Scheren, academic services manager in ASU’s School of Global Management and Leadership.  “The internship experience is an excellent opportunity that builds the confidence of the student.”

Scheren is quick to note that the internship opportunity is a win-win in which both the students and host companies benefit.  Students gain a sense of business and industry and enhance their résumé with career-related experience, while companies hosting interns get a low or no-cost look at potential employees, observing them in the company’s work environment and determining if the right fit exists.  Other student benefits, notes Scheren, include the opportunity to polish career-related skills such as customer service, communication and writing, while creating a professional network of contacts.

“Our (internship) program is fairly flexible,” says Scheren, who has placed students with such leading organizations as the Phoenix Suns, Phoenix Coyotes, USAA, Wachovia Securities, Wells Fargo bank, Challenger Space Center, the IRS and the City of Phoenix Finance Department, to name a few.  “We can either recommend one or two companies to an interested student, or we will let the student propose their ideal internship company, or we will help them to determine the best opportunity and then help them land it.”

For Paxton, the internship matched closely her experience with ASU’s School of Global Management and Leadership.

“I’ve had a great experience here,” she says.  “All my professors have been entertaining, enriching, and very encouraging of my personal development.  The advisement team has also been supportive of my learning endeavors.

“I chose ASU and the SGML school because, as a communication major coming out of Paradise Valley Community College, I matured and recognized that business topics held my interest.  I was fascinated by marketing ads, more specifically the creativity and audience connection for an ad to effective.  The school has been a rewarding place to earn my education and gain the knowledge I need to start my career on the fast track.”

Indeed, Janese Paxton’s summer has been a rewarding and memorable one.  For her and Avnet EM EMEA.  Says Georg Steinberger, Avnet EM EMEA VP of communication, of Paxton’s contributions, “From the beginning, we could count on (Paxton) to contribute to the team’s daily efforts.  (Her) very professional manners in every respect, (her) clear goal orientation and open and engaging personality shows (her) potential as a future executive.”

Sounds like Herr Steinberger’s summer was just as rewarding, thanks to Janese Paxton, Ursula Scheren and ASU’s internship program in its School of Global Management and Leadership.