Severn School Graduate Is A Shining Example To Follow Your Dreams

Author HD Ryan once wrote, “Dare to dream big, then do something about it.”

Severn School graduate AJ Gersh has followed his dream of being a sports broadcaster ever since he can remember. Now, he is a familiar face on the FOX45 TV station.

Gersh began his “broadcasting career” by providing the play-by-play of televised Orioles games to his parents, sister and grandparents at their home in Linstead.

Gersh then took the next step of that dream by attending broadcasting camp every summer from the time he was 12 until he was 18 years old.

“Camp was great,” Gersh said. “It was held at the College of Notre Dame (now Notre Dame of Maryland University), and it was a week-long camp and we did something different every day. We practiced interviewing, doing play-by-play, talk shows, and the highlight was holding a press conference with the Oriole players and broadcasters. At the end of the week, they gave us a 10-minute tape of our highlights.”

Gersh was an energetic child growing up and was involved at Temple Beth Shalom in Arnold, where he was a cantor, and was class president of Severn’s middle school from grades six through eight and during his freshman year at Severn School.

Gersh also played soccer at Severn School, and even though he was not a starter, Gersh was elected captain his senior year.

“AJ was the most impactful player and team member I have ever coached,” said Severn head soccer coach Mike McCarthy. “He was instrumental in leading that team to the conference championship.”

In addition to playing soccer, Gersh was in every play and musical that Severn orchestrated in his four years at the Evergreen Road campus.

“I think I was in 10 shows at Severn, and I just love to sing,” said Gersh, who has written hundreds of songs. “I think I was the busiest kid on the planet.”

Gersh also enjoyed growing up in Severna Park by riding his bike on the B&A Trail, walking in the Greater Severna Park and Arnold Chamber of Commerce’s Fourth of July parade, and going out on the Severn River via the family’s kayak or boat.

“I have great memories of my grandmother picking me and any friends up from school and we would go to Rita’s, Garry’s Grill or Jeno’s,” Gersh said. “I really missed Severna Park after I left for college.”

Gersh studied broadcasting at Syracuse’s prestigious Newhouse School of Public Communications. He also became president of his Psi Upsilon fraternity.

“Syracuse has a state-of-the-art television studio where I gained unbelievable experience,” Gersh said. “In our TV classes, we did a 30-minute newscast every week and we rotated responsibilities from news to weather to sports. I enjoyed anchoring and the sports segment the best.”

After graduating magna cum laude in 2019, Gersh had his first stop in his broadcasting career in Abilene, Texas. He became the morning news anchor for 18 months before moving to Springfield, Illinois, and continuing as a morning news anchor for the next three years.

“I woke up at 2:30am every morning and went into the station and wrote, edited and produced the news before going on the air,” Gersh said. “I would be in bed at 8:00pm most nights.”

Gersh still had a dream of being a sports broadcaster and to keep being involved in covering sports. He would volunteer his time while he was in Abilene and cover high school football games and bring that tape back to the studio to edit and produce it for the station.

His contract in Springfield was ending and he saw there was an opening for a sports broadcaster at another Sinclair-owned station at Channel 45 in Baltimore.

He went through a lengthy interview process and his dream became a reality in August. Gersh moved back to Severna Park and pursued his lifelong ambition to cover sports in his hometown.

Currently, Gersh handles sports reporting during the week and is the weekend sports anchor as well as a major contributor to Channel 45’s “Sports Unlimited” every Sunday night.

Gersh is proud to have grown up in Severna Park and calls his years at Severn School “an amazing experience.”

He also gained confidence in his public speaking and leadership skills by being captain of the soccer team and providing pregame speeches and supporting his teammates.

“AJ exemplified what it means to lead by example, showing that influence and inspiration often come from the heart rather than statistics,” McCarthy said. “It comes as no surprise that AJ has taken those abilities and built a successful career as a sports broadcaster.”