A 1991 graduate of the S.I. Newhouse School of Communications at Syracuse University (B.S. Degree in Television/Radio/Film Production), Rob spent most of the 90’s working in radio, primarily in Promotions and Marketing, which involved a significant amount of emceeing and hosting both small and large scale events.  Radio formats included adult contemporary, AOR (Album Oriented Rock), and Standards.

In the year 2000, and again in 2001, Mr. Shapiro was the On-Field host of the first 2 seasons of the Long Island Ducks Professional Baseball team.  His duties included interaction both on the field and in the stands as a representative of the L.I. Ducks, playing games with the fans between innings, leading a group sing-a-long during the 7^th inning stretch, as well getting the crowd “pumped up” as needed.  A basic outline of the games and sponsor announcements were provided each night, and the rest of what was said was improvisation.  The average attendance at each game was 6,000+ fans. 

From 2001-2008, Mr. Shapiro was the stadium announcer for the Long Island Rough Riders professional soccer team.  Responsibilities included all announcing duties, as well as providing the music before, during, and after the game.  Scripts were provided for all commercial announcements; all game announcements and other announcements as needed were improvised.

In 2007 and again in 2008, Mr. Shapiro was the post-race festival announcer for the Men’s Health Urbanathlon, which was held at South Street Seaport.  While bullet points were provided, most announcements made were improvised so as to keep with the more laid back feel of the festival, which was for the athletes and their families to enjoy before and after the race results are announced.