UWindsor alumna Cailey Theos is manager of partnership marketing at Canada Basketball (photo courtesy of Cailey Theos)
By Kate Hargreaves
When UWindsor Sport Management and Leadership alumna Cailey Theos (MHK ’21) recalls her experience with the program, she describes it as being part of a family.
From faculty, staff and peers to alumni and internship partners, she says “everybody that works within the program cares so much about everybody’s success. It feels so authentic.”
Theos, who graduated with her master’s in 2021, is now the manager of partnership marketing at Canada Basketball.
Her portfolio includes managing not only major corporate partnerships with brands such as Sun Life Financial, The Keg Steakhouse, Nike and Gatorade amongst others, but also overseeing retail initiatives, athlete brand integration and community impact programs such as the UNIFIED Assist Program, UNIFIED Partnership Program and National Indigenous Basketball Camp.
“We wear a lot of hats as we are in the non-profit sports world,” Theos laughs.
Her foray into the sports industry began with her time in the Sport Management and Leadership program, which she applied to after noticing her aptitude for business alongside a lifetime love of sports.
Initially planning to follow her undergraduate in kinesiology into graduate schooling in physiotherapy, Theos realized her strengths were not in biomechanics but in communications.
She had run track and played volleyball in high school but pivoted to serving as a team manager by grade 12 after an injury.
“I started to realize that I kind of like being on the more administrative side of sport,” she explains.
Only weeks into starting the graduate program at the University of Windsor, she came across an internship opportunity at the National Hockey League (NHL) and found herself fully supported by her professors in pursuing it.
Beating out thousands of other applicants, after four rounds of interviews, Theos landed at the NHL as an integrated partnership marketing intern, working closely with major corporate brands such as Kraft, Honda, Rogers and Tim Horton’s.
“In professional sport, you’re kind of thrust into a space where you are connecting with so many different people from various parts of the industry,” Theos says. “I left that internship with contacts in so many sectors of sport and business within Toronto and across Canada in such a short time.”
Following a stint working as a coordinator of social media and content for the Windsor Lancers, Theos found further opportunities when a peer who had interned at Canada Basketball flagged a job opportunity at the National Sport Organization.
“I started the day after I graduated,” Theos says, taking on a digital content and communications role prior to her current managerial position in partnership marketing.
The fit with Canada Basketball was a natural one as the sport holds a special place in Theos’ childhood.
“My dad went to the University of Windsor and is actually a kinesiology program graduate,” she explains. “He always played volleyball and ran track, but basketball was his biggest love.”
“I grew up going to a Windsor Lancers game almost every weekend with my dad. I went to the Lancer camps. I was in the stands when the women’s team won five consecutive championships. My love for basketball really comes down to my connection with my dad and memories such as going across to Detroit, to Auburn Hills to watch the Pistons in their era.”
Theos was also drawn to the accessibility of basketball.
“All you need is a friend, a basketball and a decent pair of shoes, and you’re off to the races,” she says. “The ability to connect others through the game allows me to create a bigger impact in the work I do every day.”
Part of this impact is continuing the legacy of the UWindsor Sport Management and Leadership program as an alumna and mentor for current students interning with Canada Basketball.
“To have a leader that cares and looks out for you and actually means it and wants to hear and support your goals and create pathways for you, that meant the world to me and made the world of difference when I was an intern myself,” Theos says.
“The fact that I’m now in a position for these last couple years to have interns and report staff, it’s really a full-circle moment that I can now be that leader for others. It’s extra special when it’s someone from the program that I graduated from.”
One of the interns that Theos supervised this past summer was Taijon Eccleston-Graham, a second-year Masters of Sport Management and Leadership (MSML) student who interned in partnership marketing, community programming and retail.
Eccleston-Graham's internship was the result of building networks and relationships both in the Faculty of Human Kinetics and with alumni in the sport industry, which allowed him to connect with Theos.
His experience at Canada Basketball enabled him to not only connect with others in sport but to gain insight into the various career pathways available.
“I was able to meet people and have real conversation with them,” he says. “Obviously, all these people now work in the sport industry, but I met people who before were working at hotels and landscaping, and they ended up having a big role in sport. No path is linear.”
Eccleston-Graham, a former USPORTS basketball player at Nipissing University, is currently working in basketball operations with the Lancers men’s basketball team at the University of Windsor.
He hopes to become involved in pro sports, specifically the NBA or WNBA, upon graduation, with his experience at Canada Basketball driving home the importance of relationship-building with peers, faculty and industry partners.
“You never know when your paths may cross again,” he says, referring to classmates or connections made during the program.
Theos echoes the importance of relationships.
“It’s really special to be at this level now where there are so many people that I partner with or work with day-to-day who are also alumni,” she says.
While Theos’ mentoring of Eccleston-Graham is a recent example, Jess Dixon, professor and Kinesiology department head, notes that these type of alumni connections have been happening for decades.
An alumnus of the program himself, Dr. Dixon notes that his classmates from 25 years ago are now working in sports industry and have been able to mentor and take on interns in the program, continuing that legacy.
“It’s great to see our alums giving back to the program in their willingness to take students under their wing and show them the ropes of what it takes to be successful working in the sports industry.”
Dixon explains that the industry can be grueling, with long hours, hard work and sometimes cutthroat competition.
“Having our graduates who have gone through that process and have lived those experiences to take on our current students, it’s really cool to see those relationships continuing.”
Theos can attest to this intense schedule as she juggles many responsibilities at Canada Basketball, all with a clear vision for giving back.
“To be able to turn my passion into purpose is an opportunity I don’t take for granted—even on my longest days, I still love my job,” she says.
Theos recently presented at the inaugural UWindsor Sports Industry Conference, organized by Eccleston-Graham along with fellow MSML student Omar Bacchus.
“She’s not that far removed from our program, but she’s become well connected with our alumni,” Dixon notes, citing Theos’ work alongside fellow conference presenters such as Olympian Melissa Bishop, James Allen of Sports Canada, Toronto Raptors’ John Wiggins and partners from Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment.
“It’s all because of the connection with the University of Windsor.”
Theos credits the ability to make these connections to the faculty members at the University of Windsor.
“The thing that differentiates the MSML program is the power of the connections the professors have,” she explains. “They have so many connections to previous alumni or industry professionals. When it comes to connecting current students to respected internship opportunities, truly it’s unmatched.”
Eccleston-Graham also cites faculty support in the MSML program as a major part of what led to it being named the number one sports industry program in Canada by SportsBusiness once again.
“They really invest in the students and support them to be the best version of themselves,” he says. “They’ve had so much experience in the industry, and they’ve met so many people, so they’re really able to guide us.”
"This place gives you the tools that you need to succeed in the industry,” says Eccleston-Graham. “If you want hands-on experience, if you want to go to a place where you can feel welcomed and be yourself and make those relationships, Windsor is the place to be.”
Explaining the feeling of encountering other UWindsor alumni in her work, Theos describes feeling a sense of connection.
"It’s a very special family and legacy to be a part of," she says.
For more information about the MSML program, visit the Faculty of Human Kinetics website.