The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1506222
SEPTEMBER 2023 ❱ THE WOLVERINE 61 ❱ WHERE ARE THEY NOW? through athletics and also got to see what teams needed. I know the coun- seling services that have been offered at Michigan since I graduated are even more profound. "It's just another example of how Michigan and the athletic department really want to support their student- athletes. And my role there was to just be a voice for what was working and what wasn't. But it was an effort I really en - joyed being a part of." Bettez, a three-time Academic All-Big Ten selection and U-M Athletic Aca- demic Achievement Award recipient, was a sports management major with a law, justice and social change minor. Once her time competing at Michigan was done, she elected to call it a career and move into the workforce. "My coursework combined to teach me a lot about business and also in a sports-focused lens," Bettez said. "A lot of my peers went on to work for profes - sional leagues or teams. While I thought that was really cool, I wasn't really sure what I wanted to do. "I knew with field hockey, if I had wanted to pursue it, there might have been opportunities. To me, it was the right time to end my athletic career and really start what would be a professional career." Bettez has now spent four years work - ing for Bank of America. "The transition in itself was really interesting," she said. "I wasn't exactly sure what I wanted to do, but I wanted to go back to Boston. I knew I'd be happy there. And I have these skills in busi - ness, so let me see what's out there. That led me to work my first job at Bank of America in 2019, which has been a great experience. "I had been in Boston since I gradu - ated and now I'm based out of Denver. I moved with the company last summer. It's been a really interesting experience, and I use so much of what I learned as a student-athlete at work. It's unbeliev - able. Not a traditional path, but a fun one, nonetheless." Bettez still applies the lessons she learned at Michigan to her personal and professional lives. "Working with my peers to achieve something greater is something I've been cultivating my whole life," she said. "You do that in work, and you're always in teams, whether you realize it or not. It's just figuring out what different people need. Solving problems is really exciting to me. Something about being a student- athlete and having the expectations of your time and getting feedback, giving feedback, it translates so well into work. "I feel that I'm very prepared and I just enjoy it. Something about having ownership, but also working with other people is one of my favorite things about work." ❑ Bettez has spent the past four years working for Bank of America. In her current role of assistant vice president for global information security, she works in cyber threat intelligence and defense. PHOTO COURTESY MAGGIE BETTEZ ❱ The Maggie Bettez File Michigan Accomplishments: National Field Hockey Coaches Association All-Great Lakes Region first team (2018) … All-Big Ten second team (2018) … Three-time Academic All-Big Ten performer … Co-Chair of Mental Health Subcommittee on U-M Student-Athlete Advi- sory Committee (2017-19). Professional Accomplishments: Four years at Bank of America … Relationship manager (July 2019-20) … Officer, independent techni- cal assessments (July 2020-22) … Assistant vice president, Global Information Security (July 2022-present). Favorite Michigan Memory: "My junior year, we were a host site in the national tourna- ment and we won. That sent us to the Final Four after we beat Northwestern, so that was fun, too." Family: Erin and Ryan Bettez (parents), Liam, Brendan and Kate Bettez (siblings), Veronica (aunt) and Michael O'Brien (uncle) and their children.