DE PERE, Wis. St. Norbert College is teaming up with the Green Bay Packers to co-sponsor a national conference on sport and society next spring, resulting from a first-of-its-kind partnership between an NFL team and an institution of higher education.

The academic conference will be titled "A Mirror of our Culture: Sport and Society in America." Sessions will be offered both on the St. Norbert College campus and at Lambeau Field.

"We look forward to working with St. Norbert College on this very unique conference," said Packers president/CEO Mark Murphy. "The college has been a great partner of the Packers for more than 50 years by hosting our players and coaches at training camp, and now we're excited to work with them in this new endeavor."

Experts from around the world will converge on northeast Wisconsin to present their papers. As well as the academic presentations, the May 26-28, 2010, conference will feature an exhibit area for publishers, a gallery exhibition and a film festival.

The event is the brainchild of Michael Marsden, dean of the college and academic vice president. Marsden says, "St. Norbert College, with one of the best Division III athletic programs in the country, is partnering with the Green Bay Packers, one of the most storied National Football League franchises in the country, to co-host a national conference on sport and society. It will bring together academics who study sport from many different disciplinary perspectives, with sports professionals."

For more information on the "Sport and Society" conference, contact Karen Cleereman, conference administrative coordinator, at sportandsociety@snc.edu or (920) 403-3777. For a conference overview go to www.snc.edu/sportandsociety.