Meredith Way is pursuing a bachelor’s degree in sport management at UMSL after transferring to the university as a junior. Over the past academic year, Way has gained hands-on industry experience through volunteer opportunities at major sporting events, including the Super Bowl, and internships with local professional athletic organizations. (Photo by Derik Holtmann)
Meredith Way entered the sport management program at the University of Missouri–St. Louis with a blank slate.
Though Way was a junior transfer student and had been a competitive athlete in cheerleading and soccer for nearly two decades, she had little industry experience on her resume.
“I didn’t know, working in sports, you have to physically do it,” Way said. “You need to have internships. You need to have experience. I had absolutely none of that. I didn’t know that was wrong until I came to UMSL. I didn’t know there was a better way to do it.”
Karen Boleska, the director of the sport management program in the College of Education, helped Way change that expediently.
“Meri has been an outstanding transfer student who has truly taken full advantage of everything our sport management program has to offer,” Boleska said. “Since arriving in August, she has consistently sought out meaningful professional development opportunities.”
Way got to work as soon as she became a Triton. Over the past academic year, she has volunteered at some of the country’s most prominent sporting events such as the Super Bowl, NFL Draft and the NCAA men’s Final Four and competed at the National Collegiate Sports Sales Championship. She’s also served as president of the Sport Management Leadership Team, social media and marketing intern with the St. Louis Ambush and assistant track and field coach at St. Joseph’s Academy. This month, she begins an events internship with Major League Soccer’s St. Louis CITY SC.
The sport management program has not only provided Way with extraordinary hands-on experiences, but also a community of like-minded peers and a sense of purpose in her work inside and outside of the classroom.
“I still can’t believe how far I came in just a year,” Way said. “It’s amazing. It literally changed my life.”
Way attributes that rapid progress to Boleska and her investment in the sport management students. Boleska prioritizes practical skills, which are often learned working on the ground and communicating with industry professionals during the program’s guest speaker series. Boleska expects much of her students, but she gives just as much to them.
“She truly cares about your grades,” Way said. “I’ve never had a professor that cares about their students’ success so much. It’s not just, ‘I’m going to teach and then you figure the rest out on your own.’ She’s truly there for every single step, and she’s really big on hands-on learning, going out into the world and doing it.”
It’s been a marked change from Way’s previous college experience. After graduating from Francis Howell High School, Way accepted an athletic scholarship to cheer at Missouri Baptist University. However, she never truly felt at home at the university and often mulled over a change. Her hand was forced when she lost her scholarship.
“I was already burnt out,” she said. “It wasn’t my place anymore. I felt like I wasn’t growing as a person. I was just going to class and doing what I needed to do, and that was it. I just hated that feeling. When our team got cut and we lost our athletic scholarships, I was like, ‘OK, well, this is my sign.’”
Way enrolled at UMSL on the advice of her family. Her sister had just graduated from the College of Education, and her uncle attended the university, as well. When a staff member in the Office of Admissions pointed her in the direction of the sport management program, Way decided to make the leap.
That decision led to front-row seats to some of the top professional athletics organizations in the country, as Way resolved to avail herself of the program’s many volunteer opportunities. At Super Bowl LX in San Francisco, she worked the Super Bowl Breakfast assisting media members. During the main event, she acted in a guest services role at Levi’s Stadium, answering fans’ questions and directing traffic.
In April, Way traveled to Indianapolis for the NCAA men’s Final Four and to Pittsburgh for the NFL Draft. At the Final Four, she and her classmates handled sponsorship activations by distributing Coca-Cola coasters before overseeing the fan experience at the Tip-Off Tailgate. As NFL Draft Teammates, the UMSL cohort created lasting memories for fans by taking photos of them with the Lombardi Trophy.
The production of these events requires the efforts of thousands of volunteers, many of them college students hoping to break into professional athletics. For Way, the experiences underscored just how competitive the industry is.
“You have to have confidence,” she said. “You always have to put your best foot forward.”
Way is doing that by augmenting her volunteer work. Since November, she has been a social media and marketing intern with the St. Louis Ambush, a professional indoor soccer team. While the role is ostensibly focused on marketing, it’s allowed her to touch just about every part of the business. The organization has also given her the latitude to make decisions and test her creative ideas.
“Me and the other interns have gotten to come up with super fun and trending TikToks and Instagram reels,” Way said. “I’ve also done everything from cold calling to taking pictures.”
Way’s time with the Ambush has built a solid foundation for her next internship with St. Louis CITY SC. It has also helped her narrow down what she wants to do in the future. She initially aspired to work in social media with her beloved Cincinnati Bengals, but realized her skills might be better utilized in other areas.
“My goal is still to work in football, NFL or UFL,” Way explained. “Right now, I’m really, really interested in athlete development – I think being a coach is part of that – and then marketing.”
Boleska is thrilled to see where Way is at after just a year in the program. “I am incredibly proud of how she has embraced every opportunity, shown initiative and developed into a highly motivated and industry-ready student,” she said.
Way knows that her dream of working in professional football is within reach thanks to her education at UMSL.
“It has seriously changed my life and shaped me as a person in so many ways,” Way said. “Sometimes I get emotional thinking about it. I am so grateful that I took the chance and that I just did it. I can’t imagine where I would be with without transferring to UMSL, without being in this program.”
