Los Angeles Rams Announce Apprenticeship To Increase Minority Representation In Scouting
In early August of 2020, the Los Angeles Rams General Manager Les Snead announced a new program that aims to increase women and Black, Indigenous, people of color (BIPOC) in NFL scouting positions. The Scouting Apprenticeship will have an inaugural class of 10 people who will learn the ins and outs of NFL scouting and development.
Scouting positions in football often lead to advanced player personnel jobs, front office positions and general manager. The program will run through the course of 10 months and will include experiential learning, mentorship and networking opportunities. All 10 scouting fellows, which includes two women, have been involved in football in different roles like operations, coaching, and analysts at the high school, college and professional levels.
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“We have to be intentional in identifying, developing and advising these young men and women and offer hands-on experience and mentorship from scouts and personnel professionals at the highest level of sports,” Les Snead said to the Los Angeles Times. “It is imperative for us to spend the necessary time to build a successful, ongoing program that will widen the pool of candidates to be the personnel leaders of tomorrow.”
The candidates were selected through the NFL’s program pipeline and went through a selection process and virtual interviews. The mentorship will include the fellows having an advisor within the Rams organization. According to the Rams, this will help with the expansion of scouting skills, experiences and become more involved with the scouting processes. The advisors in the program will include Senior Executive Brain Xanders, Director of Pro Scouting Ray Agnew and the directors of scouting strategy, college scouting and draft management.
The program will meet through virtual summits and touch points. The scouting apprenticeship will end after the 2021 NFL Draft, which is set for April 29 through May 1, 2021 in Cleveland, Ohio.
