Association for Women in Sports Media
AWSM is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 1987 that supports women in sports media through memberships, paid internships, scholarships, mentoring, regional events, and an annual convention serving 1,000+ professionals and students.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1987
- HeadquartersLewisville, United States
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Association for Women in Sports Media does
The Association for Women in Sports Media (AWSM) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit professional membership organization founded in 1987 by Nancy Cooney, Susan Fornoff, Michele Himmelberg, and Kristin Huckshorn to support the advancement of women in sports media. AWSM is volunteer-managed and headquartered at a mailing address in Lewisville, Texas, with a community of more than 1,000 women and men members, primarily sports media professionals and students aspiring to careers in the industry. The organization operates as a single integrated membership platform rather than a product-and-modules architecture, with no proprietary technology stack described; its digital presence is anchored by awsmonline.org, an email newsletter, Twitter/X accounts, and a members-only job board.
Association for Women in Sports Media firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Association for Women in Sports Media
- Legal name
- Association for Women in Sports Media
- Website
- https://awsmonline.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1987
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- AWSM is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 1987 that supports women in sports media through memberships, paid internships, scholarships, mentoring, regional events, and an annual convention serving 1,000+ professionals and students.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Association for Women in Sports Media industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Professional Association / Nonprofit Membership Organization
- NAICS
- Business Associations (813910), Professional Organizations (81392), Convention and Trade Show Organizers (56192)
- SIC
- Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Services-Educational Services (8200)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Executive Summits & Invitation-Only Forums (MPAGAGAK)
Keywords
Where Association for Women in Sports Media is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Lewisville
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Association for Women in Sports Media business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others
Revenue model
- Membership dues: AWSM generates revenue through annual and multi-year professional and student membership dues. Professional memberships are priced at $60/year or $150/3-year; student memberships are $30/year. These fees support the organization's programming, scholarships, and regional events.
- Donations and grants: AWSM accepts tax-deductible donations from individuals and corporations. The organization runs a 501(c)(3) and encourages monthly contributions ($10/month suggested), one-time gifts, and corporate matching programs. Sponsors also fund conference grants and scholarship endowments.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Annual | Professional membership – Annual |
| Subscription | Multi-year contract | Professional membership – Three-year |
| Subscription | Annual | Student membership – Annual |
| Subscription | Annual | Professional membership – Promotional (March Madness drive) |
| Subscription | Annual | Student membership – Promotional (March Madness drive) |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Convention registration – Professional member |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Convention registration – Student member |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Convention registration – Non-member |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels8 records
Association for Women in Sports Media product offering
Product offeringCore offering
AWSM is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit professional association that provides paid summer internships and scholarships for female college students, a yearlong mentorship program (AWSM Champions), an annual convention and regional events, student chapters at universities, a members-only job board, and industry advocacy. Memberships are sold annually to professionals ($60/year) and students ($30/year), with multi-year and discounted promotional rates available.
Product overview
AWSM is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit professional membership organization founded in 1987 to support women in sports media. The organization operates as a single unified offering rather than a platform-plus-modules architecture. Its core services include a membership program providing networking and professional development access, an annual convention, awards programs (Mary Garber Pioneer Award and Ann Miller Service Award), an internships and scholarships program, student chapters at 17 universities, and the AWSM Champions mentoring program. AWSM also provides a members-only job board as a benefit. The organization connects over 1,000 women and men professionals and students through advocacy, mentorship, and career-enhancement initiatives.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Professional and Student Membership Program Annual and multi-year membership program for individual sports media professionals ($60/year or $150/3-year) and students ($30/year), providing access to the members-only job board, AWSM Champions mentorship, regional and national events, newsletters, and convention discounts.
- Annual AWSM Convention Annual national conference featuring workshops, panels, networking, and award ceremonies. The 2026 convention will be held in Los Angeles from August 9–11, with member and non-member registration tiers.
- AWSM Awards Program Annual recognition program including the Mary Garber Pioneer Award (honoring industry trailblazers) and the Ann Miller Service Award (recognizing organizational contributors).
- Internships & Scholarships Program Places female college students in paid summer internships with sports media employers (ESPN, MLB, LA Times, Fox Sports, Houston Chronicle, Perfect Game, USA Today Sports, etc.) and provides $1,250 scholarships to awardees. More than 200 students have been placed since 1990.
- AWSM Student Chapters Campus-based student groups at 17–24 U.S. universities providing networking, mentorship, and professional development for aspiring sports media professionals.
- AWSM Champions Mentoring Program
Quantifiable outcome
- More than 200 female college students placed in paid summer internships since 1990
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Association for Women in Sports Media
Customer profileNamed customers10 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Association for Women in Sports Media technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Association for Women in Sports Media partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Sports Journalism InstitutecoreThe Sports Journalism Institute (SJI) has an ongoing partnership with AWSM to support the scholarship program. SJI's mission is to increase diversity in sports journalism and has trained more than 350 minority student journalists. AWSM thanks SJI for their continued partnership, and SJI is credited alongside AWSM in endorsing scholarships and supporting diverse talent pipelines.
- Arizona State University Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass CommunicationcoreArizona State University's Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication is the co-sponsor of the 2026 AWSM convention in Los Angeles. Workshops will be hosted at the ASU California Center Broadway (historic Herald Examiner Building) in downtown Los Angeles. Paola Boivin, a professor at ASU's Cronkite School, was named the 2026 Mary Garber Pioneer Award winner.
- Associated Press Sports Editors (APSE)coreAPSE endows the Mary Garber/APSE Scholarship as part of the AWSM Scholar program. APSE is a key industry partner supporting AWSM's scholarship and internship pipeline for diverse sports journalism talent.
- ESPNcoreESPN is AWSM's longest-standing internship host employer and has sponsored AWSM conventions for 11+ consecutive years. ESPN regularly hosts AWSM Scholar interns and its representatives participate in panels and workshops at AWSM conventions.
- Major League Baseball (MLB)coreMLB.com has been a recurring internship host for AWSM Scholars. MLB sponsors AWSM conventions and provides paid summer internship placements for female college students interested in sports media careers.
- Los Angeles SparksminorAWSM's 2026 convention opening event includes a guest attendance opportunity at the Sparks vs. Valkyries WNBA game at Crypto.com Arena on Sunday, Aug. 9, 2026. The Sparks are listed as a convention co-host partner for this event.
- Los Angeles DodgersminorAWSM's 2026 convention includes attendance at the Dodgers vs. Royals game at Dodger Stadium on Monday, Aug. 10. The Dodgers are a convention co-host partner for this off-site event.
- Untamed Spirits (women's sports bar)minorAWSM will host its closing party at Untamed Spirits women's sports bar in Los Angeles on Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2026. This is a networking and social event as part of the AWSM convention program.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights2 records
Association for Women in Sports Media competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Asian American Journalists Association (AAJA): AAJA is a similarly structured diversity-in-journalism professional association offering student scholarships, convention programming, and award programs. It serves a parallel mission to AWSM in diversifying newsrooms and competes for overlapping employer partnerships and student recruitment.
- Women in Sports and Events (WISE): WISE is a professional membership organization dedicated to advancing women in the sports and events industry, with chapters, networking events, mentoring, and a leadership summit. It overlaps AWSM's mission and target audience, particularly around sports business roles adjacent to sports media.
- National Association of Black Journalists: NABJ is a large professional association for journalists of color with a parallel structure of scholarships, student chapters, conventions, and awards. While broader than sports media, NABJ competes for the same diversity-in-journalism narrative, sponsors, and emerging talent pool that AWSM serves.
- Association for Women in Communications: AWC is a professional association focused on advancing women across all communications fields with a comparable membership, scholarship, and recognition model. It represents the broader 'women in communications' category that overlaps with AWSM's women-in-sports-media niche.
- Sports Journalism Institute: SJI operates the most directly comparable program to AWSM's scholarship/internship pipeline, training minority student journalists for sports media careers. SJI is an explicit AWSM partner and the two share the Mary Garber/APSE endowed scholarship, making them mission-aligned peers serving the same talent pipeline.
- National Association of Hispanic Journalists: NAHJ is a peer diversity-in-journalism association with scholarships, student chapters, a national convention, and award programs. It addresses the same structural challenge as AWSM (underrepresentation in journalism) and competes for similar student and professional member segments.
Broad incumbents
- International Women's Media Foundation (IWMF): IWMF is a global nonprofit supporting women journalists worldwide through grants, fellowships, and safety training. It is a broader incumbent in the women-in-media space with a global footprint and established fellowship programs analogous to AWSM's scholarships.
- Society of Professional Journalists: SPJ is the largest broad-based journalism professional association in the U.S., with student chapters, awards, and conventions spanning all media disciplines. It represents the incumbent professional association model that AWSM's sports-media-specific structure is differentiated against.
Emerging players
- Women's Media Center: The Women's Media Center is a nonprofit organization working to increase women's representation in media through reporting, training, and research. It addresses the same underrepresented-in-media challenge as AWSM, with some overlap in sports media coverage and training programming.
- Women's Sports Foundation: Founded by Billie Jean King, the Women's Sports Foundation is a leading advocacy and grantmaking nonprofit for women in sports broadly. While its primary mission is athlete advancement, it increasingly intersects with AWSM's media-representation work through visibility grants and storytelling initiatives.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks7 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Association for Women in Sports Media social profiles
Digital presenceAssociation for Women in Sports Media compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance1 record
Association for Women in Sports Media financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Association for Women in Sports Media leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles13 records
Association for Women in Sports Media funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Association for Women in Sports Media M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Association for Women in Sports Media
What does Association for Women in Sports Media do?
AWSM is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit professional association that provides paid summer internships and scholarships for female college students, a yearlong mentorship program (AWSM Champions), an annual convention and regional events, student chapters at universities, a members-only job board, and industry advocacy. Memberships are sold annually to professionals ($60/year) and students ($30/year), with multi-year and discounted promotional rates available.
Is Association for Women in Sports Media a public or private company?
Association for Women in Sports Media is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Association for Women in Sports Media founded?
Association for Women in Sports Media was founded in 1987. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is Association for Women in Sports Media based?
Association for Women in Sports Media is headquartered in Lewisville, United States, in the North America region.
How does Association for Women in Sports Media make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Membership dues are the primary driver. The others are donations and grants.
Who are Association for Women in Sports Media's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Asian American Journalists Association (AAJA), Women in Sports and Events (WISE), National Association of Black Journalists, Association for Women in Communications, Sports Journalism Institute and National Association of Hispanic Journalists. Broad incumbents are International Women's Media Foundation (IWMF) and Society of Professional Journalists. Emerging players are Women's Media Center and Women's Sports Foundation.
Does Association for Women in Sports Media have an API?
No public API is recorded for Association for Women in Sports Media.
What industry is Association for Women in Sports Media in?
Association for Women in Sports Media's product category is Professional Association / Nonprofit Membership Organization. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAGAGAK, Executive Summits & Invitation-Only Forums. Its NAICS code is 813910 and its SIC code is 8600.