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SEP graduate helps professional athletes overcome barriers to reach professional summit

Jess Michel provided performance training for Houston Astros

Jesse Michel earned his Ph.D. in Sport and Exercise Psychology in 2013. Michel, who is from Los Angeles, went straight to work for the military as the lead master resilience trainer, performance expert at the Comprehensive Soldier and Family Fitness (CSF2) Training Center in Honolulu, Hawaii. The mission of CSF2 is to teach resilience, sport and performance psychology skills to U.S. Army Soldiers, family members and Department of Army civilians around the world. 

“While with CSF2, I provided hands-on mental training and self-development tools so that members of the Army family were better able to cope with adversity, perform better in stressful situations and thrive on and off the battlefield,” Michel explained.  

Sport Management students meet with Pittsburgh Pirates executives to celebrate diversity

Students who attended the Curt Roberts Step Up to the Plate include James Ruggiero, Andrew Reynolds, Al Costanzo, Lyndsey Core, Sam DeMuzio, Samuel Hait, Evan Banasick, Kirsten Wehmeier, and Holden Moore

Nine students and one faculty member from the CPASS Sport Management program attended the first annual Curt Roberts Step Up to the Plate event hosted by the Pittsburgh Pirates. The event celebrated diversity and inclusion while also honoring the late Curt Roberts who was the first African-American baseball player drafted by the Pirates.

Frank Coonelly, president of the Pittsburgh Pirates, welcomed the CPASS delegation and emphasized the importance of diversity in the workplace. After the president’s keynote, students participated in a panel with nine members of the Pirates front office. Speakers offered career advice and spoke about diversity. The panel consisted of individuals from a variety of departments including marketing, community relations, sales, IT, analytics and baseball operations.