WELCOME TO GOALS

Welcome to GOALS - where women's sports business & activism intersect.

Let me start by saying THANK YOU for being here. I'm Caroline, and to say I'm passionate about empowering women through sports is putting it lightly. Look, the stories are all too common: young girls dropping out of sports in record numbers, pay gaps on the field and off, exploitation, lower endorsements, minimal acknowledgements. The list is endless. We need more. More money. More opportunities. More support. More coverage. More power.

Sports - and sports culture - has been built by men, for men, centering the athlete as inherently male. Last year, Nneka Ogwumike and Sue Bird wrote, “By simply existing in spaces that weren’t built for us, women athletes are doing something revolutionary.” Every time a woman shows up to participate or work in sports, she is fighting for a place in a world that was not meant for her. 

"Every time a woman shows up to participate or work in sports, she is fighting for a place in a world that was not meant for her."

Enter GOALS, where I’m offering a welcoming place that will empower you to keep showing up. A place to connect, learn, and feel fully equipped to meet the sports world head-on.

Michelle Obama once said that, “...the difference between a broken community and a thriving one is the presence of women who are valued." By that standard, the sports industry is broken. Currently, female athletes receive less than 4% of media coverage and less than 1% of endorsement dollars. Less than 7% of team owners in major league sports are women, and less than 14% of sports journalists are women. We have a long way until gender equality is reached in the sports world, but I'm confident that we can change the game and create a global community of sports that values women as much as it values men. 

"We have a long way until gender equality is reached in the sports world, but I'm confident that we can change the game and create a global community of sports that values women as much as it values men."

I’m a feminist scholar that works in the sports industry and have a fire in my soul about empowering women from the field, to the front office, and everywhere in between. With my grit that comes from being a life-long athlete, and my dual degrees in Marketing and Women/Gender Studies from Penn State, I have set out to advance gender equality in sports and beyond.

I have centered my life around sports because I have personally experienced the profound impact that a positive athletic experience can have on young women and girls. The data clearly shows that girls who play sports become women who lead. The connection between female empowerment and sports is undeniable, and I am a living, breathing example of that connection. Athletics have led me down the path of leadership: I currently work in the sports industry as the Vice President of Partnerships and Runner Experience at the DICK’S Sporting Goods Pittsburgh Marathon, and I’m the Head Girls High School Basketball Coach at Shady Side Academy in Pittsburgh, PA. These experiences on and off the court have allowed me to show up for myself and others. 

I will be your subject matter expert on all things Women’s Sports, Women in Sports, and the Business of Women’s Sports. The rate of change in women’s sports is one of the most exciting trends in the sports industry right now, and I am here to show up every day in this space so that we can advance women's sports, and reach our GOALS together.