Devil boxes on Long Island

A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to speak in front of two classes at Molloy College in Rockville Centre, Long Island. The classes were taught by Dr. Greg Sand, formerly of Marist College. Dr. Sand was and still remains a great friend to the track and cross country program. He was our Faculty Mentor for the past several years. But really, he was more than that. Our athletes, particularly our men’s XC runners, connected with him and took him often for classes. He had sort of a cult following among our team, as well as athletes from other sports. He referred to our team as “tribal” and often liked to hang out with our “tribe” in the dining hall, at practices and at meets – especially near his family’s home on Long Island.

Anyway, I spoke in front of his Capstone course on Entrepreneurship – the big topic was whether Coach Pete is an entrepreneur – as well as his Sports Marketing class. A big hit for me was when he noted that several aspiring “entrepreneurs” were paying more attention to their iPhones than to the Esteemed Guest Speaker, at which time he demanded that everyone put away their Devil Boxes (his code phrase for their phones). Devil Boxes! Love it. Dr. Sand is nearing his 70th birthday and has had a fantastically successful career in business, higher education and several other arenas, and he has done it without the services of a cell phone. That’s right. He has NEVER owned a cell phone. The devil, I guess, is in the details!

The trip to Molloy was a fun one. It is a small, Catholic college undergoing great growth. Some of the buildings are old and outdated – thus the perceived need for growth and capital improvements. The faculty, staff and students are all immensely friendly, and the place has a warm vibe. This, basically, describes Marist College circa mid-1980s … when I was a student here! So it was a fun trip on an otherwise dreary Thursday.