University of North Carolina Athletics
Scholarship Fund To Honor Former UNC SID Brewer
October 20, 2000 | General
Oct. 20, 2000
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - Former UNC Sports Information Director Rick Brewer, a man who has contributed to the Tar Heels' athletic program for 32 years, will now be an official part of the University forever. Two-hundred and twenty-one friends, colleagues and former employees have raised $72,985.88 to establish the Rick Brewer Scholarship Fund in his honor with the School of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Over the course of Brewer's career at UNC the school won 28 national championships, two of which were in men's basketball, captured 180 ACC Championships and were invited to 19 bowl games. He worked with athletes such as Michael Jordan. Mia Hamm and Marion Jones and mentored nearly 180 full-time and student employees in the Sports Information Office. Brewer opted to take early retirement in February 2000, but he continues to work at the University on a part-time basis as the sports information director emeritus.
Director of Media Relations for Olympic Sports Dave Lohse has worked with Brewer for over 23 years and helped organize the scholarship fund. "What sets Rick apart from other people in this business is the fact he has done so much for his profession as a whole to advance it into the 21st century." Lohse said. "The large number of assistant SIDs and student assistants who he has mentored and advocated for as they advanced their careers is staggering. These people owe a debt to Rick that realistically can never be repaid."
Richard Cole, dean of the School of Journalism and Mass Communication, said the scholarship would assist students who had expressed an interest in pursuing a career in the field of sports journalism, broadcasting or public relations on the collegiate, amateur or professional level. Cole said that Brewer had already made an enormous impact on journalism students over the past three decades.
"He has helped instill respect for the field of sports journalism." Cole said. "He also has taught our students proper ethics and conduct in the field.
Brewer was named the University's first assistant SID upon graduation from UNC-CH in 1971. He was elected to the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) Hall of Fame in 1991, served as CoSIDA president in 1996 and received the Arch Ward Award for lifetime achievement in the profession from CoSIDA in 1999. Since 1983, he has been a member of the Media Coordination Committee at the Final Four of the NCAA Men's Basketball Championships, and in 1984 he served as a press officer for the United States Olympic Committee at the Summer Olympic Games in Los Angeles.
"Rick Brewer has spent his professional career being one of the progressive minds in the college sports information business. His service to the University of North Carolina, to its student-athletes and to its coaches, has been exemplary," Lohse said. "The Rick Brewer Scholarship is truly a most special way to honor and recognize Rick's eleemosynary nature towards his fellow man."
Note: Contributions to The Rick Brewer Scholarship are still being accepted. Please make checks payable to the Rick Brewer Scholarship and mail to Jennifer Lamb, Director of Development, School of Journalism and Mass Communication, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Campus Box 3365, Chapel Hill, NC 27599. Donations of any amount will be greatly appreciated.
Currently: $72,985.88 has been given in gifts and pledges from 221 contributors as of October 20, 2000.
