The People

With ESPN Job, 2017 Grad Fulfills Big-League Dreams

When Rob Galm toured ESPN’s headquarters as an eighth-grader in 2009, he made a bold promise.

“I told everyone on the tour that I was going to work there some day,” remembers Rob, who was 14 when he first visited the sports network’s main campus in Bristol, Conn.

He even took a photo behind SportsCenter’s anchor desk as proof.

Rob Galm at the SportsCenter anchor desk — Rob Galm sits at ESPN’s SportsCenter anchor desk in 2009 and in 2017. Galm toured the studio as a 14-year-old and recently was hired at the network.

True to his word, Rob didn’t waste any time working towards his big-picture career goal. A month after completing his degree as a communication studies major at SUNY Cortland, he landed a full-time job with the undisputed worldwide leader in sports.

“It was on the top of my list of places I wanted to get to,” says Rob, who grew up in Pine Plains, N.Y., roughly 90 minutes from his new employer. “So being able to have it work out, especially after graduating early, that was really cool.”

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Why Changing Your Career Path Isn’t a Bad Thing

Heather Clancy’s young life hasn’t followed a straight line.

There were several zig zags before she arrived at the University of Colorado’s Aurora campus for a Ph.D. program in cellular biology — changes in her major at SUNY Cortland, her career path after graduation and her larger life goals.

At 24, she left a good job doing quality assurance testing at Chobani, the Greek-style yogurt giant headquartered in Norwich, N.Y., to fulfill an ambition to learn more. She made a leap of faith out west.

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Sweet Experience Wins International Photo Contest

When German international student Johanna Klauser bit into a deep-fried Oreo for the first time in the fall, she didn’t know the moment would be captured in a photo.

Sure, she expected a sweet taste, but the end result was even sweeter.

That’s because the photo recently earned Johanna (pronounced Yo-hun-nuh) first prize in the cultural category of the “Why I Love Studying in New York” photo contest organized by Study New York. Her winning entry was snapped by a friend during a Sept. 4 trip to the New York State Fair in Syracuse.

Johanna Klauser: International Photo Contest Winner — Johanna Klauser, a German international student from Fulda University, tasted a deep-fried Oreo for the first time while studying abroad at SUNY Cortland. This photo won first prize in the cultural category of the “Why I Love Studying in New York” photo contest.

Johanna, a business economics major at Fulda University in Germany, admits that she chose a semester-long study abroad experience at SUNY Cortland for many reasons — to learn more about the sports business world, to improve her English-speaking skills and to cross new cities off of her travel bucket list. The $100 Amazon gift card she won in the photo contest was a bonus.

International students representing more than 25 countries submitted over 80 entries across three photo categories: campus, cultural and “selfie.” Study New York, a collaborative group made up of higher education institutions throughout the state, organized the second annual contest as a way to promote New York as the premier destination for students, faculty members and other exchange visitors.

You can view all of the photos on Study New York’s Facebook page.

Johanna studied sport management during her semester abroad and recently chatted about her international experience on campus.

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Nothing Great Comes Easy

Mike Guity understands that nothing great comes easy.

If it did, the senior would have changed his major from mathematics. He also might have stepped down as the president of SUNY Cortland’s Black Student Union (BSU) during his junior year in 2015, when racial tensions across the nation reached a boiling point.

“Quitting isn’t in my body,” says Mike, who grew up in Brooklyn.

No, instead Mike elected to stick with his major because he wants to be a certified public accountant. And rather than ignore the civil unrest in places like Ferguson, Mo., he helped organize two campus town hall meetings when SUNY Cortland students looked to BSU for a voice.

Mike still hangs on to the memory of standing on stage in a packed Old Main Brown Auditorium, where both open forums took place. In a crowded room, he was the smart and confident student leader that the campus needed.

“People cared,” he says, recalling the town hall events. “People were passionate about having a conversation so that we could set the example for campuses nationwide.”

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Striking the Student-Athlete Balance

Allison Schumann had one free weekend without a cross country race during the fall season. But rather than use it to rest and recover, the senior exercise science major opted to attend the Mid-Atlantic American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) Conference in Harrisburg, Pa.

That’s because her research project on running efficiency earned a top-five distinction among all undergraduate proposals.

Oh, and just a week earlier, she earned all-conference honors by placing 11th at the SUNYAC Championships.

Allison Schumann in the kinesiology lab — Allison Schumann, an exercise science major studying to become a physical therapist, leads her undergraduate research project as Associate Professor Jim Hokanson looks on.

“Luckily it was an off week,” joked Allison, an aspiring physical therapist from North Salem, N.Y. “It was exhausting, but it was so much fun.”

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