Eight University of Michigan students have been selected to attend the MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference through its mentorship program. 

The University of Michigan School of Information (UMSI) is providing funding for 10 more U-M students to attend the conference, a leading forum on the increasing role of analytics in the global sports industry. It will take place in Boston, Massachusetts on March 3-4. 

“Sports analytics is the use of statistics and data generated in the course of competition and sometimes practice to produce insights that have competitive advantage,” says Vice Provost for Academic and Budgetary Affairs Thomas Finholt. Finholt is a former UMSI dean and an early and active proponent of sports analytics. “Probably the canonical example is Michael Lewis’s book ‘Moneyball’ and the subsequent movie starring Brad Pitt.”

The MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference is committed to elevating and broadening diversity in sports. Its mentorship program focuses on providing opportunities for women and Black students and early sports careerists to connect with senior professionals, network across the industry and build skills. 

Applications for the mentorship program were reviewed by Finholt and Jacques Chestnut, administrative assistant serving the faculty and the Office of the Dean at UMSI. 

U-M students in the 2023 mentorship program: 

Emeka Amadi - UMSI, Master of Applied Data Science 

Elaine Czarnik - UMSI, Master of Science in Information 

Yasemin Gunal - UMSI, Bachelor of Science in Information

Yun Lee - UMSI, Master of Science in Information 

Kaleb Parker - UMSI, Master of Science in Information 

Sarandia Papanastasopoulos - UMSI, Bachelor of Science in Information

Nicole Savitsky - UMSI, Bachelor of Science in Information

Sara Short - School of Kinesiology, Bachelor of Arts in Sport Management

U-M students attending the 2023 MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference with UMSI support: 

Daniel Aboul-Hassan - School of Kinesiology, Bachelor of Arts in Sport Management

Casey Bressler - College of Literature, Science, and the Arts, Bachelor of Science in Economics  

Dhaval Dhere - UMSI, Master of Applied Data Science 

Bret Greenacre - UMSI, Master of Applied Data Science

Brandon Huggard - UMSI, Bachelor of Science in Information 

Chloe Minieri - UMSI, Master of Science in Information 

Anna Nguyen - UMSI, Master of Science in Information 

Lucas Szentgyorgyi - College of Literature, Science, and the Arts 

Claire Wan - UMSI, Bachelor of Science in Information

Matthew Wellman - College of Literature, Science, and the Arts, Bachelor of Science in Statistics 

— Martha Spall, UMSI writer