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Beyond Sports Interns Meet the Student-Athletes accepted into the 2018 Beyond Sports Program

Jake Bentley

Jake Bentley - Quarterback

Football

Jake is a rising junior and is the quarterback for the football team. He is majoring in Sport and Entertainment management and has the privilege of shadowing multiple departments in the Rice Athletics Center. He is looking forward to seeing how all the different athletic branches work behind the scenes. Jake really enjoyed working with Ray Tanner and seeing what he does on a daily basis. He thinks the Beyond Sports program is giving athletes not only valid work experience, but an opportunity that is structured around athletes' sport schedules during the summer. Bentley says this allows the athletes to gain more knowledge about their potential industries, while still being able to complete vital workouts and practices.

"There are a lot of great people that are a part of [the athletic department] and I am excited to meet and work with them."
Callie Brown
On the Scene with ABC Columbia

Callie Brown - Volleyball

"It is truly an experience like none other for student-athletes, getting the one-on-one attention from a professional in the field we want to pursue is incredible."

Callie is a rising senior, and a member of the volleyball team. Her major is broadcast journalism and she is working with ABC Columbia this summer. Callie loves learning about how a newsroom works and being able to see all the preparation that goes into creating a show. A few of her tasks include being on scene with the reporters to get interviews, capturing important images and videos from events, and writing news stories that get published on their website. She also enjoys being able to see how the anchors, directors, teleprompters, and other behind the scenes people come together to create, perform, and prepare for a show. Through Beyond Sports, she is becoming more prepared for her future, through the weekly professional development sessions that provide her the different aspects of the real world. She knows that being able to get real hands-on experience versus inside a classroom, is invaluable.

"I look forward to new experiences, as well as gaining new responsibilities, and seeing the quality of my work continually improving."

Doniyah Cliney

Women's Basketball

"I am most looking forward to changing kids' lives...I think that setting a great example for each other can help spread the positivity all over the community."

Doniyah is a member of the women's basketball team. She is majoring in Interdisciplinary Studies and is interning with Fresh Empire, a branch of Rescue Agency. She says this program is really amazing because she enjoys helping the kids. She enjoys doing many different things in order to keep them off the streets and positively entertained. Doniyah says they are showing that there are other ways to have fun rather than being involved in violence. She believes the Beyond Sports program will help her grow outside of her comfort zone and become more aware of what to expect in the real world. In order to truly get in touch with her passion, she says "keeping up with this millennial generation is hard but you have to want to make a change and I am willing to do that."

Nick Couchell

Track & Field

Pole Vault

Nick is a rising senior and a pole vaulter on the track and field team. He is majoring in exercise science and was hired to shadow a physician's assistant in the orthopedic center at Palmetto Health Hospital. He is most interested in seeing how PA's play a role in a care team and how they work on a day-to-day basis.

"Beyond Sports will give me the tools to be a great professional as well as help me make great connections that will help me get my career started."
Marissa DelGado
Dodie Anderson Academic and Enrichment Center

Marissa DelGado - Swimming & Diving

Marissa is a rising senior and a member of the swimming and diving team. She is majoring in Sport and Entertainment Management with a minor in Business Administration. This summer she has the opportunity to intern with USC Athletics in the Dodie Anderson Academic Enrichment Center. She will be working under different athletic academic advisors each week to learn the ins and the outs of the profession. Marissa says she loves getting the opportunity to work with the academic team because she has always worked closely with her advisor, which has given her such a positive experience. Marissa is most looking forward to working closely with the Dodie staff, and she hopes to leave with enough knowledge about the profession. to decide if it is the right career choice for her.

"Not only is the Beyond Sports program going to help me learn more about my future career, but it is also going to prepare me for life beyond college."

Kersten Dirrane

Swimming & Diving

Kersten is a recent graduate of USC and a member of the Swimming and Diving team, with a major in Public Health. She was hired to be an intern for the Director of Cardiovascular Operations at the Palmetto Health Heart Hospital. The aspect that interests her the most about her internship is hospital administration. She is grateful for the Beyond Sports program giving her the opportunity to be hired for an internship and allowing her the experience. Kersten is looking forward to building relationships with individuals in her field.

Gamecock Swim
Kate Eagleton

Kate Eagleton

Equestrian

Kate is a senior on the Equestrian team. She is majoring in visual communications and is interning with Chernoff Newman, an advertising and communications agency in Columbia. She helps with research for upcoming campaigns, presentations and creative design aspects. Kate says getting the opportunity to work there allows her the chance to learn about the account management side of working at an advertising agency while also utilizing her design skills. She is grateful for the Beyond Sports program because it provided her with the job and gave her the chance to discover what she likes and dislikes about a desk job.

"I hope I will make connections and get a better idea of what specific area I would like to work in."
Chernoff Newman

Hannah Edelman

Beach Volleyball

Beach Volleyball

Hannah is a junior on the beach volleyball team. She is majoring in Retail Management and is working for Granger Owings, a clothier's shop that provides custom suits, shirts and shoes for men and women. She has the opportunity to work hand-in-hand with the owner of the store to help grow their business. Through Beyond Sports, Hannah believes she will learn how to network with professionals while also grasping the important aspects of professional development, that will carry on into her life after an athletic career. She is looking forward to the opportunity to travel to New York, where she will be attending an event that will showcase her company's Spring 19 clothing line.

"I hope that I will be able to expand my knowledge on marketing and advertising techniques so that in my future career, I will be able to target specific customers to whatever market I am in."

Claire Edwards

Volleyball

Claire is a rising junior and a member of the volleyball team. She is majoring in Sport and Entertainment management with a minor in Art, focusing on graphic design and photography. This summer she is interning under Sally Mobley in the USC Athletics Social and Digital Media department. Her responsibilities include drafting Twitter and Facebook posts, along with running the Snapchat and Instagram stories during sporting events for various teams. Through the Beyond Sports program, she says she is thankful for the sense of professionalism it offers her and the chance to intern in her dream field, before her college experience is over. She is looking forward to working with other summer projects too, like the Gamecock State of Mind campaign and helping the Beyond Sports Program grow through social media!

"I love being able to go into dugouts and get cool shots of the athletes to keep the thousands of fans up-to-date on the game. Creating a post that you know so many people will see is such a nerve-wracking and unique experience."
Gamecock Volleyball
Abreia Epps

Abreia Epps

Volleyball

"I'm most looking forward to counseling and getting to know some of the boys there... [to] learn from them and [have] them learn from me."

Abreia is a 5th year senior on the volleyball team. She majors in counseling education and is working for the DJJ, Department of Juvenile Justice, this summer. She is working alongside psychologists, psychiatrists and social workers while attending meetings and training sessions. Abreia will get the opportunity to counsel a couple of young boys herself, in hopes of helping them the best she can. She is studying to be a counselor and was interested in working with a group of individuals that was different from what she will be doing for her practicum through her graduate program. Through Beyond Sports, she believes the program will open doors for her to connect with therapists who work with a tough population. Epps is looking forward to molding adolescents in hopes to become a family therapist in the future.

Gamecock Volleyball- SEC Graduate

Eric Favors

Track Field

Throws

Eric is a rising senior and competes in shot-put for the track and field team. He is a criminal justice major and is interning with the strength and conditioning department at APEX Performance, along with being in charge of their media account. He is really interested in the training programs they have to offer there and learning about what it takes to be successful in this field. Eric believes Beyond Sports will prepare him for life after college while also obtaining professional attributes.

"Through this internship, I hope to narrow down possible master's degrees."
Courtney Furlong

Courtney Furlong

Volleyball

"The Beyond Sports Program has given me an opportunity to obtain an internship that I never would have known existed."

Courtney is a senior and a member of the volleyball team. She is majoring in Psychology and is working for the South Carolina Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ), which is the main long-term detention center in the state. She was hired in the Job Readiness Training Center which provides life and job skill classes to the youth on probation or parole, ranging from ages 12-18. Never having experienced anything like it before, Furlong states that she has great interest in this internship. She looks forward to building relationships with the kids at DJJ, and to see those relationships flourish while making an impact on their lives after complete the program.

Counseling at the DJJ in the JRTC
"I believe that the weekly meetings we attend will greatly improve my professionalism, that I can use in my future career."

Emily Harding

Cross Country and Track & Field

"I hope to learn about operations and the financial aspect of managing a large healthcare organization."

Emily is a recent graduate of USC and participated on the cross country and track and field team. She majored in public health and is a clinical operations intern for UCI Medical Affiliates. She plans on attaining her master's degree in health administration, which makes her internship the perfect fit for getting hands-on experience in the corporate/operational field of healthcare. Emily says the Beyond Sports professional development feature will provide her with the skills to be successful in the future; such as, networking and managing a budget. This summer she looks forward to traveling to the different clinics around the state.

Courtney Koehler

Volleyball

"...Logistics is something that I do not know a lot about, therefore this is something I really want to learn about during my internship at Palmetto College... I think that [this] will really show me if event planning is something I would like to pursue in the future."

Courtney is a rising junior and a member of the volleyball team. Her major is Sport and Entertainment Management with a minor in Hospitality and Tourism. She is working at Palmetto College and assists them with their planning for fall meetings, while also partaking in planning events and handling logistics. One day Courtney plans on becoming an event planner and she believes this internship will add to her understanding of certain requirements needed for her desired position. This is her first job; therefore, she is very eager to get some work experience under her belt. She says that the Beyond Sports program will help her in her future career.

Event Planning at Palmetto College
Katherine McComas

Katherine McComas

Swimming & Diving

Palmetto Health USC Orhtopedics

Katie is a rising senior, and is on the swimming and diving team. With a major in exercise science, she was hired as a physical therapy intern at Palmetto Health USC Orthopedics. She is eager to learn more about the daily responsibilities and work associated with practicing physical therapy, because this is what she wants to do for a living. Katie is looking forward to gaining experience and hands-on learning that cannot be taught in a classroom.

"I believe the Beyond Sports program will help me prepare me for my future career by giving me real-life, practical experience in a physical therapy clinic. I also believe it will give me opportunities to improve my professional skills and appearance to help improve my future career."

Kirklen Peterson

Equestrian

""This internship provides valuable medical experience and serves as a wonderful learning opportunity. All the skills that I learn during the internship can be applied directly to my work in the future."

Kirklen is a rising senior and is a member of the equestrian team. She is majoring in Biology and is interning at Columbia Heart, a cardiology private practice. There, Kirklen will observe patient appointments, procedures and learn more about the medical field. She first became interested in cardiology when her mother contracted an infection a few years ago and subsequently needed three open heart surgeries. Peterson says the cardiovascular system is a very complex so she is learning more about the field and having the opportunity to witness innovative techniques and technology at work saving lives. She is looking forward to having the opportunity to meet and learn from some of the best cardiologists in the state. She is also eager to catch a glimpse of what a day in the life of a physician is like. Lastly, Kirklen is anticipating viewing an open-heart surgery. Planning to attend medical school after graduation, she believes this internship may make future coursework easier to grasp, as well as providing knowledge in the areas of professionalism, networking and patient care.

Columbia Heart Hospital

Mikayla Shields

Volleyball

"I hope that even if OB/GYN doesn't end up being the field I want to go in... I know that this experience will help me better understand medicine in general for any future career."

Mikayla is a rising junior on the volleyball team. She is majoring in Biological Sciences Pre-Med. This summer she was hired to intern with a physician at Palmetto Health USC OB/GYN. Shields says she has always wanted to pursue a career in the medical field and has recently become more interested in Obstetrics and Gynecology. She believes Beyond Sports is helping her to get a head start with the knowledge and general practices that the doctors in that field utilize. Shields mentioned that she is looking forward to viewing lots of various surgeries and examinations, along with being able to witness (first-hand) babies being born!

Palmetto Health USC OB/GYN

Jackson Smith

Swimming and Diving

WACH Fox News 57

Jack is a rising senior and a member of the swimming and diving team. He is majoring in Public Health with a minor in Media Arts. Jack is working for WACH Fox News 57, a local news station in Columbia, SC. There, he will be shadowing multiple news team members including reporters, producers, editors, and other employees. Jack enjoys the videography and creative media production, or anything having to do with behind camera work. He believes this internship will help him develop basic skills needed in order to pursue a career in this field. Beyond Sports has opened the door to that, along with various career opportunities that are yet to be discovered. Jack hopes to become more familiar with other media editing software and video equipment that he hasn't been able to work with yet, and also developing a strong network in the media field.

On scene welcoming Air Force One
Alycia Springs

Alycia Springs

Track and Field

Throws

"The Beyond Sports program will better prepare me for my future because it allows me to get experience in a field I am interested in. It also allows me to build my resume for future career endeavors."

Alycia is a rising senior and competes in shot-put for the track and field team. She is a Public Health and Pre-Pharmacy major. This summer she is interning with Nephron Pharmaceuticals Corporation to help assist the corporate pharmacist. Alycia states that working in a sterile pharmacy environment and being able to shadow the pharmacists, intrigue her. She is excited to further her knowledge on the matter, while also seeing the daily operations that go into it. Alycia anticipates figuring out if this is something she would like to do as a future career.

Carson Strom

Track & Field

"It's inspiring to be able to help hard working [people] save, grow, and protect their assets."

Carson is a senior and on the track and field team. He is a double major in accounting and finance. Strom was hired by Vista Advisor's, a wealth management firm, under Amerprise Financial. There, he sits in on client meetings and phone calls, performs other administrative duties, and reviews client portfolios. He does this while also their commonly used mutual funds and ETF's . He is really interested in his specific internship because he will get to help clients achieve their financial goals. The Beyond Sports program has given him the invaluable opportunity to gain real hands-on experience before having a full time job. Strom looks forward to learning how to run a wealth management firm and everything that goes into it, while performing meaningful work and gaining experience along the way.

Caleb Tosh - Swimming & Diving

Caleb Tosh

Swimming and Diving

Caleb is a 5th year senior who is also on the swimming and diving team. He is majoring in Chemical Engineering. He was hired by Nephron Pharmaceuticals and is working in the engineering office, completing various tasks. Caleb is very interested in developing and processing materials and compounds, and he thinks NP is a great place to start. He believes Beyond Sports will give him an example of what a potential workplace could be like and provide him with possible connections for the future.

"I hope to transfer my academic knowledge into a working knowledge of how to run a plant."
Caleb Tosh

Lizzie van der Walde

Equestrian

"I am looking forward to seeing what goes into running a team and the day-to-day operations. I am interested in seeing what it takes to put on a game, rather than just watch one."

Lizzie is a rising senior and a member of the equestrian team. With a double major in marketing and management, she was hired to work for the Fireflies minor league baseball team this summer in their ticketing office. During the games, she works the ticket window and helps with on-field promotions. For Lizzie, it's nice to see all aspects of a sport behind the scenes, given this is a career she hopes to pursue after graduation. She thinks Beyond Sports will prepare her for obtaining a job once she graduates and will give her the tools needed to be successful in the work force.

Allison Wade

Allison Wade

Swimming & Diving

Palmetto Health Pediatric Orthopedics

Allison is a rising senior on the swimming and diving team. She is majoring in Public Health and is interning with pediatric orthopedic surgeon, Dr.Kristen Nathe, at Palmetto Health hospital. She will get to shadow her during her clinic visits, along with a few surgeries this summer. She will also be helping out the rest of the team with office work and logistics. Wade says that in her past internships, she was able to observe more of the business and administration side. Therefore, she hopes to get a better idea of what the clinical side is like- especially for a pediatric surgeon: Wade's dream job. Through Beyond Sports, she is thankful for the opportunity to build connections somewhere other than her hometown in Ohio.

"I hope to learn... how to interact with patients and their parents, how to confidently make a diagnosis; the list could go on forever... I am excited to gain a great mentor."

Armand Woodley

Track & Field

Pole Vault

Armand is a rising junior and competes in pole vaulting for the track and field team. His major is Media Arts with an interest in animation. He is interning with Able VFX, a design and animation studio that provides a variety of products to all sorts of clients, networks and agencies. He is really looking forward to the hands-on experience with animation work and learning a lot from his respective field. Woodley stated that the Beyond Sports Program will prepare him for the future, in that it will provide him with connections and help with the transition into the next phase of life.

"I hope to learn the process of creating an animated work and how to let creativity take control."

Shannon Williams

Beach Volleyball

Shannon is a senior on the beach volleyball team. She majors in Risk Management and Insurance, with a minor in Sport and Entertainment Management. This summer she is interning for Chris Rogers, the Senior Associate AD/Administrator for the University of South Carolina. One of her main responsibilities this summer will be creating audits for the summer camps that are run on our facilities over the course of the next few months. She is really excited about getting to combine both her major and her minor into one experience while shadowing professionals in the Risk Management Department. Through Beyond Sports, Shannon hopes to gain professional background and essential skills to have what it takes in this field, along with making life-long connections to help her future endeavors.

"I am eager to work alongside some of the people that work hard for our own student-athletes!"
Rice Athletics Center
Columbia Fireflies Game and Facility Tour

Beyond Sports Field Trip

Beyond Sports interns received a behind the scenes look into Amazon and Nephron Pharmaceuticals

Touring the Facilities

Thank you to our community partners!

2018 Corporate Partners

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