Intern Profile: Jessica Manier

While participating in the Washington Semester program in Washington, D.C. I had the opportunity be involved with an internship.  Before going to The American University we were able to access an internship database.  The database listed hundreds of internships in every career field imaginable.  As I was searching through the database, I found an internship for Washington Sports and Entertainment, interning for the Washington Wizards.  Working for a professional sports team had always been a dream of mine, and that dream finally came true.

Washington Sports & Entertainment, L.P. is a multi-faceted organization managing sports and entertainment events, a professional sports team and two arenas. Based in Washington, D.C., WSELP consists of five major divisions: the Washington Wizards of the NBA; Verizon Center, the state-of-the-art, 20,000-seat sports and entertainment facility located in Washington, D.C.; Ticketmaster, the Washington-Baltimore ticketing service; Musicentre Productions, an in-house concert promoter; and the management division which oversees The George Mason University Patriot Center in Fairfax, VA.

My internship duties within the Sales department for the Washington Wizards included compiling and sending out may of their mass mailings for school, religious and other groups attending a Wizards game or mailings for many of the other events that were held at the Verizon Center.  I also put together databases for prospective high school athletic groups who would be interested in playing at the Verizon Center and attending a Wizards home game.  I also volunteered in many of the other departments, including Communications and Community Relations, where I was able to shadow one of the employees and go into the locker room before and after one of the home games and meet many of the players!

Through my internship with the Washington Wizards I was able to gain many valuable skills, including the ability to multi-task in an environment where things need to be done very efficiently while learning what it takes to work in a professional environment.  My internship showed me that there are many opportunities in the world and if I work hard and put my mind to it I can accomplish anything!  I met incredible people and had amazing experiences I will never forget!