The business of sports — Jackson woman to help raise money for Princeton athletics

Many people can point to what is colloquially referred to as their personal "tip of the spear," an important life event causing a change in direction.

For Melissa Stephens, a 2014 graduate of Jackson High School and an alumnus of Southeast Missouri State University, that moment came the day her paternal grandfather died Sept. 11.

Melissa Stephens

"When my grandpa passed away, I really started to rethink and refocus what my goals were long term," said Stephens, who studied sport management at SEMO and later held intern positions in community relations with three National Football League teams: the Baltimore Ravens, Carolina Panthers and Cleveland Browns.

Stephens' repeated efforts to find gainful employment in the 32-team NFL did not pan out.

"I realized I'd been trying to make it full time into the pro sports world for so long and was getting told 'no' many times. I decided to get back to my roots where I fell in love with sports, which was in college," she added.

Ivy League

"If I went back to the university level, I wanted to be part of a big-name school," Stephens opined, noting her new position, assistant manager of athletics advancement at New Jersey's Princeton University, came together rapidly.

"I thought there was no way this Ivy League school was going to look at me without a master's degree or many accolades," she said. "Less than a week after I applied, though, I got an email invitation for a Zoom interview with the person who will be my supervisor at Princeton. It went well, and three days later, Princeton said it would fly me to New Jersey for sit-down interviews and a tour of the campus. A week after that I got the job. It all happened very, very quickly," recalled Stephens, whose first day on the job is today.

Raising money

Stephens joins a five-person advancement department in Princeton athletics, responsible for planning major fundraising events for donors, mainly alumni, who are part of what the university calls its "Varsity Club."

Her first big task comes Nov. 30.

"We have what is called 'Tiger Athletics Give Day,' which is essentially a 24-hour telethon where student athletes call alumni donors and ask for financial support for Princeton's 37 intercollegiate sports programs," she said.

Unlike many universities that have cut back on athletics during the pandemic, Stephens noted she has been told Princeton will soon be adding a 38th sport, although she admits she hasn't been made privy to the details yet.

"My new boss also recognized my NFL experience, so I'll be helping student athletes fulfill their 4,000 annual hours of community service" they collectively have to perform, she said.

Seeing a future

Stephens said she was well aware finding work in the NFL was going to be difficult.

"There are only so many NFL teams and there are at least 4,000 U.S. universities. I know people still working entry-level employment in the NFL who've been doing those jobs for as long as 10 years. At Princeton, I might be at the director level in as soon as three years, plus I may find a future spouse here, get married and start a family. I felt I was putting all of that on hold to chase the pro-sports dream," she said.

A good fit

Stephens said having the chance to represent Princeton is "an honor" given the university's prestige.

"I feel the same level of pride that I felt interning with those NFL teams," she said.

Stephens said she will work to establish healthy relationships with donors and will promote what she considers strong athletic messaging.

"In soccer, for example, our head coach just achieved 200 career wins this past week. This is kind of story to remind the alumni and other donors why they should keep backing the athletics program," she said.

Advice

Stephens said the most helpful counsel she has received to-date was from a woman executive with the NFL's Kansas City Chiefs during a networking telephone call.

"She told me if my friends tell me I'm not cool because I'm no longer in the NFL, that I should do what makes me happy and should go somewhere where I could grow," she remembered.

Stephens said joining Princeton is somewhat ironic.

"My grandpa, the one I just lost, was from Paterson, New Jersey," she said.

Stephens, in addition to internships in the NFL, held a similar role with the Frisco Rough Riders, the AA farm team of Major League Baseball's Texas Rangers. She had also interviewed for jobs with the Cincinnati Reds and San Francisco Giants of MLB.

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