University of New Hampshire Athletics
Victoria Arlen, Susie Piotrkowski, Mimi Traore, Emma Kearing, and Melissa “Mugsy” McKenzie
Photo by: Kaylin Moriarty
Changing The Game
10/15/2024 2:06:00 PM | General
UNH hosted espnW’s Campus Conversations
Not a seat was empty in the Service Credit Union Wildcat Victory Club on Monday, Sept. 30, as female student-athletes from across campus came together for espnW's Campus Conversations.
Hosted in collaboration with UNH Athletics, espnW's Campus Conversations event aimed to inspire, support and educate female student-athletes to be the next generation of leaders. The event featured a panel of four former UNH student-athletes, including Susie Piotrkowski (UNH 2009, Lacrosse), Emma Kearing (UNH 2023, Skiing), Melissa "Mugsy" McKenzie (UNH 2000, Hockey) and Mimi Traore (UNH 2019, Gymnastics). The panel was moderated by ESPN commentator Victoria Arlen.
The panel discussed everything from what it means to be a student-athlete all the way to navigating life post-grad. Coming from a wide range of backgrounds and experiences, each panelist was able to provide unique insight into how their career as a student-athlete translated to their career path.
"You guys are student-athletes, there is a reason why student comes before athlete," said Kearing, who now works as an audit analyst for Fidelity Investments. "Your time as an athlete will come to an end and you can always reflect back. You will learn so much as an athlete, but the student part of being here is what is going to carry you forward into your career."
Traore, who now works for Atlanta Therapeutics as associate scientist II, added to this conversation expressing the importance of developing strong communication skills as a student that you can then carry with you into the workforce.
"Something that took me a long way was being able to advocate for myself and building those relationships, but also knowing what my priorities were and communicating that," added Traore. "No one wants to see you fail, and being able to speak to that, and being determined to make that work for yourself, will go a long way."
After hearing from the panel, the floor was opened up to students for questions and comments. Maddie Crowley-Cahill of the UNH women's ice hockey team took to the microphone to ask how the panelists have dealt with adversity in male-dominated spaces and industries.
"I know for myself I work in a predominantly male-dominated field and now having a seat at the table and hiring I am building the best team. I am looking for diversity, and it doesn't necessarily mean gender, it just means who can I bring in to move my team forward," said McKenzie, special agent in charge, communication and media services, U.S. Secret Service.
Piotrkowski, vice president of women's sports programming and espnW, ESPN, shed light on her own experience hiring for different positions.
"Something that happened in my early career that is a regret to this day, I was hiring for two roles and I went to the hiring manager," said Piotrkowski. "I had only been there for a couple of weeks, and I was like 'You know, there are only guys' and she said 'Well that's our pool' and I accepted that answer. I will never accept that answer again, make the pool bigger."
Following questions, student-athletes were split by grade level into breakout rooms with different panelists. In the rooms, students were given the opportunity to speak more intimately with the panelists and ask more personal questions about their experiences while also reflecting on their own experiences.
"It puts into perspective for me that I am not going to be an athlete forever, but the qualities and skills I learned over time as a student-athlete will guide me to becoming a better employee in the future," said Elaina Grenz, member of the UNH women's soccer team who attended the event. "The juniors spoke with Emma Kearing in a small group and she was awesome and provided us with tips when first coming out of college that I found very beneficial."
After the breakout rooms, student-athletes were encouraged to fill out an anonymous survey reflecting on their biggest takeaways from the event.
"These are the types of events that make us feel heard and validated," wrote one student.
"These words will stick with me throughout my whole student-athlete career," wrote another.
Associate Athletic Director Joanne Maldari helped to organize the event and was proud of the success. Maldari explained that the goal of the event was to give student-athletes a different experience with the support of ESPN.
"I was amazed at how many people actually came and I thought it was great," said Maldari. "I hope the current athletes learned that there are a lot of exciting things ahead of them. I hope this provides them the ability to take a breath and know that everything will work out and doesn't have to be decided tomorrow. They can take chances or try different opportunities."
VIEW PHOTO GALLERY
Hosted in collaboration with UNH Athletics, espnW's Campus Conversations event aimed to inspire, support and educate female student-athletes to be the next generation of leaders. The event featured a panel of four former UNH student-athletes, including Susie Piotrkowski (UNH 2009, Lacrosse), Emma Kearing (UNH 2023, Skiing), Melissa "Mugsy" McKenzie (UNH 2000, Hockey) and Mimi Traore (UNH 2019, Gymnastics). The panel was moderated by ESPN commentator Victoria Arlen.
The panel discussed everything from what it means to be a student-athlete all the way to navigating life post-grad. Coming from a wide range of backgrounds and experiences, each panelist was able to provide unique insight into how their career as a student-athlete translated to their career path.
"You guys are student-athletes, there is a reason why student comes before athlete," said Kearing, who now works as an audit analyst for Fidelity Investments. "Your time as an athlete will come to an end and you can always reflect back. You will learn so much as an athlete, but the student part of being here is what is going to carry you forward into your career."
Traore, who now works for Atlanta Therapeutics as associate scientist II, added to this conversation expressing the importance of developing strong communication skills as a student that you can then carry with you into the workforce.
"Something that took me a long way was being able to advocate for myself and building those relationships, but also knowing what my priorities were and communicating that," added Traore. "No one wants to see you fail, and being able to speak to that, and being determined to make that work for yourself, will go a long way."
After hearing from the panel, the floor was opened up to students for questions and comments. Maddie Crowley-Cahill of the UNH women's ice hockey team took to the microphone to ask how the panelists have dealt with adversity in male-dominated spaces and industries.
"I know for myself I work in a predominantly male-dominated field and now having a seat at the table and hiring I am building the best team. I am looking for diversity, and it doesn't necessarily mean gender, it just means who can I bring in to move my team forward," said McKenzie, special agent in charge, communication and media services, U.S. Secret Service.
Piotrkowski, vice president of women's sports programming and espnW, ESPN, shed light on her own experience hiring for different positions.
"Something that happened in my early career that is a regret to this day, I was hiring for two roles and I went to the hiring manager," said Piotrkowski. "I had only been there for a couple of weeks, and I was like 'You know, there are only guys' and she said 'Well that's our pool' and I accepted that answer. I will never accept that answer again, make the pool bigger."
Following questions, student-athletes were split by grade level into breakout rooms with different panelists. In the rooms, students were given the opportunity to speak more intimately with the panelists and ask more personal questions about their experiences while also reflecting on their own experiences.
"It puts into perspective for me that I am not going to be an athlete forever, but the qualities and skills I learned over time as a student-athlete will guide me to becoming a better employee in the future," said Elaina Grenz, member of the UNH women's soccer team who attended the event. "The juniors spoke with Emma Kearing in a small group and she was awesome and provided us with tips when first coming out of college that I found very beneficial."
After the breakout rooms, student-athletes were encouraged to fill out an anonymous survey reflecting on their biggest takeaways from the event.
"These are the types of events that make us feel heard and validated," wrote one student.
"These words will stick with me throughout my whole student-athlete career," wrote another.
Associate Athletic Director Joanne Maldari helped to organize the event and was proud of the success. Maldari explained that the goal of the event was to give student-athletes a different experience with the support of ESPN.
"I was amazed at how many people actually came and I thought it was great," said Maldari. "I hope the current athletes learned that there are a lot of exciting things ahead of them. I hope this provides them the ability to take a breath and know that everything will work out and doesn't have to be decided tomorrow. They can take chances or try different opportunities."
VIEW PHOTO GALLERY
Thursday, May 28
Thursday, May 14
Wednesday, May 06
Tuesday, May 05