Attendees

Jonathan Kraft is President of The Kraft Group, a diversified enterprise with holdings in sports, paper and packaging, and real estate. In sports, the Group’s holdings include the New England Patriots, New England Revolution, Gillette Stadium, and Patriot Place. A Williams College graduate (1986) and Trustee Emeritus, Kraft serves on the college’s Investment Committee. He earned his MBA from Harvard Business School and sits on several boards, notably TKO Group Holdings, which includes the UFC and WWE.

Participating Panels: A Conversation with Jonathan Kraft

Mike Disner is the Chief Operating Officer of the Detroit Lions, entering his 19th NFL season and seventh with the team. He oversees football operations, administration, and business strategy, playing a key role in aligning football and business functions to drive organizational growth. Disner's leadership has helped the Lions achieve historic success, including back-to-back division titles and a record-setting 2024 season. He previously held positions with the Arizona Cardinals and the NFL Management Council, specializing in salary cap strategy and player contracts. Disner is a West Bloomfield, MI native and a proud Williams College graduate.

Participating Panels: A Conversation with Jonathan Kraft; Building a Better Fan Experience

Abi Jackson ‘03 is in her fifth year with Athletes Unlimited, serving as a facilitator in the league's inaugural lacrosse season in 2021 and serving as the Director of Lacrosse from 2022-2024. Last year, Jackson transitioned to operations and currently serves as the Director of Sports Operations. She was a three-sport athlete here at Williams, competing in women's basketball, women's lacrosse, and women's soccer, and helped lead the Ephs women's lacrosse team to a National Runner-Up finish in 2000.

An advocate for the growth of women's lacrosse and women's sports in general, Jackson developed the Athletes Unlimited All Access Program, which provides grassroots lacrosse organizations access to professional players and elite lacrosse training. During her almost 20-year college coaching tenure, Jackson served on the Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) Rules Committee and Board of Directors. Additionally, she helped create the IWLCA Leadership Symposium for Players of Color, an annual event that offers collegiate players of color a platform for communication, leadership, and mentorship skills, as well as access to a robust network of resources. Jackson continues to be involved with the IWLCA as a member of the Equity and Inclusion Committee and host of the annual Hall of Fame dinner.

Participating Panels: The Future and Growth of Women's Sports; What it Takes to Run a Major Sporting Event; Coaching Conversations

Dave Clawson’s 36-year coaching career includes 25 years as a Division I head coach, leading programs at Fordham, Richmond, Bowling Green, and Wake Forest. He now serves as a Special Advisor on Athletics Issues at Wake Forest and works as a studio analyst for ESPN and ACCN. 

Participating Panels: New Trends in Sports Media; Coaching Conversations

Greg Kim is Vice President of Strategy at Crown Properties Collection, Oak View Group's boutique commercial division providing strategy and sponsorship services for premier sports and entertainment properties. 

Previously, he was Head of Counter Logic Gaming at Madison Square Garden Sports, managing gaming strategy and business operations. His esports leadership experience also includes serving as Director of Esports at Evil Geniuses, where he built a top-tier League of Legends operation; and as LCS Insights Lead at Riot Games, leading strategy and data analytics for the League of Legends Championship Series.

Participating Panels: Transitions from Professional Services to Sports; New Tech Innovations in Sports; Using Your Liberal Arts Education in Sports 

Hanna is a sports marketing and innovation professional with a passion for blending creativity, technology, and the world of sports. She began her career at Octagon in Stamford, CT, working with a variety of brands on experiential campaigns across the sports and entertainment landscape. She then joined Verizon’s in-house creative agency, leading projects across both retail and live experiences. During that time, she also played five seasons of professional women’s hockey for the Connecticut Whale in the NWHL/PHF. Now on the Innovation team at the NHL, she collaborates with the league’s technology partners to develop initiatives that enhance the game from a player, coach, operations, and fan perspective.

Participating Panels: The Future and Growth in Women's Sports; Building a Better Fan Experience; New Tech Innovations in Sports

With over a decade driving fan and customer engagement for global brands, Katie has built her career at the intersection of data, storytelling, and loyalty. From developing retention and CRM strategies at Deckers, Vail Resorts, and Firstleaf to leading fan engagement at the NFL, she's focused on turning audiences into passionate communities. Now, as Senior Director of Growth & Retention for Denver Summit FC, Katie is helping build Denver’s first professional women’s sports team - an NWSL expansion club - creating data-driven experiences and lasting connections that will fuel the next generation of fans in Denver and beyond.

Participating Panels: The Future and Growth of Women's Sports; Building the Better Fan Experience

Bryan graduated from Williams in 2021 with degrees in statistics and economics, while also pitching for the baseball team and working in Sports Information during the offseason. Throughout his college summers, Bryan had internships in business analytics, polling, and with a non-profit before joining the New York Mets in a pro scouting role after graduation. Prior to the 2022 season, Bryan switched onto the player personnel team, where he now works on player-related transactions including free agency, trades, and the amateur draft.

Participating Panels: Research and Analytics Presentations; Building Smarter Front Offices

Ben Rosenblum is the Director of Strategy & Portfolio Operations at Fenway Sports Management. In this role, he works across Fenway Sports Group's portfolio of sports and entertainment properties, which includes the Boston Red Sox, Liverpool Football Club, the Pittsburgh Penguins, and various golf investments. Prior to his role at FSM, Ben spent seven years at Bain & Company as a management consultant, where he led teams across various industries and capabilities. He earned an MBA from the MIT Sloan School of Management in 2022 and graduated from Williams College in 2016.

Participating Panels: Transitions from Professional Services into Sports; Using Your Liberal Arts Education in Sports

Misha Vitels currently oversees operations and technology for Earth Brands. He played on the men’s tennis team and studied Economics at Williams College. Originally from Long Island, NY, Misha is also an avid space and rocket-ship enthusiast.

Participating Panels: On Deck x EphStart Pitch Competition: Sponsored by Earth Brands

Peter Frelinghuysen oversees sales and marketing for Earth Brands. During his time at Williams, Peter was the captain of the men’s tennis team and studied Economics & History as a dual-major; Peter is a NCAA D3 National Champion in doubles, and has been awarded All-American Honors 3x. Peter is from NYC, competes in cycling races and triathlons, and supports Chelsea F.C. in his free time.

Participating Panels: On Deck x EphStart Pitch Competition: Sponsored by Earth Brands

Jennifer is a Data Scientist in Baseball Analytics for the Chicago Cubs. She started with the Cubs in early 2020 after earning her Ph.D. in Computer Science from Princeton University and spending the summer of 2019 as an intern with the New York Yankees. She graduated from Williams in 2013, having majored in Math and Computer Science.

With the Cubs, Jennifer focuses on pitch models. Her work is used by the Major League team for game planning and by Player Development as a tool to help decide which pitch(es) to add or remove from a pitcher's repertoire.

Participating Panels: Research and Analytics Presentations

Darren’s career in sports began in the Williams sports information department, where he worked for the legendary Dick Quinn writing articles for men’s hockey team. After one season with the New England Patriots as a media relations intern, Darren spent the next four years at New England Sports Network, where he wrote articles for NESN.com and worked briefly as a Celtics and Red Sox beat writer. In 2018, he joined NBC Sports Boston, beginning as a digital content producer before transitioning to a Managing Editor role in 2023. Darren oversees editorial operations for NBCSportsBoston.com, a job that includes writing, editing and feeding the insatiable appetite of Boston sports fans. 

Participating Panels: New Trends in Sports Media; Using Your Liberal Arts Education in Sports

Claire is a seasoned, award-winning sports marketing leader with over a decade of experience driving brand growth, fan engagement, and subscriber acquisition for top media companies. Currently as the Director of Sports Marketing at Paramount+, she leads strategy for soccer properties including the UEFA Champions League, Serie A, English Football League, and more, overseeing marketing campaigns and cross-functional initiatives. Previously at ESPN, she managed marketing for marquee sports properties such as the NFL, US Open, Wimbledon, and The Masters. Throughout her career, she has combined strategic insight and creative storytelling to deliver impactful, fan-centric campaigns.

Participating Panels: New Trends in Sports Media; Building the Better Fan Experience; Using Your Liberal Arts Education in Sports

Rebecca graduated from Williams College in 2022 and has worked on projects for HBO, Amazon, ESPN, Paramount, Amazon, Showtime, and more. In 2024, she won an Emmy for HBO's Murder in Boston, which was also nominated for a Peabody Award and went on to win a 2025 DuPont-Columbia Award. She currently works for Words+Pictures and is based in New York City.

Participating Panels: New Trends in Sports Media

Will Whiston is an Operating Advisor at Arctos Partners and Founder of Modern 10 Sports Advisory, advising global sports properties on commercialization strategy. Named a 2025 “Leader Under 40” by Leaders in Sport, Will was previously Executive Vice President, Olympics & Paralympics at On Location, where he led the creation and execution of the Olympic Games’ first-ever official global hospitality and travel program, a revolutionary new commercial model for the Summer and Winter Olympic Games. An early member of On Location’s management team, Will previously led strategy, corporate development and commercial rights partnerships, helping transform On Location from a Super Bowl-focused business into a global industry-leader that was acquired by TKO Group. A Harvard Business School graduate, will started his career at Morgan Stanley and in private equity investing after graduating from Williams College, where he played soccer.

Matt Ratajczak is a sports executive with more than a decade of experience in the soccer business. In his role as Assistant Sporting Director for the Philadelphia Union, Matt is responsible for player contracts, salary cap and budgets, and supporting Sporting Director Ernst Tanner with general management across the Sporting Department. Prior to joining the Union, Matt spent 6+ years at Major League Soccer HQ helping build the league’s Player Development department and launch its Pro Player Pathway, including MLS NEXT Pro, MLS NEXT, and MLS GO. After graduating from Williams and before joining Major League Soccer, Matt played soccer professionally for Ungmennafélagið Fjölnir for 2 seasons in Iceland. He is a native of Brooklyn, New York and currently resides in Philadelphia with his wife Erin and three daughters – Poppie (3), Blake (1), and Willow (1).

Participating Panels: Building Smarter Front Offices; Coaching Conversations

Michael currently serves as the COO at Lucra, a Series B stage software startup that provides loyalty tech to hospitality, entertainment, and media companies. Prior Lucra, he spent 6 years at Goldman Sachs in investment banking and corporate strategy roles. Michael received his MBA from Stanford Business School and his bachelor's degree from Williams Soccer, where he was a proud member of the Men's Soccer team.

Participating Panels: Transitions From Professional Services to Sports; Tech Innovations in Sports Business

Will serves as a Client Manager at RXR Sports, a boutique talent management agency representing the world’s leading adventure, endurance, and outdoor athletes. Will manages RXR athletes' brand deals, partnerships, events & speaking engagements, and provides general business-related guidance. Before joining RXR, Will served as Chief of Staff at Playbook Sports, where I helped scale the company's operations across software, fundraising, and events. At Williams, Will was a sprinter on the track & field team, and is excited to be back on campus!

Participating Panels: Innovation and Technology in Sports Business