A Westminster College sports management student and professor attended the Sports Business Journal Game Changers Conference in New York City in September.

Gia Francisco, a senior honors student from Canfield, Ohio, majoring in sports management, business administration, and marketing and sales, and Martha McGrath-Brown, instructor of sports management, attended the two-day event dedicated to the elevation and celebration of women in the sports industry.

In addition to several networking opportunities, the conference featured a number of speakers and panelists. Fia Fasbinder, founder and CEO of the Moxie Institute, a firm that specializes in corporate coaching and professional development, presented the keynote address. Attendees represented sports leagues and governing bodies, athletic teams, corporate sponsors, agencies, players associations, intercollegeiate conferences and higher education institutions.

 “Not only did I get to network with folks about some projects I’m working on, but Gia got real-life experience networking and building relationships with women who are literally paving the way for students like her to become future game changers,” said McGrath-Brown. “I can’t emphasize enough how important these types of events are for our students, especially our young women. When they can see the successes of women in the sports and business fields, it empowers them to reach for those lofty goals as well.”

“The conference was empowering, with so many successful women within the sport industry in one room, networking and making connections to help each other break through the glass ceiling together,” said Francisco. “The sense of partnerships consumed the atmosphere, which I found extremely motivating and exciting to experience as a student aspiring to one day work in the industry that these amazing women and ‘game changers’ are thriving in.”

Francisco, who will graduate in May, plans to pursue a master’s in sports administration and exercise science . She is involved in various on-campus activities and organizations at Westminster, including the women’s tennis team and the Sports Promotion Club.

McGrath-Brown earned her undergraduate from Taylor University and her master’s from Slippery Rock University. She is currently pursuing a Ph.D. from North Carolina State University.

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