Alumni Record Trailblazing Firsts in the Sports Industry

By Emily Hung ’23, June 6, 2023

Bombers break glass ceilings in the world of sports.

Laura Ilioeai '23and Kim Nagy also wrote sections of this feature.

Three Ithaca College Bombers have scored crucial firsts for a more equitable sports industry. Theresa Lau ’14, DPT ’16, Jusan Hamilton ’13, and Veronica Hernandez ’13 are breaking barriers as the first Asian American on a Major League Baseball medical team, the first Black race director for the Daytona 500, and the first Latina general manager in Minor League Baseball, respectively. They have carved out nationally prominent roles in these competitive industries through their vision, passion, and determination, and are making a vital impact as they shift the status quo.

Theresa Lau: First Asian American Woman on a Medical Team in Major League Baseball

Theresa Lau '14, DPT '16 has been with the Milwaukee Brewers since 2018. (Photo submitted)

Theresa Lau ’14, DPT ’16, broke the glass ceiling when Major LeagueBaseball’s Milwaukee Brewers recruited her—two years after she had received her doctorate in IC’s physical therapy program. An assistant athletic trainer and physical therapist for the Brewers, Lau is the firstAsian American woman to work on a medical team in MLB history. “That’s something I don’t really think about every day,” Lau said. “I’m really fortunate to be in the position, and I know that a lot of females and a lot of other Asian Americans who want to try to get into the sports industry can realize that it’s possible.”

Shortly after earning her doctorate, Lau landed a prominent role with the Boston Red Sox in 2017 before moving to the Brewers minor league system in 2018. Since being called up to the majors, Lau splits her time between her home in Arizona and the Brewers’ home base in Wisconsin. She travels with the team during their season, treating soft tissue injuries and any other injuries that happen on the field. She collaborates with two other athletic trainers in the training room and in the dugout during games, and together the three are responsible for treating the 26 players on the Brewers’ roster.

“The fact that we get to help these guys perform at their best and knowing that I have an impact on them is rewarding,” Lau said. “You can’t really beat that feeling when you’re out there competing with another team and a lot of exciting things are happening. The team just meshes together, and really cool stuff happens right in front of you.”

On a typical day, Lau works with players on treatments for several hours until the start of a game. Once a game starts, she is in the dugout covering the field for injuries. Her treatments focus on manual techniques, such as massages and corrective and activation exercises. “I get them ready for the game, making sure they are ready to go and they can play at their best that day,” she said.

Lau says her interest in athletic training began before college. She played softball and soccer in high school, so when it came to choosing a profession, she knew she wanted to be near the field and a competitive environment. “I wanted to go into the health field because I like helping and supporting people and helping them reach their goals,” she said. “I found physical therapy and athletic training to be a perfect fit for me—that I get to be around athletics still but also help people push them-selves to reach their own goals.”

At IC, she was a board member and president of the Ithaca AthleticTraining Students Association, where she worked on building relationships between the older and newer students. “The biggest push for us was to help the younger students—the first-year students and sophomores—get their feet wet because being a new student in an athletic environment can be very intimidating,” Lau said. “So when I was a senior, I felt like we needed to bridge that gap.”

Courtney Gray, a clinical professor and athletic trainer at Ithaca College, taught Lau and supervised her in the clinic and with athletic teams. “Watching the trajectory of Theresa’s career and all she has achieved has made me so proud,” Gray said. “She always stood out in the classroom as a bright student with a high level of commitment, and during her clinical experiences she was professional, inquisitive, and showed exceptional clinical decision making. It’s no surprise she is where she is today with the Brewers.”

Lau received hands-on experience in athletic training and physical therapy through clinical rotations aspart of her degree program. Exercise science and athletic training professor Patrick McKeon, who also taught Lau, says she was an exceptional student. “I really loved working with her in the classroom and watching her develop as a professional,” McKeon said. “She continues to inspire athletic training students to passionately follow their own goals and aspirations.”

During her junior year, Lau spent a full season with the Ithaca women’s softball team, and in her senior year, she worked with the Cornell women’s hockey team. “I’m really proud to be an Ithaca alumna,” she said. “I always attribute a lot of my success to Ithaca. Looking back, it really was a family, and professors wanted their students to grow and be successful.”

Jusan Hamilton: First Black Race Director for Daytona 500

Jusan Hamilton '13 has been a NASCAR fan since he was 10 years old. (Photo submitted)

The Daytona 500 is often regarded as NASCAR’s equivalent to the National Football League’s Super Bowl, and while the drivers get most of the attention, putting on an event of that scope requires a lot of work.Behind the scenes, Jusan Hamilton ’13 has made history as the first Black race director for the Daytona 500. Hamilton’s passion for motorsports, and specifically NASCAR, stems back to his childhood.“

I’ve been passionate about motorsports and driving cars and anything with four wheels since I was four years old. My grandfather’s really the one who introduced me to it,” he said. He watched motor races from then on, becoming a NASCAR fan when he was 10, and wanting to become part of the organization. He made that dream a reality when he accepted a position in the NASCAR Drive for Diversity Internship Program. Over the last decade, he’s worked his way up the ladder and into the director’s chair.

As a senior director for race operations and management, Hamilton is not only in charge of the competition aspects of NASCAR races. He’s also responsible for its safety aspects, broadcast requests from FOX, partner requests from the racing surface, race logistics, event schedules, and ensuring that communication runs smoothly between people and channels. He’s not only in charge of the management of racing events but also of all the interactions behind the scenes that make these events look seamless.

“I’ve put in a lot of work for really the last 10 years, but especially in the [NASCAR] Tower since 2016 to be able to get to this point,” he said. “It’s really all of my racing knowledge, all of the knowledge that I have going back to college, the degrees and experiences I’ve had there, learning how to manage a number of different tasks and job requirements at once and still meet a goal—all that work is paying off.”

Jusan Hamilton ‘13 (right) celebrates on the track.

(Photo Submitted)

Hamilton hopes that in becoming a senior director, he’ll help the sport gain greater popularity and accessibility. “It’s been a really great year.We’ve had so many new and innovating things going on in the sport. To be named race director for the Daytona 500 was obviously a huge part of that for me,” he said. “The biggest thing is that I hope it continues to set a positive example for others and show what NASCAR is asa sport—and that it’s open to all.”

These different responsibilities working in unison evoke aspects of Hamilton’s time at IC. A double major in integrated marketing communications and sociology, he’s seen aspects of both majors manifest in his professional life, even nearly a decade after graduating. “With the different roles I’m doing, it’s almost like I’m still double-majoring,” he said. “Time management, managing those different responsibilities that come with different managers and different pathways, and understanding how to link the two together—in my job, I’m constantly applying the skills I learned from balancing the schedule that comes with being a dual degree student in what I do today. Both my degrees are very applicable to what I’m doing now. Not only do the time management aspects benefit me greatly, but the linking of them together has really been a big part of my success.”

“I don’t think I’d be where I am in my career without Ithaca College,” he continued, “not just the classes, but the people, such as my adviso r[professor and chair of strategic communication] Scott Hamula and [associate dean in the Roy H. Park School of Communications] Bryan Roberts. Both of them really pointed me in the right direction. I’m very thankful for the Ithaca College community for that.”

Veronica Hernandez: First Latina General Manager in Minor League Baseball

Veronica Hernandez '13 has been on a journey up the minor league baseball ladder for close to a decade. (Photo submitted)

Minor League Baseball dates back to 1901 and currently supports 120 teams across the United States and Canada. Throughout those years, none of the teams have ever had a Latina general manager—until Veronica Hernandez ’13 came along.

On May 11, 2022, Hernandez was named general manager (GM) of the Modesto Nuts, the Single-A affiliate of the Seattle Mariners and part of the California league that has been around since 1941. It was a well-earned honor for Hernandez, whose passion for working in sports was apparent when she was a student at Ithaca College. A sport media major, she also served as the event manager and secretary of the men’s club basketball team and photographer of the sport event networking club. “I love all sports. I’m a very active person, and love going to sporting events, and trying and learning new things,” she said. “I started applying to jobs in the industry as far back as November prior to my graduation, and it was very difficult to get a job in sports and have an entity trust a fresh graduate.”

Hernandez embarked on a career journey not unlike that of a baseball player attempting to rise through the league ranks of the sport. First, she secured a position with the Danbury Westerners, a collegiate summer baseball team in Connecticut. From there, she worked for the Hudson Valley Renegades, a short season affiliate of the Tampa Bay Rays at the time. Next came a position with the Arkansas Travelers Baseball Club ,a Double-A affiliate of the Mariners, and the Lancaster JetHawks, a High-A affiliate of the Colorado Rockies, before becoming Modesto’s director of marketing and promotions in 2018. She was named the organization’s assistant general manager in January 2022 before being promoted to her current role. “Getting into the sport industry is hard enough in itself,” saidHernandez. “Everyone has different paths. Most of the time you have to make the opportunity for yourself.”

Part of Hernandez's role is grassroots outreach to the local community. (Photo submitted)

As the GM, Hernandez covers a wide range of responsibilities, including directing the organization’s financial goals, objectives, and budgets in conjunction with the Mariners and other executives to ensure alignment with the organization’s vision and policies. She also develops and maintains relationships with sponsors, season ticket holders, government officials, and others who could benefit the organization.

In addition to those traditional duties, she serves as a critical conduit to the community. Approximately 48% of the population in Modesto identifies as Hispanic or Latino. But when Hernandez started, she was the only full-time Spanish speak-er on staff. Now, there are three. Hernandez helps to bridge language and cultural gaps in local communities. During her time with the organization, she’s worked diligently to expand the influence of the organization by going to outside events where she could speak about the team in Spanish.

“Grassroots word of mouth is the core of marketing,” she said. “I am fortunate to have the opportunity to do it in two languages. I am able to hear from the community and implement change from there.”

Throughout her rise, Hernandez’s experiences at IC—coupled with her subsequent experiences in health, education, and finance before going into sports—provided her with the resiliency and perseverance to push forward. “I remember a couple of professors at Ithaca College in my freshman year would go around the room and ask the student, ‘What do you want to do?’ And a couple of people were very specific: ‘I want to be the GM of the Boston Red Sox’—or even for a specific team or position,” she said. “I think that’s putting closed doors on you. Always being open to an opportunity is only going to build success for your career.”

Veronica Hernandez visits T-Mobile Park in 2021 with her coworkers, Zach Brockman, Chris Fleischmann, and Alan Jones, for the Seattle Mariners Affiliate Summit.

(Photo submitted)

“The more I grow as an individual, I realize that the saying of ‘the grass is greener on the other side of the fence’ is incomplete,” Hernandez continued. “I think you make the grass what you want it to be. So if it’s dirt, how can you make that grow grass? And if it’s grass, how do you make it greener? You need to push through and make it what you want it to be.”

Critically, Hernandez never let racism or sexism serve as barriers to her professional success. “If [racism and sexism] was the cause of me not getting a position, I never wanted it at the forefront of my mind, because once you get into that mentality, it is very difficult for you to mentally jump over that hurdle,” she said. “You’re closing that door on yourself. And the first step in sports, whether on the athletic or business side of things, is making sure you have that confidence in yourself to perform at the level you need to perform.”