Esports: Redefining Learning in School
March 19, 2024The annual New Jersey Association of School Business Officials (NJABO) Conference being held at Oceans Casino Resort in Atlantic City, from June 5-7th, has announced its keynote speaker.
This year’s keynote speaker is none other than former NFL player and ESPN broadcaster, Merril Hoge.
Hoge, a 6’2, 320 lb., running back from Idaho State University was drafted in 1987 by the Pittsburgh Steelers where he spent seven years of his career, before joining the Chicago Bears for his final season in 1994.
Shortly after his playing career ended, in 1996, Hoge was hired as an on-air analyst at ESPN, where he worked alongside fellow analyst Ron Jaworsky on the NFL Matchup until April of 2017.
While working at ESPN on February 14, 2003, Hoge was diagnosed with stage II non-Hodgkin lymphoma. It was during this time that he would utilize a phrase he had been saying since childhood, “Find A Way.”
Merril overcame his bout with cancer, only to be told that he would need to undergo open-heart surgery, which took place on October 5, 2015, and only kept him out of work for a mere two weeks.
Merril’s “Find A Way” mindset has helped him overcome career-ending head trauma, depression, cancer, and open-heart surgery, and has been used as a source of inspiration for thousands across the country.
Don’t miss out on Merril’s keynote presentation at this year’s NJASBO Conference, on the morning of June 7th, in Ovation Hall at Oceans Casino Resort, in Atlantic City.
For more information on this year’s conference and to stay up to date with the New Jersey Association of School Business Officials, check out their website at www.njasbo.com.