WASHINGTON – The fourth annual BIG EAST Women's Basketball Transition Game program concluded last week in Midtown Manhattan. Thirty student-athletes from across the conference's 10 member schools, including four Hoyas, enjoyed an interactive educational and professional development weekend, which included Q&A sessions with such industry leaders as BIG EAST Commissioner Val Ackerman, Executive Director of the WNBA Players Association Terri Jackson, human resources specialist Cheryl Gelzer Alexis, JD, basketball television analyst and Hoya alum Monica McNutt, and mental health expert Dr. Alfiee M. Breland-Noble.
On Saturday, in addition to Ackerman, Jackson and McNutt, student-athletes heard from Vice President of the Connecticut Sun and New England Black Wolves Amber Cox, Providence Associate Head Coach Priscilla Edwards, recent Villanova graduate Jannah Tucker, and Karleena Tobin, a referee at the Division I, WNBA and the NBA G League levels. Following a self-assessment exercise to identify each individual's personal strengths, the group discussed the importance of mental health with Dr. Alfiee, before traveling downtown to the 9/11 Memorial and Museum and enjoying dinner at an iconic New York City restaurant.
Sunday's sessions focused on elevator speeches, resume building and mock interviews, facilitated by Gelzer Alexis and Michael Sainte, BIG EAST Senior Director of Compliance and Membership Services. Student-athletes took turns interviewing in front of the group, which then provided feedback on the mock session.
What they're saying about Transition Game
Taylor Barnes
Graduate Student
"Transition game was an amazing and eye-opening experience! I learned valuable skills that will help me be successful once basketball is over. It showed me that the BIG EAST truly cares about the well-being of their student athletes, not just athletically."
Breonna Mayfield
Junior
"The Transition Game was great and really made me think about life after basketball. Listening to the panelists allowed me to see myself on the other side, actually contributing to the work world and that was very helpful for me."
Tatiana Thompson
Junior
"I think going to Transition Game was a real eye opener for me. It's been really hard trying to think about what I would do besides basketball, and being in New York listening to women who have been in my shoes tell me that it's okay to not know made me relax a little more. I think everyone should get a chance to go because of the experience and also the great insight that the women give."
Monica McNutt
Hoya Alum and Basketball Analyst
"The BIG EAST is ahead of the curve – we mentioned it on the panel with the focus on mental health in student-athletes. Part of mental health has to do with uncertainty, so to take a small part of that uncertainty that comes with graduation, and grasp it and look at it in the face and not make it the best it can be because it's an unknown, but to have conversations, meet people who want to be resources to help these young ladies navigate their next step. The BIG EAST is ahead of the game."
