Alumna Lindsay Adams ’22 (BUS), a law student at Fordham University, didn’t know a soul who worked in Major League Baseball, but she didn’t let that prevent her from landing her dream internship.
She scrolled through LinkedIn and sent messages to everyone she could find who was affiliated with MLB. She ended up connecting with the woman who would become her supervisor.
Adams spent the summer as a legal business and tech intern.
“People really do want to help you if they can,’’ Adams says. “I left the School of Business with a strong belief in asking questions and with the recommendation to talk to everyone you can. You never know who is going to have the perfect role for you.’’
Adams isn’t the only UConn School of Business woman to lend her expertise to the baseball world this past summer. Junior Jamie Greene ’24 (BUS) interned for the Boston Red Sox Foundation, working on community-impact projects, and senior Madison “Maddie’’ Hill ’24 (BUS) returned to the New Britain Bees for her second summer, spearheading ticket sales and promotions. Both women are marketing majors.
Students Want to Blend Their Career, Personal Interests
Kelly Kennedy, director of transformative learning at the School of Business, says the students she meets have a strong desire to explore different industries, companies, and roles that appeal to both their academic and personal interests.
Women are finding new opportunities in professional sports and athletics that likely wouldn’t have been available to previous generations, Kennedy says. She believes Green, Hill, and Adams are setting themselves up for success.
“These students have proactively engaged on campus and acquired the industry-specific skills crucial for success to be marketable in a competitive industry like sports management,’’ Kennedy says. “And if their career preferences shift after completing an internship, the experience will equip them with valuable transferable skills for the future.’’
At Red Sox Foundation, Greene Fulfilled Her Goal of Helping Others
Some of Greene’s earliest memories are of family trips to Boston Red Sox games, typically a few times each summer. A family friend who worked for the Sox always had some trinkets for the Greene children to bring home. Those game days were among the highlights of her childhood.
When Caitlin Naughton, the Red Sox human resources coordinator, spoke with the School of Business’ Women in Business organization, Greene asked her about opportunities, which eventually led to a paid internship.
Greene’s work supported the Red Sox Foundation’s mission, which focuses on family and community health, education, and recreation. She enjoyed working with the Fenway Park Learning Lab, a new program that invites sixth-graders in for educational tours and includes math, history, and science lessons with a sports theme.
She also liked meeting with fans that had received unique Red Sox experiences. “That was a highlight for me,’’ she says. “The families were always the most excited and the honorary ‘bat kids’ would go into the dugout and meet the players. That was an unforgettable moment for them, and it always made my day.’’
Greene says she as she embarks on her career, she wants to work for an organization, like the Red Sox Foundation, that values community service.
“Growing up, I was involved in Girl Scouts since kindergarten,’’ Greene says. “Helping others is a value that I hold. I’ve also always loved the Red Sox and have played and loved watching sports my whole life. I’m interested in working for the MLB or the NFL.’’
Back at UConn, Greene is a game-day assistant for the UConn Athletics Department, with responsibility for engaging fans and helping with promotions for baseball, softball, basketball, soccer and hockey games. She enjoys the student-participation contests and meeting many people. “No two days are the same, but it is always fun,’’ she says.
Greene started her paid internship in Boston just days after returning from a month in Italy, studying and traveling through UConn’s Global Study Abroad program.
But she has left a little piece of her heart in Boston, where everyone was very welcoming. The first day she arrived, the entire Foundation team cheered, and she knew then that the summer would be incredible.
“I worked in the building across from the park but I rarely sat in my office,’’ Greene says. “I went back and forth to Fenway Park all day. It wasn’t long before even security knew who I was. I couldn’t have been happier.’’
HuskyTHON Experience Benefitted Adams’ Job Search
Adams, an enthusiastic New York Mets fan, says as a business major she knew how critical it would be to network if she wanted to work at MLB. She contacted people in the industry through LinkedIn.
“I’d send them a message telling them about my interest and asking if they could spare a few minutes to talk,’’ she says. “They didn’t know me, or owe me anything, and they’re very busy people. But I was surprised how many were willing to help.’’
One of the women she met became her boss, but not until she had been through a four-stage interview.
“This internship was a dream come true,’’ she says. “It was incredible, so perfect for me.’’ Adams worked in the group that oversees sponsors, advertising, and marketing deals. “I had a ‘marketing brain’ from undergrad and I helped with contractual work with MLB partners, including data rights, liability for spectators, foreign and domestic advertising and everything from online marketing to exclusive ticket promotions.’’
As a UConn senior, Adams was co-director of campus affairs for the annual HuskyTHON dance marathon/fundraiser in 2022. She developed the skills to handle a demanding and important challenge. As a marketing student she also worked for professors Bill Ryan and Mary Caravella, helping to plan events, write a newsletter, and manage corporate partners. Those experiences enhanced her professionalism and organization skills.
Adams described the MLB office, near Rockefeller Plaza, as “insanely cool.’’ Working in the MLB headquarters she had the chance to meet people who specialize in everything from corporate finance to video game development. The days were never dull.
“I was so thrilled to be a small part of what goes on there and see how everything works together,’’ she says. She envisions a career working on the legal side of the sports or entertainment industry. “My dream job would be to work at MLB in one of the jobs I helped support.’’
Hill Wants to Become a Player Agent
Hill credits her dad with turning her, and her two brothers, into die-hard Red Sox fans from the time they were toddlers.
“I was that annoying little kid who walked around the playground asking everyone if they knew the stats!’’ she says, laughing. At the New Britain Bees, a Futures Collegiate Baseball League, she handled ticket sales and promotions last summer, her second year working for the organization. She got the job initially through the traditional application process.
The stadium was always a joyful place to be.
“The crowd is so great. Every game night there is a great turnout and the community really comes together to support the team. The players are from all over the country and are here to improve their skills,’’ she says. “We’ve got hard-core fans in the stands, as well as more casual spectators who enjoy the entertainment. Our players play so hard at every game and they cheer each other on. It’s just a great environment!’’
Hill is also the team manager for the UConn women’s soccer team, where she juggles everything from post-game food plans to contacting rival teams to making sure the buses arrive on time. “My job is to make sure everything behind the scene is perfect and no one has to worry,’’ she says.
“My ultimate goal is to become a general manager of a major league team, most likely baseball, but I’m also open to others,’’ she says. Everyone at the Bees organization was eager to let her try new tasks.
“I’m super lucky to be able to use my business knowledge and my passion at the same place. Ultimately, I would like to be involved in transactions in baseball or become a player agent,’’ she says.
Although it may not, make it onto her resume, Hill says there is one particular aspect of the Bees job that she will find irreplaceable.
“One of my favorite things to do is the hot-dog toss!,’’ Hill says, which entails throwing warm, well-packaged hot dogs to Bees fans in the stands. “The fans just love it!’’
