< Previous8 UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH ATHLETICS “You can make this arrangement while you’re alive,” says Sismour. “It doesn’t change your circumstances at all. Right now, if you say that you want to give 10% of your estate to the University, you’ve made a provision, but obviously it’s not going to take effect until some point in the future. “The gratification for the donor is knowing that they have made this provision. It’s been put in place, spelled out, and they don’t have to worry about it affecting their current circumstances.” Many potential donors are concerned about their long-term care needs and the rising costs associated with them. But with estate giving, Pitt considers those possible needs. “They don’t know if they’re going to have to go into a nursing home,” Sismour says. “Long-term care is such a big issue with folks these days, and you just don’t know. To prepare for that, unless you have long-term care insurance, you want to hold onto your assets as best as you can, just in case.” For the anonymous donor, there were numerous factors to iron out with Pitt over the last eight years. After contemplating various giving options, they felt that the best donation approach was to endow scholarships in the sport that he participated in while earning his undergraduate degree from Pitt in the 1970s: track and field. Through time and planning, they settled on five scholarships for the track program, with each being named for members of the donor’s family. Another scholarship will be awarded to the Pitt football program and will be named for a family member who played high school football before passing away in a car accident a quarter of a century before the donor was born. “We went through various considerations and formulated how we wanted to structure our gift,” says the donor, who also received two master’s degrees from Pitt. “We invested time in understanding the NCAA scholarship implications coupled with the formation of our own estate goals and objectives. The scholarships represent future ongoing long-term support for a specific purpose.” “The scholarships are for an acknowledgment of the legacy of my family. Each scholarship is a tribute to various individuals in my family.” The donor is an ardent supporter of Pitt Athletics and someone who keeps a keen eye on the department as a whole as well as on individual teams. They were drawn to estate giving thanks, in part, to the successful development of Pitt’s athletic programs. “That was a big plus for us,” they say. “During all of our conversations with the major giving team, they were energetic, enthusiastic, had a vision and expressed sincere determination in making all Pitt athletic programs successful.” “Our goal is for each of the scholarship recipients to graduate and have a similar or better experience than I did,” says the donor, and, more importantly, that each recipient is prepared to take the next step in their life and have a successful career.” Sismour and his staff will, in time, take that gift and, through the endowment process, invest it into the future, providing scholarships for select students for generations to come. “These are forever gifts that will always support students at the University of Pittsburgh,” Sismour says. “That’s an evergreen need of the University. This is just a fantastic gift.” The donor hopes that using their finances to better someone’s college experience will better their life and the world and potentially will start a perpetual cycle of similar giving. “Ideally, somewhere down the road, my wife and I want to help a person who’s going to be highly successful,” adds the donor, “and that one, two or more of these individuals will one day contemplate undertaking similar types of philanthropy with Pitt.” H2P MAGAZINE FALL 2024 9 We know your Pitt education has prepared you for the next level—obtaining a graduate degree or certificate from the University of Pittsburgh. With the Pitt2Pitt Scholarship, graduating Pitt undergraduates and alumni can receive up to $7,500 per year when they enroll in one of 100+ Pitt graduate or professional programs. There are more than 100 participating Pitt2Pitt graduate or professional programs in disciplines across our 14 graduate and professional schools. Many flexible, part-time, online, and hybrid options are also available. For all the details on the Pitt2Pitt Scholarship, visit gradstudies.pitt.edu/pitt2pitt World-class EDUCATION, SUPPORTIVE environment and resources for SUCCESS Graduate Programs for Future Leaders at the University of Pittsburgh Pitt 2 Pitt SCHOLARSHIP Graduating Pitt undergraduates and alumni can receive up to a $7,500 tuition scholarship per year when they enroll in a participating Pitt graduate or professional program.10 UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH ATHLETICS SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT Handling Pressure Like a Pro: Cat Flood Balances Volleyball Triumphs and Business Ambitions Written by Carole Reinert By the time an athlete starts playing at the collegiate level, they are usually used to the pressure of competition and how large crowds intensify the pressure. uring the five years that Cat Flood has been on the University of Pittsburgh volleyball team, the team’s popularity has grown. Last season, it sold out at the Fitzgerald Field House and the Petersen Events Center. The largest crowd in the program’s history—8,865 fans—packed the Pete for the regular season win over Louisville. Former Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger started attending their games, and when they competed in the Final Four, fans from as far away as California came to watch the team play in Tampa, Florida. When you watch Flood on the court, you see a fierce competitor who doesn’t buckle under pressure. But that doesn’t mean she doesn’t feel it. “Right before the game starts, I will not be nervous. Then the lights go off and the intro video starts, and I take a moment and think ‘Wow,’” says Flood. Her coaches often talk about the privilege of pressure. “We are given the opportunity to play on the biggest stage and [in] the biggest moments in front of the biggest crowds. It’s a bit unreal,” Flood admits. She relies on deep breathing and visualization before games and tells herself, “I am with my best friends; I am with my sisters. I am with my family, and the only pressure I feel is to perform for them, not anybody else.” As the game progresses, so does the pressure. “It can be a little nerve-wracking because you want to be the person who makes the play at the big moment,” she says. Her ability to stay laser focused and calm under pressure will help her to succeed when she leaves the court and H2P MAGAZINE FALL 2024 11 enters the business world. Luckily, that won’t happen for another year. Flood is spending her fifth year on the team in the Master of Science program in management at Pitt’s Joseph M. Katz Graduate School of Business. Created for those without business experience, this degree will give her the foundations of business—classes in statistical analysis, financial accounting, economic analysis and marketing management—to complement her liberal arts background. Flood also can take a three-credit experience-based learning course and take part in a variety of professional development opportunities. “I know Katz is a very good school, and I’m extremely grateful for the opportunity,” says Flood. The connection between athletics and business is well known. Sports teach teamwork and time management, and those who play in college learn to adapt to frequent travel. The intense commitment—Flood spends a tremendous amount of time in practice and games— develops a perseverance mindset. She’s twice been named to the All- Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Academic Team and has helped Pitt to reach three straight Final Four appearances—the only Final Four appearances in program history—and win its second-consecutive ACC championship. Her three aces against Washington State in the regional finals tied a career high. It’s amazing to think that she almost didn’t come to Pitt. Flood always thought she’d follow in her mother’s footsteps and attend Duke. That changed when she received an email from Kellen Petrone, Pitt’s associate head volleyball coach. At first, she hesitated. But her mother told her that she shouldn’t eliminate options. All it took was meeting the team once and she was ready to commit. “They were just so welcoming. I felt like they really wanted me to be there,” remembers Flood. She committed in September 2018. Looking back at the last four years, this serving specialist and outside hitter has absolutely no regrets. “Our team culture is incredible, the coaching staff is unbelievable and we get tremendous support from the city,” says Flood. An only child, she calls her teammates her sisters. Flood loves that the band and cheerleaders come to their games and enjoys the energy that fans bring to the matches. This is a much-welcomed contrast to her first year on the team. She remembers going to the Elite Eight during the pandemic with only 600 people sitting far apart from each other. “It was strange, how quiet it was,” she says. Growing up in Chicago, Illinois, she began kicking a soccer ball when she was 4 years old, originally thinking she’d pursue collegiate soccer. She played both sports for a while, ultimately deciding to focus just on volleyball as a high school sophomore. Ironically, she thought she was too tall for soccer. When she joined Pitt’s volleyball team, she was one of the taller players. “Now, some of the outside hitters are 6 foot 4 or 6 foot 5, and I am just 6 foot 2. Sometimes in volleyball, two inches can matter,” says Flood. Lacking those two inches certainly hasn’t hurt Flood’s performance. While she didn’t attend her mother’s alma mater, both parents influenced her career aspirations, perhaps without realizing it. Her mother worked in advertising, which Flood found interesting. Her father has been restoring a 1969 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray, which taught her the inner workings of automobiles. She also enjoys watching Formula 1 racing; Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton are her favorite drivers, and she loves the cleverness of their marketing. Thanks to the undergraduate and graduate programs available at Pitt, she is creating the perfect path to her dream job: becoming an agent for a NASCAR or Formula 1 driver or working on advertising and social media campaigns. Knowing that her end goal was to get a position in the business side of sports, she spent her undergraduate years as a media and professional communications major. “I thought I’d focus on the more creative side first, then follow through with the business side at the end of my time at Pitt,” explains Flood. Flood graduated in April 2024 with a 3.6 grade point average; a media and professional communications degree; and two certificates, one in sports studies and the other in corporate and community relations. She gained valuable experience as cochair of marketing and communications for the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, where she runs the group’s Instagram account. Plus, during an internship with the athletics department’s postproduction team, she sat courtside and filmed the men’s basketball games. She managed to do all this while being on the Dean’s List, the ACC Academic Honor Roll and the All-ACC Academic Team. Graduate classes are more intense than undergraduate classes. Flood knows she can juggle it all thanks to Christina “Tilly” Sheets, associate athletic director for academic support services, who she calls the best academic advisor of all time. “She has saved my life a few times,” laughs Flood. “She’ll curate the right schedule for us, get us tutors if needed and plan study hall hours.” In addition to having Sheets in her corner, she will continue to rely on her faith to help her succeed. “I truly think that my purpose was to be here, in Pittsburgh, with my team and receive the highest level of education,” adds Flood.12 UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH ATHLETICSH2P MAGAZINE FALL 2024 13 he University of Pittsburgh inducted another star-studded Pitt Athletics Hall of Fame class in September. The Pitt Athletics Hall of Fame enshrined 10 new members in its 2024 induction class on September 13, 2024, at the Petersen Events Center. THE HONOREES ARE: DeJuan Blair (Men’s Basketball) Dick Groat (Broadcaster; Posthumous) Bill Hillgrove (Broadcaster) Amy Jackson (Women’s Swimming) Brianna Kiesel (Women’s Basketball) George McLaren (Football; Posthumous) Jamie Pelusi (Women’s Soccer) Darrelle Revis (Football) Al Romano (Football) Steve Lewis (Track and Field Coach; Posthumous) HALL OF FAME PITT ATHLETICS CLASS OF 2024 Back Row (left to right): Hall of Fame Chairperson Billy Knight; DeJuan Blair; Darrelle Revis; Al Romano; Allison Groat DeStefano, Carol Groat and Tracey Groat Goetz (daughters of Dick Groat) and Jamie Pelusi Front Row (left to right): Amy Jackson Partridge; Tiffany Bell Lewis, daughter of Steve Lewis; Brianna Kiesel-Acker; Bill Hillgrove; George McLaren, grandson of George McLaren and Executive Associate Athletic Director, Sport Administration Jen Tuscano14 UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH ATHLETICS FEATURE Career consultant meeting with student-athlete From Field to Future : Preparing Student-Athletes for the Next Play Written by Craig Meyer very year around the NCAA basketball tournaments and the college football bowl season, there’s an NCAA commercial that runs on television that’s inescapable for any college sports fan. As the 30-second spot comes to an end, a voiceover notes that there are hundreds of thousands of NCAA student-athletes in a given year and that “most of us go pro in something other than sports.” It’s a wholesome and necessary reminder that while many of these student-athletes being watched by millions of people come to college with dreams of making it to the professional ranks, there’s an overwhelming statistical probability that their years in college will mark the end of their competitive athletic careers before they move on to more conventional, perhaps less thrilling professions beyond a field or court—as legendary Steelers coach Chuck Noll once termed it, their “life’s work.” At the University of Pittsburgh, that mission is much more than heartwarming rhetoric to punctuate a public service announcement. A part of the Cathy and John Pelusi Family Life Skills Program in the University’s Department of Athletics, the career development journey is an initiative that works with student- athletes over the course of their time at Pitt to prepare them for the professional world that awaits them after college. It’s quite effective, too, with a 100% job placement rate in the most recent academic year. “We have those programs where it’s the whole team and all the student-athletes, but where we really shine is [that] our programs are so individualized. We have the man- and womanpower to meet with each one of the student-athletes and ask what they want to do,” says Raquel Montalvo Perez, a career consultant for student-athletes. “I work with all sports. I work with all student-athletes [who] are getting on my calendar, and I’m able to personalize their path and goals so that it’s not just a random job [they’re] landing after graduation or a random opportunity. It has actually been thought out by so many people in the life skills area. We are very comprehensive.” Though it has evolved and expanded its reach over time, the program has existed in some form for about two decades. In the mid-2000s, then Chancellor Mark Nordenberg, believing there to be a need for more student-athlete support, helped to establish a career consultant position to work with student-athletes, a hybrid role that brought together the athletics department and the University’s career center. From there, it grew from one individual to a staff of nine that now makes up the life skills program. The career development journey offers a course that 90% of first-year student- athletes take and for which they receive an elective credit. In it, they learn about what the career development journey and the life skills program offer while receiving initial career consultations and financial literacy instruction, among other services. After getting a taste of what the life skills program can provide to them, student-athletes receive a specific advisor, one who regularly follows up and meets with them every term or once a year, depending on their needs. If nothing else, advisors are there to remind student-athletes that they’re around to help and be a resource. While the program has its goals and methods, it’s also extremely flexible. It has to be. Not every student-athlete comes into college with the same understanding of what they want, and because of that, those helping them with the next steps in their life can’t follow the same specific path.H2P MAGAZINE FALL 2024 15 “It’s a spectrum,” says Kelsi Schaer, Pitt’s former assistant athletic director, student life. “One of our internal mantras is ‘Meet you where you are, figure out where you want to go and build a plan to get there.’ We try to individualize that career plan and support. One student-athlete shows up and they’re like, ‘I’m going to med school. Here’s my four-year plan. Can you help me identify shadowing opportunities, community service projects, and how to develop my personal statements? How do I start thinking about that now?’ Whereas others show up and they say, ‘I have no idea what I want to major in. Here’s maybe what I’m thinking about doing. What major should I do in order to achieve an outcome I hope to see?’ It’s a really dynamic position or approach because it really is catered to each individual student-athlete.” With the career development journey, each staff member has a certain number of student-athletes by sport with whom they work. To best accommodate the student-athletes they advise, they’ll meet them at the team’s training facility, something that’s particularly helpful for football players who practice and train in a facility just across the Monongahela River from campus. In that way, the career development journey literally meets an athlete where they are. Beyond that on-the-nose embodiment of the initiative’s ethos, the career development journey personalizes its approach depending on where a student- athlete is when they enter the program, what professions they want to pursue and how much time they have to work toward those goals. In many cases, life skills staff members are working with an 18-year-old first year who just got to campus and is making sense of this new world in which they’ve immersed themselves. In other instances, it’s a transfer student with only one year of eligibility remaining. After an exploratory phase, a student-athlete gets more hands-on interactions with their advisor, a time in which the advisor gets a better sense of the person and budding professional with whom they’re working. By the time job and internship applications begin, advisors can help them seek out potential opportunities and get in touch with connections at those companies, organizations and agencies. If the student-athlete can negotiate their salary, they get assistance with that, along with advice on benefits being offered. And that helping hand remains extended after graduation. Alums can seek out the services of the career development journey after their playing careers at Pitt. Montalvo Perez, for example, says that she has recently worked with a former Panthers baseball player who graduated last year and is seeking job opportunities. For Montalvo Perez, a former student- athlete herself (she played tennis at Eastern Kentucky University), her job provides her with the chance to work with people whose often chaotic lives she deeply understands. “If you don’t understand the time commitment that students have, it’s just difficult,” she says. Student-athletes just don’t have that luxury of having a normal schedule. Understanding that I’ve gone through it and how student- athletes come out better as people after going through this experience, but also having that support [that] a ‘regular student’ would have with their career, I think that’s 90% of it.” Those at Pitt, well aware of similar offerings at major colleges across the country, see the program as unique, particularly when it comes to its success in one of its primary objectives: helping student-athletes to seamlessly transition into the next phase of their lives. After a slight dip during the COVID-19 pandemic, when companies were downsizing and job openings weren’t particularly plentiful, the career development journey has had a 100% job placement rate. That figure is determined by the percentage of student-athletes no longer seeking a job within six months of graduating with their first degree. The initiative has taken on an added importance in recent years, with student-athletes now able to earn money from their name, image and likeness. It’s no longer about student-athletes building toward a career but rather, depending on their interests, building a personal brand on social media and using those platforms to network. For those with the career development journey, the shifting landscape of college athletics doesn’t change what drives them every day in their work. “It’s seeing student-athletes take a step in their development, whether it’s being excited that they got an interview for a job or got their first full-time job offer or they got into grad school or they’re going professional,” Schaer says. “The long-term goal is [that] whatever that first step post-sport or post-Pitt looks like, they’re excited, and they feel like our life skills team helped them in some capacity. At the same time, it’s even the tiny steps, like helping a student-athlete open a bank account, and now they feel more confident they know how to manage their money just a tiny bit. It’s just one step in their development that they recognize and they appreciate [that] makes every day here worth it.” One on one career consultation with a student-athlete16 UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH ATHLETICS A Night with Panthers Head Football Coach Pat Narduzzi and football player Donovan McMillon closed the program talking about the importance of Alliance 412 and auctioning off a charter to an away football game. A Night with Panthers provided the opportunity for supporters to connect with head coaches, staff and student-athletes. Alliance 412 supporters and members of The Script Society, John and Lisa Sieckowski and Jon Urban P itt Athletics, in collaboration with its official athletics collective, Alliance 412, hosted “A Night with Panthers” at the Petersen Events Center. The evening featured an engaging program hearing from Coach Narduzzi and Coach Capel, along with insights on the upcoming seasons from current student- athletes Rachel Fairbanks (Volleyball), Jaland Lowe (Men’s Basketball), and Donovan McMillon (Football). The event also included both silent and live auctions, with all proceeds directly supporting Pitt student-athletes and their partnership with Alliance 412.H2P MAGAZINE FALL 2024 17 Men’s Basketball Player Jorge Diaz Graham Head Men’s Basketball Coach Jeff Capel and men’s basketball player Jaland Lowe shared thoughts on the resurgence of Pitt basketball before auctioning off the opportunity to travel with the team to the North Carolina game. The McKamish Family with football players Branson Taylor, Gavin Bartholomew and Donovan McMillon 93.7 The Fan Morning Show hosts Dorin Dickerson (former Pitt All-American) and Adam Crowley (WVU fan) played on the Backyard Brawl rivalry for the crowd. Voice of the Panthers Bill Hillgrove shared a few favorite memories and auctioned off the opportunity to spend a game in the radio booth with him and the broadcast team. Alliance 412 supporters and members of The Script Society Tom and Deanna Swartout loved meeting lacrosse player Gracie Kahoun.Next >