DETROIT (6/25/2021) -- The Rocket Mortgage Classic is all set for next weekend and with the PGA in town comes a number of events as University of Detroit Mercy Director of Athletics Robert C. Vowels, Jr. will take part in THE JOHN SHIPPEN Sports Business Summit.

The Summit will take place from June 29-30 and will feature a number of speakers including Vowels, Lisa Borders (Founder & CEO, Golden Glow Media; Former President, WNBA), Courtney Alexander (Director of Guest Services, Detroit Lions), Tracy Ellis-Ward (Chief Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Officer and Senior Associate Commissioner, Big East Conference), Gus Johnson (Broadcaster, FOX Sports) and Allison Giorgio (VP of Marketing, PUMA North America).

Vowels will speak on Tuesday, June 29, at approximately 11:30 a.m. on a panel about Becoming An Athletic Director and Sports Commissioner, which will also include:

• Portia Hoeg Executive Director, Centennial Conference
• Mark Hollis VP of Business Development, Rock Ventures
• Martin Jarmond Athletic Director, UCLA
• Andrea Williams COO, College Football Playoff (CFP)
• Regina Williams Athletic Director, Withrow University HS

THE JOHN SHIPPEN Event, Including the National Invitational for Black Golfers and the Sports Business Summit for Students of Color was Established by Intersport to Identify Historical Barriers to, and Expand Upon Black Representation in Golf and to Create Awareness, Access and Opportunities for Persons of Color in the Business of Sports

Vowels was named the 14th Director of Athletics on May 28, 2013. He has been part of the Horizon League Board of Directors and was the Chair of the Athletic Directors and Executive Council from 2013-15. He is also the current chair of the Horizon League Finance Committee, the Horizon League Governance Committee, the Ad Hoc Governance Committee, a member of the Competition Advisory Committee and is the Sports Committee Administrative Liaison for men's basketball.

Before coming to Detroit Mercy, he served as the NCAA Vice President of Membership and Student-Athlete Affairs, where he oversaw educational programs designed to improve student-athlete wellbeing, leadership development and inclusion. Prior to that, Vowels was the Commissioner of two intercollegiate athletic conferences at Division I (Southwestern Athletic Conference) and Division II (Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference) programs. Some of the accomplishments during his years as a Conference Commissioner included league expansion and television packages. He also worked as an Associate Commissioner at the Big Ten Conference and Assistant Athletic Director for Compliance at Vanderbilt University.

He received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Duke University in Durham, North Carolina where he was a full scholarship football student-athlete and his Juris Doctorate from the North Carolina Central University School of Law. 

Rocket Mortgage is the presenting partner of THE JOHN SHIPPEN. National partners include: Trion Solutions, the nation's largest minority-owned professional employer organization; DOW; The Children's Foundation; Cooper Tires; CDW; Optum and MasterCard.

ABOUT 'THE JOHN SHIPPEN'
Intersport, in partnership with Rocket Mortgage and in collaboration with Woods and Watts Effect, announced earlier this year the launch of a new national golf event: 'THE JOHN SHIPPEN' to identify historical barriers and expand Black representation in golf. The event was also created to address the lack of Black representation in business and leadership roles in golf and across professional sports.

THE JOHN SHIPPEN Sports Business Summit was established by Intersport to create awareness of opportunities within the sports industry for high school and college students of color. On June 29 and 30, students from across the country will be able to hear from and engage with sports and business executives, athletes and influencers using a state-of-the-art virtual platform. Invited speakers will share their experiences and advice about how to pursue and secure a career within the multi-faceted sports industry. THE JOHN SHIPPEN Sports Business Summit will cover a wide variety of topics ranging from "How to Land Your First Sports Internship" and "The Business of Sneakers" to "Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Within Sports" and "The World of Global Sponsorship."

Registration for THE JOHN SHIPPEN Sports Business Summit is FREE, and available now at www.thejohnshippen.com.

Students can apply for paid internships and scholarships from partners, organizations and foundations within and beyond the sports industry. Scholarship applications are currently being accepted at www.thejohnshippen.com. 

ABOUT JOHN SHIPPEN, JR.
As a teenager, John Shippen, Jr. worked as a caddie at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club in Southampton, New York. He played in the second U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills in 1896 and finished the tournament in 5th place. He was awarded $10.00 in prize money, which officially secured his place in history as the 1st U.S.-born golf professional and the 1st Black golf professional.

Shippen played in four additional U.S. Opens and was hired as the golf professional at the Maidstone Club in East Hampton, New York. He later worked as a golf professional at Aronimink Golf Club near Philadelphia, then spent the majority of his working life at Shady Rest Golf Course in Scotch Plains, New Jersey - the first African-American owned and operated golf club in the United States - where he worked from 1924-1960.

The John Shippen Memorial Golf Foundation was founded in 1995 by Thurman and Ruby Simmons in Scotch Plains. They began studying his legacy in 1988 and have spent more than 30 years elevating Shippen's name and recognizing his place in American history. In addition to funding paid internship and scholarship opportunities, a portion of the proceeds from THE JOHN SHIPPEN will be donated to The John Shippen Memorial Golf Foundation.  

ABOUT ROCKET MORTGAGE
Detroit-based Rocket Mortgage, the nation's largest home mortgage lender, enables the American Dream of homeownership and financial freedom through its obsession with an industry-leading, digital-driven client experience. Rocket Mortgage closed $320 billion dollars of mortgage volume across all 50 states in 2020. In late 2015, it introduced the first fully digital, completely online mortgage experience. Currently, 99% of all home loans originated by the company utilize Rocket Mortgage technology.

Rocket Mortgage moved its headquarters to downtown Detroit in 2010. Today, Rocket Mortgage and Rocket Companies employ 24,000 full-time team members nationwide. The company generates loan production from web centers located in Detroit, Cleveland and Phoenix and operates a centralized loan processing facility in Detroit. Rocket Mortgage ranked highest in the country for customer satisfaction for primary mortgage origination by J.D. Power for the past 11 consecutive years, 2010 – 2020 and also ranked highest in the country for customer satisfaction among all mortgage servicers the past seven straight years, 2014 – 2020.
Rocket Companies, Rocket Mortgage's parent company, ranked #5 on Fortune's list of the "100 Best Companies to Work For" in 2021 and has placed in the top third of the list for 18 consecutive years. For more information and company news visit QuickenLoans.com/PressRoom.