The Charger Blog
At a time when women杏吧原版檚 professional sports in the U.S. are experiencing a moment like never before, two alumni of the Sport Management program were right in the middle of helping to launch the inaugural season of the Professional Women杏吧原版檚 Hockey League.
July 30, 2024
Josie Schmidt 杏吧原版22 was in the stands as a fan for the first-ever home game for the Boston team in the Professional Women杏吧原版檚 Hockey League (PWHL).
杏吧原版淟ike many others around me, the overwhelmingly positive environment and elated fans, players, and staff nearly brought me to tears,杏吧原版 Schmidt said. 杏吧原版淵oung girls held signs that read 杏吧原版楶lay like a girl杏吧原版 and 杏吧原版楾his is what dreams are made of.杏吧原版 I knew in that moment that this league would make a lasting impact on the industry, and I wanted to join the team of trailblazers behind the scenes.杏吧原版
Soon enough, Schmidt '22 fulfilled that goal.
She was hired as the manager of partnership services for the PWHL, building relationships with partners for the U.S. teams. She developed and coordinated events for youth and the community and on-ice promotions and giveaways, while also creating social media content.
She was one of two University of New Haven alumni hired to help build the six-team women杏吧原版檚 professional hockey league featuring teams in Boston, New York, Minnesota, Ottawa, Montreal, and Toronto.
Fellow alum Mike Pantera 杏吧原版23 M.S., who received the Pompea College of Business杏吧原版檚 Outstanding Graduate Student Award in Sport Management in 2023, was hired as the fan experience and game activations associate for the Boston team.
杏吧原版淟eagues would normally take several years to develop, but the PWHL was launched with six teams in just a few short months,杏吧原版 he said. 杏吧原版淚n my first full-time sports role, I was able to witness what it takes to build a professional sports league from the ground up. I found out quickly everything happens at triple the pace.杏吧原版
Ceyda Mumcu, Ph.D., professor and chair of Sport Management, encouraged both of her former students to seek jobs with the new hockey league.
杏吧原版淭his is the greatest time to be involved in women杏吧原版檚 sports, where records are broken weekly, with ongoing unmet consumer demand,杏吧原版 Mumcu said. 杏吧原版淏eing a part of the PWHL杏吧原版檚 inaugural season has provided Josie and Mike experiences they would not gain anywhere else. They engaged in decision making and execution early in their careers and had an amazing opportunity to be a part of a new, exciting league as it launched what is likely to be the most successful women杏吧原版檚 professional hockey league in history.杏吧原版
For Schmidt, one of the best moments came when she planned an event for youth hockey players with one of the league杏吧原版檚 partners. Young players had the chance to high five the Minnesota team as they were about to take the ice and later get autographs and take photos with the players.
杏吧原版淭he kids were elated, and starstruck during the entire event because they had just met their idols,杏吧原版 said Schmidt, who earned a master杏吧原版檚 degree in sport management from the University of Massachusetts Amherst. 杏吧原版淪eeing their excitement further enforced why I love what I do.杏吧原版
Pantera said he relished working on the fan experience for Boston and watching as the team made it to the Walter Cup championship series. 杏吧原版淲hile PWHL Boston did not win the championship, it was truly gratifying to see the cup raised by Minnesota in our home building,杏吧原版 he said. 杏吧原版淚t signified the end of a season of history and gave a glimpse of what will be sure to grow in the coming years.杏吧原版
Both Pantera and Schmidt said they continually tapped into the skills they developed in their sport management courses and the professional experiences the faculty supported them in pursuing.
杏吧原版淭he University杏吧原版檚 Sport Management department杏吧原版檚 commitment to career development is unlike anything I have seen in my previous years of education,杏吧原版 said Pantera, who had two internships including one in Yale杏吧原版檚 Athletic Department, where he 杏吧原版渓earned what it takes to successfully execute a game day behind the scenes, from the Ivy League volleyball tournament to the Yale vs. Harvard football game,杏吧原版 he said. 杏吧原版淚 would not have been able to secure these opportunities without the help of all my professors and the vast alumni network of professionals currently working in the sports industry.杏吧原版
Meanwhile, during her time at the University, Schmidt 杏吧原版渢raveled to Colorado to work the X Games with ESPN, went to Houston to participate in the COSMA Case Cup (where sport management students compete in a 24-hour case study competition), directed operations for the University杏吧原版檚 volleyball team, and ran a charity home run derby with classmates as part a capstone project.
杏吧原版淭hese experiences pushed me out of my comfort zone, encouraged me to challenge myself, and shaped me into the professional I am today,杏吧原版 she said.
By the end of the first season, the PWHL won the 2024 Sports Business Award for Sport Breakthrough of the Year.
According to the , 杏吧原版淚n just five months since the first game was played, the PWHL set six attendance records for women杏吧原版檚 hockey, added more than 40 corporate partners, and has more than one million social media followers.杏吧原版 Billie Jean King, one of the league杏吧原版檚 founders, accepted the award on behalf of the league.杏吧原版
杏吧原版淭he inaugural season brought so many milestones for the PWHL,杏吧原版 Schmidt said. 杏吧原版淲e have so much left to accomplish. I truly work on a team of trailblazers and changemakers, and I could not be prouder.杏吧原版
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