Paul Hooker
AACSB RECOGNIZES BGSU ALUMNUS PAUL J. HOOKER AS 2018 INFLUENTIAL LEADER
AACSB International, The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB), on Feb. 8 recognized 29 business pioneers for their positive impact on communities around the world. Bowling Green State University alumnus Paul J. Hooker was among them.
Hooker was recognized at AACSB’s 2018 Deans Conference in Las Vegas. He is among a group of honorees from 13 industry sectors whose careers are addressing today’s most pressing social, economic, environmental and educational challenges. AACSB recognized Hooker as a business leader advancing diversity and inclusion.
Hooker, a 1975 graduate of BGSU’s College of Business, is the founder of RallyCap Sports and the retired president of SFERRA. His commitment to advocating for diversity and inclusion started in 1990, when he was coaching a Little League team. He asked a young girl in a wheelchair how she was doing as she watched her brother's game. Upset that she couldn’t participate, her candid two-word answer – “This stinks!” – resonated with him.
Since that day, he and his wife, Margo, have launched a multi-sport program that provides people with disabilities an opportunity to participate in sports, such as soccer, basketball, golf and flag football. BGSU served as a prototype for the program. Over the last 27 years, their efforts have provided countless opportunities to hundreds of young people along with immeasurable support to the friends and families of young people who care for them.
|
