William Horton is currently serving on active duty stationed at Fort Carson, Colorado. His job is Religious Affairs as an NCO (Non-Commissioned Officer). Horton also takes classes with Southern Nazarene University in pursuit of his Master of Arts in Sports Management and Administration degree. Horton said going to SNU was not only for the education, but to carry on a family tradition as well. 

“There are a couple of reasons I chose SNU for my master’s degree. The first and probably the most important is I wanted to carry on my parent’s legacy at SNU. Both of my parents are alumni of SNU. My brother and I went to SNU for a short amount of time, but for some unforeseen reasons, we did not finish our undergrad at SNU,” said Horton. “The other reason was SNU allowed me to help build their ROTC program for the last three years. I worked in the basement of the Bever Science Building. My everyday contact with the Veterans Center also influenced me to pursue a master’s degree. I was only planning on getting my undergrad, but my interaction with Russell “Bart” Ermeling changed my mind. It was also doing my internship at SNU Athletics that really showed me the importance of getting a master’s degree.”

As a student, Horton said he has enjoyed his professors and their willingness and understanding of how busy life can be. The program surprised Horton in a good way. 

“I didn’t expect how much I enjoyed the Multi-Media Class. I also did not expect how much can be pressed into an accelerated six-week course,” said Horton. 

Having his master’s degree will help Horton accelerate his professional career in sports. 

“This degree will help my profession by giving me an edge compared to my peers for promotion. I have seven years until I retire, and this degree will set me up for my future career. I will use my degree to work in sport management. For me, that looks like two things, becoming an Athletic Director at NCAA DI or DII level or working for a Professional Sports team. My dream organization would be to work for the Orlando City Soccer Club,” said Horton. 

The service member offers this advice to anyone looking into SNU for their master’s degree. 

“My advice for adult learners is never to give up on your dream. There will be days where you want to give up, but you must fight on because the reward outweighs the struggle.”