Amanda Leonard '14

Amanda Leonard '14

Suffield’s College Counseling and Alumni & Development Offices hosted the first college-to-career virtual discussion of the year on September 29. The program invites alums to speak with interested students about their careers, college major choices, and experiences at Suffield. As part of the junior-year Leadership Program curriculum, students are asked to attend at least three of eight sessions offered each academic year. The goal is to expose current students to life beyond Suffield and provide guidance from alumni professionals working in various fields.

Amanda Leonard ’14 graduated from the University of Colorado, Boulder in 2018 with a B.S in Communications, a minor in Leadership, and a Business of Sports Certificate. At UC Boulder she served as an intern for Buffalo Sports Properties, which runs all of CU corporate sponsorship partnerships. After graduation Amanda worked for the New Orleans Saints and Pelicans as a part of their life entertainment group. After a year in New Orleans, Amanda returned to Colorado to serve as Partnership Marketing and Media Sales Coordinator for the Colorado Rapids. Amanda is currently the Account Manager for Corporate Partners with the Colorado Rockies. 

When discussing what a day in her life as an Account Manager looks like, she was quick to refer to her responsibilities at the Rockies stadium, saying, “I do a lot of tours—shout out to Suffield, that was my work job there; I gave tours and it was the best experience to help build these skills.” She likes that her role is client and relationship-facing and says she’s constantly thinking, “Building connections is a really big thing... What does your company have aligned with our company, and how can we work together to build both of us up?” But there are challenges in her job as well. She admits, “I spend a lot of time at work. Baseball is a really long season. It’s long hours, it’s a lot of events.” She ultimately left the juniors with the advice: “Enjoy your time at Suffield because it’s going to go by very fast... Take advantage of it.”

Juniors preparing for the college application process are heavily supported by Suffield’s college counselors and alumni mentors. While their college choice is an important decision in their lives, the mentoring sessions provide insight into many unanswered questions. It is made very clear that communication is a key to success and there is more than one way to accomplish a rewarding future.