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Providence Bruins Media Relations Assistant

October 2010-April 2011

The fall of 2010 was a busy time for me. Once again, I found myself with a couple jobs: the Coach of the Year Community Manager and the P-Bruins Media Relations Assistant. I was lucky enough to be able to juggle them both without missing a beat.

In my time with the Bruins, I performed a variety of duties, from your every day media relations stuff like preparing game notes to completely unrelated things like being the official scorer for a bunch of games. I was also a Public Address Announcer for youth hockey games played at the rink, and I went on the road for some P-Bruins action to help in similar ways to when I worked home games. I had a bit of trouble placing this job into one of the categories at the top of each page because of the variety of tasks I’ve done. I put it here because I’ve had my fair share of game stories published on top of everything else.

U.S. College Hockey Online (USCHO) Reporter

October 2009-March 2010

I refined my writing through what else? More writing. I combined two of my favorite things for this position (hockey and writing), recapping Merrimack College Warriors men’s ice hockey games. I learned to be much more concise thanks to the (necessary) ruthlessness of my editors.

New England Hockey Journal Reporter

May-August, 2008

While working as the Whitecaps broadcaster in 2008, I also wrote for the New England Hockey Journal. I wrote features on teams, leagues, and players from the region. They were published on the website and print edition of the magazine. I contacted and interviewed players, coaches, and other relevant subjects to get additional insight for the stories.

I was tested early in my NEHJ tenure on the topic of biases. The Journal assigned me a story about BC’s (BU’s rival) trip to the Whitehouse as my first story. Talk about a reality check!

If there’s only one thing I’ve learned (from a fan’s perspective) while covering sports professionally, it’s that rooting for the sport and great storylines is more fun than liking just one team. It allows you to connect with fans of other teams much more easily, and there aren’t nearly as many heartbreaking moments for you (*cough*Aaron Boone*cough*).

Although I never got to meet him personally, the feature on the late Garrett Reagan was definitely my favorite piece to write. The people I spoke with had some inspiring things to say about him. I was happy to be able to share those stories with the public.

The Daily Free Press Staff Writer

September 2006-May 2007

Writing and reporting for the “FreeP” was my first reporting experience, and certainly one that I learned quite a bit from. I wrote game stories and sidebars about the university’s sports teams.

My first few interviews were challenging, but I improved significantly after a few post-game interviews in person and a couple phone calls.

My first story was among the most interesting I wrote, but not because of a lack of research or observation for my later stories. A goose interfered with a race I was reporting on! At that point, I realized that although it often isn’t easy, the funny and heartwarming stories journalists discover make the job worthwhile.

News Writing and Reporting Courses

September 2006-May 2009

I took seven courses in writing and reporting, one of them specifically for sports. I went to town meetings, a citizen naturalization, and some sports practices to interview the necessary subjects, and other people who could enhance the story as well. I did the necessary research, and wrote news stories, features and columns from the material I collected.

The classes involved writing each week, one of which required each student to become a beat writer for a certain field. I reported on Cambridge, Massachusetts’ police and fire departments for my beat.

I also enrolled in a feature writing class, where I chose a beat on the BU men’s ice hockey team.

Through all of my reporting, I learned exactly how hard it is to get people to cooperate, and how to prepare for when they can’t. My classes at BU taught me what the consequences are for many of the mistakes I’ve made, and how to avoid them in the future. They have definitely made me a better journalist.