When I finally decided it was time to make the move from professional to student again although it was a big leap, it was one I had been contemplating for some time and given there is no time like the present, I informed those close to me and who I worked for that I would no longer be a D2 Assistant Athletic Director and I would return to Morgantown to pursue a graduate degree. After some discussion with folks around WVU, a class to refresh myself would be a good idea and suggested English 303 would be a good choice given I will eventually pursue an online graduate degree.
The Beginning
Upon graduation from high school, like some, I didn’t really know what path I wanted my studies to take me in, so I went with what I knew best, which was athletics and pursued a BS degree in Sports Management. I wasn’t sure where that would take me but it was comfortable for me and didn’t require much math or science. Needing an internship I stumbled upon the Mountaineer Athletic Club, the fundraising arm for athletics at West Virginia University. I wasn’t exactly sure what development was but the director liked me and it seemed like it fit. The thought of people giving their money back to programs that represented their home state or alma mater amazed me. Why would someone do such thing? As I began to understand and this has stuck with me throughout my career is that people donate to causes not only for what those entities represent but for the experiences that surround those entities and this would really be driven home later in my career.
And on to the next
After my time with the Mountaineer Athletic Club ended it was time to further my career where I would actually have an opportunity to be part of the development process. I would take a position at the Mary Babb Randolph Cancer Center at West Virginia University as the Assistant Director of Development. Here I would have the opportunity to develop and implement fundraising strategies as well as solicit funds to further research, education and treatment of cancer. To say I was baptized by fire would be understatement. The cancer epidemic worldwide let alone the state of West Virginia was and is still an ongoing battle but we were doing work to help the people of this state. What I learned was if you have the disease or not, most people are impacted by it from one perspective or another. To hear the stories of those who donated to the various programs were often filled with sadness for the ones they lost to uplifting for the ones that can be saved. The one thing that being a development professional teaches is to listen to detail. It teaches you to find what drives a person to donate and in turn how the use of their gift can further cause. The rewarding part is when you can actually show them how their gift has accomplished just that.
I bounced around from place to place in development and got to be very good at what I was doing. On average a development professional will stay anywhere from three to five years in a position and that is what I did. After a three year stop in Colorado I returned to my home state where I would begin a nearly ten year career at D2 school, Shepherd University.
At Shepherd I would make my professional mark. I had the opportunity to create and enhance many of the opportunities for D2 student-athletes by providing additional educational opportunities in scholarships, establishing policies that would guide and assistant them as they transition from student-athlete to alumni. I would have the opportunity to work on an apparel contract. I was given the task of creating a better environment for which they could train for their sport as well as train for their academic progress. I would create opportunities for local businesses to be part of our game day environment which in turn would make additional dollars available to enhance the experience of our student-athletes. The work that I did had everyday, tangible value. One of our former coaches told me what he told his players, “always leave a place better than you found it.” I like to think I did just that at Shepherd University.
A New Story
The decision to return to being a student again at 46 was one that would and should come with a bit of trepidation but I like a challenge so here I am. My interest in design and rhetoric has always been about the need to have these skills. As mentioned, work in D2 athletics requires one to be a master of many trades but you don’t always get the time to become a master and just enough to get you by. Now, I will have the time to enhance the knowledge and experiences that I have already had not just in this experience but I as pursue an advanced degree.
At some point along this journey an opportunity will come for me to again work in the field that I have enjoyed for nearly a decade whether that be as an administrator, a fundraiser or something different. I believe the experiences that I am gaining and will gain will only take my knowledge to a new level, a level that I can reach without having to do it out of need but rather desire.
The Journey 