Clara López chose UMSL as perfect place to continue her tennis career, but with her commitment to hard work, networking and building professional relationships, she’s made an impact on the business community as well. (Photo by Derik Holtmann)

Tim Nowak, the executive director at World Trade Center St. Louis, is a big believer in mentoring the next generation of business leaders. So is Jorge Riopedre, who was the executive director at Delmar DivINe in the fall of 2021 when he and Nowak arrived at the Starbucks near Shaw Park in Clayton to meet with a student from the University of Missouri–St. Louis.

The mentorship connection was set up through the Regional Business Council’s international mentor network, and it’s safe to say that Clara López Bueno, then a junior at UMSL, made an immediate positive impression on Nowak and Riopedre.

“She showed incredible confidence,” Nowak said. “I was trying to think about the roles being reversed, and it could be a little intimidating if I’m studying in a foreign country, and I’m meeting two individuals and I’m maybe conscious of my language skills a little bit. But she just was brimming with confidence even back then.”

López, who is from Vigo, a city on the northwest coast of Spain, remembers the meeting fondly.

“It was very natural,” López said. “The conversation was more personal, which was what made the connection better. Tim and Jorge asked me if I wanted to stay in the U.S., and I said that I would like to stay here and work for as long as I could before I go back to Spain.”

The connections made over coffee in Clayton are still going strong, even as they’ve evolved into friendships. Nowak was speaking at the WTC’s Growing Global 2024 luncheon on September 25 at The Ritz-Carlton when he surprised López by singling her out as a shining example of the type of global talent St. Louis is attracting and nurturing. López completed an internship at World Wide Technology while pursuing her master’s in supply chain analytics at UMSL and then landed a job at WWT as an associate project manager after graduating in December 2023.

“When he called my name, I was so red,” López said with a laugh. “He had texted me making sure that I was going to be there, and that was different because he had never done that before, even though it was my third year in a row going to the event. That was a bit surprising. But I didn’t know he was going to call me out in front of 700 people!”

López wasn’t the only one pleasantly surprised by the mention. Faculty and staff members from UMSL’s College of Business Administration had a table at the event, and their effusive reaction was indicative of the impact López has made on their department. Francesca Ferrari, director of graduate business programs, led the cheers that echoed around the room.

“I heard them, and I could hear Francesca specifically,” López said. “Honestly, I almost teared up, because I owe them everything, especially Francesca and the team. They’re the best.”

López, who earned her BSBA with three areas of emphasis – international business, marketing and supply chain management – worked with Ferrari’s team while finishing her master’s in supply chain and analytics.

“She was just a wonderful person to have around, always ready to do any project we would give her,” Ferrari said. “She would ask questions, and then she would just take the project and get it done. She is always very positive.”

The shout-out might have been unexpected in the moment, but the reasons behind it were anything but a surprise to those who know López. Since she arrived at UMSL to play tennis in 2018, López has made an impact on just about everyone she’s met, on and off campus. Nowak has asked her to share her story with other groups, including at the quarterly meeting of the St. Louis Mosaic Project’s steering committee shortly after the Growing Global event.

“She’s a rock star,” Nowak said. “I mean this with all sincerity, and I told the steering committee this: She is somebody who is the perfect example of the mentee becoming the mentor. She’s got a great story to share. She has terrific advice for other students as well, particularly international students, about having the confidence and the willingness to do the work, to set goals.”

Jessica Hylton, UMSL’s interim director of global students and experiences, is on the Mosaic Project steering committee, and was part of that Zoom meeting.

“I was incredibly impressed by Clara’s journey at UMSL and the remarkable impact she is making as a Global Triton alum,” Hylton said. “We are thrilled to see her establishing her career roots in St. Louis, showcasing the value of an UMSL education in not only the region but the world. Clara’s story highlights the global talent UMSL is producing and shows that international students have a place and a future not only at the university but also in the greater metropolitan area.”

López was a standout high school tennis player in Spain, and she wanted to continue to compete while pursuing her college education. She’d attended a tennis camp in Texas a few years earlier and was intrigued by the idea of playing collegiately in the United States, so she reached out to an agency that specializes in making the necessary connections. After several Zoom conversations with the Tritons’ then-tennis coach Rick Gyllenborg, UMSL felt like an ideal fit.

López had a 15-7 record in doubles matches her freshman season, but injuries hindered the last few years of her tennis career. (Photo courtesy of UMSL Athletics)

López officially started her new St. Louis adventure in the fall of 2018. At the time, she was still learning conversational English. She had taken some courses while in Spain, but she was far from fluent when she arrived, making the initial transition a challenge. There were times that first semester, she said, that she considered going back home.

One of the things that convinced her to stay was the friends she made, especially the other international students in the Department of Athletics. That group felt more like a family and helped her not only survive those first few months but to thrive as she became more comfortable in her new ecosystem. Gyllenborg, too, played a big role. A relentless source of encouragement on and off the court, Gyllenborg – who retired after the 2021 season, his 26th as UMSL’s coach – helped show López and her teammates the value of taking pride in schoolwork, which López said is a big reason they’re all doing so well in their post-tennis careers.

Looking back on where she was then, López just smiles.

“To start with, I didn’t even know what I wanted to do with my life,” she said. “I was 17 when I came, and I’m 24 now. I didn’t have any family or any friends here. My initial idea was coming here for not even four years but a year to try, and if I didn’t like it, I’d go back to Spain after practicing my English and getting to know new people. That was my plan.

“I feel like I’ve matured a lot. I have friends from around the entire world now. To learn to find things for myself, to not have to rely on family, that was a big thing. I’m definitely not the same person. I mean, essentially I am personality-wise, but before I came here, I had a lot of confidence issues. It was the same in tennis as well. It was a big issue. I was really good, but in matches I would start playing off because I didn’t have enough confidence. The confidence I have now came from getting good grades at UMSL, doing well in tennis and just doing well overall in life.”

Unfortunately, a pair of severe ankle sprains curtailed both her junior and senior seasons on the tennis court. When she finished her bachelor’s and started to pursue her master’s in supply chain and analytics – a decision she discussed with Nowak and Riopedre, among others – López chose to take the job working with Ferrari and start an internship instead of pursuing a redshirt/injury year on the tennis team. She still plays recreationally and coaches with STL City Tennis in Forest Park.

While she was working with Ferrari, López was also making an impression during her eight-month internship in the quality department at World Wide Technology. She loved working there, and the feeling was apparently mutual – she landed a job with the company after graduation.

“I’m in the Global Financial side with all the banks inside the Global Program Management Organization at WWT,” she said. “I am managing specific projects for the Fiserv account, a leading global technology provider in the financial services industry and one of our customers in the Global Financials sector, in collaboration with another senior project manager I am proudly learning from.

“I’m the associate, making sure everything goes well budget-wise, making sure that all the internal teams are aligned with what they need, solving problems, and making sure we are providing the customer with what they need. That’s what we do.”

There is a big difference, both Nowak and Ferrari stressed, between landing an internship and landing a full-time job. The innate skills and instincts López has shown them both over the years – her commitment to hard work, networking and building professional relationships – helped her earn the position at World Wide Technology.

“It’s not common,” Nowak said. “It’s unique. It’s very intentional, and it’s genuine. It’s also a recognition that this is important for her own career.”

He pauses.

“That’s a testament to her and also a testament to UMSL and her education there,” he said. “We need more Claras. We really do.”