BRIDGEPORT, Pa. — The North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) and the Presidents’ Athletic Conference (PAC) collaborated to host the Preparing for a Career in Sports Workshop on Saturday, November 14, 2020.
More than 50 students from the PAC and NCAC participated in the daylong virtual workshop, developed in response to the ongoing initiatives of the NCAA’s Office of Inclusion and the Division III Diversity and Inclusion working group.
Workshop participants engaged in programming designed to help with charting their career paths while providing opportunities to learn from peers as well as key decision-makers at the campus, conference and national levels of college athletics. Participants gained knowledge from a variety of interactive discussion sessions and received key professional development resources and career planning strategies intended to ultimately equip them with the confidence and know-how needed to land their first jobs.
Wittenberg had three representatives at the workshop, including Athletics Communications Graduate Assistant Mackenzie Moran, junior Sport Management & Communication major Jamie Unternaher, and classmate Emma Menjivar (Moreno Valley, Calif./Canyon Springs) of the women’s water polo team.
Menjivar noted, “This past weekend helped me understand mine and others leadership styles. It gave me more insight on a career in the sports industry and how to achieve the things I strive for through hearing stories in which I could relate to. Having the ability to hear speakers like Kiana Verdugo and Ahmad Boyd speak about their different opportunities that landed them where they are today inspires me to continue to pursue a career in the sports industry.”
Both the PAC and the NCAC secured grant funding for the Workshop through the Division III Diversity and Inclusion working group aimed at developing programming opportunities focused on ethnic minority and female students.
“We are extremely grateful to have gotten to work alongside our friends at the Presidents’ Athletic Conference to provide this opportunity for our students. The all-day virtual workshop proved to be a positive experience for the participants, session leaders and panelists, as the energy grew throughout the day,” said Shannon O’Brien, NCAC Assistant Executive Director. “We are committed to providing beneficial programming for our students and hope that all participants walked away with new insight on building a career in sport.”
Sessions throughout the day included:
- DISC Assessment Review with Eileen Segura (bio) and Roberto Sasso (bio)
- How to Maximize Your Potential: Strategies for Launching your Career in Sports with Marsha Florio (bio) and Julie Soriero (bio)
- Start Smart: Practical Advice About Planning For What’s Next with Ahmad Boyd (bio), Janet Oberle (bio) and Kiana Verdugo (bio)
- The Art of Speaking Without Speaking with Will Baggett (bio)
Information courtesy Wittenberg University Athletics Communications
