CKA Basketball Emcee

About the job

You're the heartbeat of the event and the person running the gym floor. A one-of-a-kind event, 100 boys, and you're the one holding it together. CKA pays all staff, including emcees.

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Connor Kids Academy is a three-year enrichment program for under-resourced boys that uses basketball as the hook to teach healthy habits and good choices. We launched in 2021 in one city. Today we're in five cities serving 350+ boys, with a sixth opening in 2027.

We run camps and events on college campuses. Every one of them needs an emcee.

A few things worth knowing before you reach out:

This is contract work, hired per event. Summer camps are three full weekdays. Fall and spring events are about three hours on a weekend.

You'll be our go-to in your local market, and we may tap you to work other markets. We’re in Cincinnati, Columbus, Dayton, Louisville, and Nashville – plus Charlotte in 2027. We cover travel expenses.

Our boys are 9 to 12. You need real experience working with kids that age.

You need to know basketball. You don't need to be an elite coach or a former standout. We give you a blueprint for the drills, the scrimmages, and the contests. Our best emcees are sports-oriented people who can run a floor, not necessarily the best players in the room.

You will get feedback constantly, before, during, and after the event. That's how we get better every year. If that's not how you like to work, this isn't the role.

This role is for you if:

• You can hold a gym full of middle school boys without raising your voice to do it.
• You're the one who creates the energy in a room and keeps it there all day. It doesn't come from the crowd, it comes from you.
• You take feedback in the moment, act on it, and don't take it personally.
• You watch the room. When the energy drops or a moment needs more time, you feel it before anyone tells you.
• You treat these boys with respect. They can tell instantly if you don't.

This probably isn't the right fit if:

• You want the mic to be about you.
• You're thin-skinned about being corrected.
• You'd rather show up cold than run through the plan beforehand.
• You're not comfortable with 9 to 12 year olds.

What you'll own

• All on-court programming: skill drills, scrimmages, contests, and fitness, with D1 players worked into every one of them
• Award ceremonies in front of the boys, staff, and families
• Introducing guest speakers and wrapping up their sessions
• Announcements, daily briefings, transitions, and the moments that matter most
• Leading chunks of the pre-event staff meeting

What we're looking for

• Experience on a mic in front of a live crowd. Camps, games, assemblies, church, community events, anything that counts.
• Experience working with kids.
• Enough basketball experience to run a drill and a scrimmage with confidence.
• The ability to work from a prepared run of show.
• Follow-through on commitments. You confirm, you prepare, you're there.

What you get

• Paid on-site
• Travel covered if you're coming from out of town
• The full backing of CKA. On-site operations professionals, extensive planning, and a blueprint built before you arrive, so you can focus on running the floor
• Clear, observable impact on a group of boys through an event they'll remember for years