Softball standout finds success in internship opportunities
Gabrielle Fonseca, who grew up in San Juan, Texas, is set to receive her bachelor in business administration (BBA) in marketing from Prairie View A&M University, after tying her love and talent in the sport of softball to her job opportunities and career aspirations.
Fonseca came in as a sophomore transfer from McLennan Community College after she received a softball scholarship to attend and play softball at PVAMU.
“Once I figured out that I wanted to work in the sports industry, PVAMU seemed like the perfect place to be for that,” she said. “The resources that the College of Business gave us were immense and helped me get in contact with companies that I felt would help me in my career in the long run.”
During her time at the university, she participated in PVAMU Softball, the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, Hispanic Business Student Association, International Honor Society Beta Gamma Sigma, and the PVAMU Go-Team. She also worked in the athletics department with a sports information and ticket operations internship.
“My internship gave me a feel for what it is like to be behind the scenes of an athletics department and how things are run on a day-to-day basis,” she said. “Essentially, I want to work for the NFL in their football operations department, so this has helped me get some experience of what it takes to host a game day.”
After Fonseca graduates with her BBA, she will pursue an MBA (master of business administration) at PVAMU, while also working part-time with the Houston Texans with their Battle Red Stampede event staff.
“I am looking forward to seeing what it is like to work with an actual NFL team on a game day,” she said. “I want to learn every aspect there is to learn and hopefully will lead to a full-time position in the near future.”
Fonseca also took the time to reflect on her experience at PVAMU, highlighting why she was confident in her choice to attend the university.
“The culture here at PVAMU is phenomenal; I have met students from all over the world, and it continues to amaze me how friendly everyone was when I first got here,” she said. “I have made life-long friends attending PVAMU, and there have been professors that have truly made me into a better person.
On the athletics side, the coaching staff on the softball team has also changed my life. It seemed as though every person I met made a difference in my life by believing in me and showing me that there is more to me than I ever would’ve imagined and, for that, I am truly grateful.
My greatest achievement here was winning a SWAC Championship after a 20-year drought (for the university) – to win with that 2018 team was a memory I could never forget even if I tried,” she added.
Fonseca, a first-generation college student, noted that she wants to make her parents proud after they worked hard to get her through college.
“I do this for the little girls in my hometown who don’t think that they can’t get out of this small town,” she said. “I want to be somebody they look up to and believe they can do whatever they put their mind and heart into.”
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By Emilia Benton