As part of leadership training the Center for Multicultural Cooperation finds it important to expose youth to real world media experiences. Recently, Maloof Sports & Entertainment became one such experience. Maloof's has gained recognition in the sports entertainment & live broadcast sectors by winning seven Emmys in recent years for their productions.

SacYES was able to see behind the court, so to speak, during the Kings vs. Suns game earlier this month. Craig Amazeen, Vice President of Broadcast Operations and Production at Maloof's gave a tour to youth and adult CMC staff explaining how storytelling can go beyond the court, creating a narrative people can keep in the back of their minds while watching a game.

“Amazing. It was such a good experience I used it when I wrote my application essay to college,” Melissa Hojman responded when asked what she thought of the evening. Another youth expressed that she didn't think that sports could be so exciting, summing up her experience in a single word, “Wow.”

Some of the highlights of the evening also included touring the production truck and talking with the crew before the game, chatting with Slamson, as well as seeing the Kings almost beat the Suns.

We look forward to providing more real world experiences for current and prospective SacYES in the coming months with our Professional Speaker Series highlighting experts in the fields of media production, journalism, broadcasting, graphic design and business. Interested youth should contact Rodoflo Vazquez the SacYES program coordinator at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or calling 916-285-1816.