WISE TC Sports Industry Insider with University of St. Thomas
Date: Tuesday, October 8th, 2024
Time: 5:30 - 7:30 pm
Location: O'Shaughnessy-Frey Library (2115 Summit Ave, St Paul, MN, 55105); Room LIB 108
Join WISE Twin Cities and the University of St. Thomas on Tuesday, October 8th to learn how a WISE membership can impact your student experience and career. This local WISE chapter has been connecting women in the world of sports and events for over 6 years; creating safe spaces, fostering connections between members, and offering professional development.
Program will include a presentation of “Who is WISE Twin Cities” and a fireside chat featuring industry professionals and leaders at various career levels. Food and beverage will be provided to guests.
The panel will cover a variety of topics such as:
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Dos and don’ts of the sporting industry
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How to land your first job
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Building relationships via work and events
Timeline
5:30 pm – Check In & Networking
6:15 pm – Program Begins
7:00 pm - Program Ends / Networking
7:30 pm - Event Ends
About The Moderator
Savanna Townsend
HR Manager, Premier Sport Psychology
After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in Marketing and International Business from Iowa State University, Savanna began her career in marketing, first as an intern for SportsEngine, and then as the Marketing and Promotions Director for Destination Sturgeon Bay, where she coordinated city-wide special events, created digital marketing material, and served as a customer-support lead. She subsequently returned to her roots in athletics and obtained an internship with the Gopher Athletics' Leadership U program, assisting in student-athlete development at the University of Minnesota. She transitioned to Premier Sport Psychology in 2020, continuing her work in student-athlete advocacy by supporting projects directly related to the personal and professional growth of student-athlete populations. In 2022, Savanna formally shifted into the world of HR and now oversees the HR function at Premier as an HR Manager. Since joining the Premier team, Savanna has completed her master’s degree in Human Resource Development and an Adult Education Graduate certificate from the University of Minnesota, earned her SHRM-CP, sits on the Board of Directors for WISE Twin Cities as the Membership Co-Chair, and serves on the V3 Sports HR Committee.
About The Panelists
Angela Harder
Director of Talent Acquisition, Minnesota Timberwolves & Lynx
Angela Harder is the Director of Talent Acquisition for the Minnesota Timberwolves organization, including the MN Lynx and Iowa Wolves franchises. She oversees all recruiting for Business Operations and advises for Basketball Operations. Angela is passionate first about people and second about process and experience. She has built her career over the last two decades in tech start-ups, corporate turnarounds, and entrepreneurial agencies. While she often finds herself specializing in executive recruiting and recruitment process, her real passion is for broader talent management and the lifecycle of employees.
Angela has an MBA from Concordia University in Saint Paul, MN, and an undergraduate degree in Business Administration from Metropolitan State University. She would say however, that working as a Talent Management consultant for small to mid-sized business is really what helped her develop her perspective for helping people thrive within organizations. From finding to helping to retain talent, she loves the journey from initial conversation to first annual review.
Meghan McNaney
Account Specialist of Partnership Activation, Minnesota Twins
From a young age, Meghan dreamed of a career in sports, initially aspiring to be a professional softball player like her idol, Jennie Finch. However, she quickly realized that her athletic skills weren’t at that level. Instead, her journey began as a member of the Athletic Event Staff for Tommie Athletics in college. Later that year, she interned with the Minnesota Golf Association as the Women’s Tournament Intern and then with the Minnesota Vikings as a Youth Training Camp Marketing Intern. It was during her Vikings internship that she discovered her passion for Partnership Activation. Meghan seized every opportunity to learn, shadowing the Vikings Partnerships team in 2019 and becoming the Corporate Sales Intern for the St. Paul Saints in 2021. After earning her Business Communications degree from the University of St. Thomas in 2022, she landed her dream role in Partnership Activation with the Minnesota Twins. Outside of work, Meghan enjoys networking at WISE Twin Cities events and being on the Membership Committee within WISE Twin Cities, exploring new restaurants and breweries, taking her dogs, Kona and Leo, to the park, and diving into cheesy romance novels.
Amy Olson-Cooper
Senior Women’s Administrator | Senior Associate Athletics Director, University of St. Thomas
Olson-Cooper returns to the Twin Cities after serving in both coaching and administrative positions at every level (Division I, II, and III) of college athletics. She has oversight responsibility for St. Thomas' business and finance, compliance, purchasing, human resources and other key administrative areas. She serves as both Senior Women's Administrator and Chief of Staff and has sport administration responsibility for baseball, women’s basketball, women’s tennis, and volleyball.
Prior to St. Thomas, Olson-Cooper served in a similar athletic administrative position at Howard University in Washington, D.C., where she was tasked with the oversight of budget, travel and ticketing and also served as HR liaison and Senior Women's Administrator.
As a Division I student-athlete at Howard University, Olson was twice named All-Big South Conference and team co-MVP three times in soccer. In her long college soccer coaching career, she also was named the 2015 Division III Independent Soccer Coach of the Year, and trained multiple nationally-ranked players.
A native of Minneapolis, Minn., Olson-Cooper was a prep student-athlete at Minneapolis Washburn High, where she was her school's Athena Award Winner as a senior. A four-sport athlete (track & field, basketball, soccer, and swimming & diving), she also an All-State and four-time All-Conference selection in track & field, All-State and three-time All-Conference honoree in soccer, and All-Conference selection in swimming & diving.
Parking, Directions, Entry
There is ramp parking located on the University of St. Thomas’ St. Paul Campus. See more information about parking at the University of St. Thomas St. Paul campus, here. Street parking is also available in the surrounding neighborhoods. The recommended parking locations are:
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McNeely Underground Parking Garage, access located near the intersection of Cleveland Ave N and Ashland Ave
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Anderson Parking Garage, access located near the intersection of Cretin Ave S and Grand Ave
Once you have parked, make your way to the O’Shaughnessy-Frey Library located on the University of St. Thomas campus near the intersection of Cleveland Ave N and Portland Ave. When you enter the library, remain on the first level and walk straight towards the back of the building. You will see a coffee shop on your right side, LIB 108 is located right behind. Look for the WISE TC branded table to check in.
Dress Apparel
Business Professional
Registration
To RSVP for this event, make sure to login using your WISE member login. Non-members please login as a guest to register. Or sign up for a membership here. Contact WISE Twin Cities with any questions at info@wisetwincities.org.
Event is complimentary for all. Registration has been extended, please register by Monday, October 7th at midnight to secure your spot.