College Sports Information Directors of America

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CSCommunicators.com/CelebrateCSC

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This feature is part of our series of profiles showcasing members throughout the CSC membership during the celebration of College Sports Communicators Membership Appreciation Week for 2022-23. See more features at CSCommunicators.com/CelebrateCSC.


Kennedy Shriver – Colorado State University Pueblo, Director of Creative Services

by Cole Helman – Palm Beach Atlantic University, Director of Athletic Communications // CSC Young Professionals Committee

Kennedy Shriver was named the first Director of Creative Services at NCAA DII institution Colorado State Pueblo in July of 2021, but her connection with the ThunderWolves started way before that. Shriver was born and raised in Pueblo and attended CSU Pueblo where she graduated in May of 2021 with a bachelor’s degree in mass communications. She was a member of the ThunderWolves volleyball team in 2017 and 2018, and, in a unique twist, she eventually stayed with the team on scholarship and took on the position of CSU Pueblo Volleyball’s personal videographer and social content producer.

Shriver had interest early on in digital and creative work. Prior to college, she started her own brand, ShriverFilms, shooting and editing weddings, engagements, proms and other special events. She later held the PBR Sport Performance Center marketing coordinator position as an undergraduate.

Now as the Director of Creative Services at her alma mater, Shriver assists with video production, social media content, marketing promotions, and fan engagement.
 

What is it like holding a full-time position at your alma mater in your hometown? Your story on how your position evolved is somewhat unique.
KS: All throughout middle school and high school, on a Friday or Saturday night you could find me on CSU Pueblo's campus at one sporting event or another. I grew up with the goal of becoming a collegiate athlete at CSU Pueblo. My junior year of High School, I was offered a volleyball athletic scholarship and got to live out my goal of becoming an athlete who wore ThunderWolf red, white, and blue and represented my hometown of Pueblo! However, after getting out of general education classes and diving more into communications and content creation, my goals started to shift. 

I walked into a meeting with my Head Coach Austin Albers with the intention of leaving behind volleyball and athletics all together and chasing my dream of gaining a career in the communications world. In my exit meeting, Coach Albers threw an opportunity my way I would have never guessed would have come from this experience. He offered me my athletic scholarship - the promised four years total - until I graduated if I would manage and create content for the CSU Pueblo volleyball social media accounts.

Two years later, I am walking the stage to graduation and already have an incredible experience under my belt thanks to Coach Austin Albers and Colorado State University Pueblo. A couple months after graduation, the sports information director position opened up in the Athletics Department at CSU Pueblo. I applied, made it as a top-two finalist and didn't get offered the job.
 
Once again, I went into a meeting thinking I was going to walk away from my almat mater and was to find a career elsewhere. Then, Athletic Director Paul Plinske threw another opportunity my way. The hiring committee saw my potential during that initial interview, and they created for me a new position - CSU Pueblo Athletics Director of Creative Services.

If you haven't noticed, it is hard to put into words what CSU Pueblo means to me because of all the different things this University has helped me with since I was in seventh grade. There is no doubt that I would NOT be where I am today in my life and in my career if it wasn't for Colorado State University Pueblo. I am forever grateful for every opportunity this University has presented to me.
 

As the first Director of Creative services for CSU Pueblo, what is your vision or goal for the Thunderwolves brand?
KS: Being the first Director of Creative Services, there is definitely a lot of pressure but even more opportunity! Because I was an athlete myself, I know the ins-and-outs of the athletics program and had tons of ideas on how we can improve our ThunderWolves brand.

The first tackle was with social media. The department did an amazing job about posting game results, matchups, and awards received by their athletes. As an athlete myself, I viewed myself and my teammates as more than a statistic or a jersey number. I knew what our pregame rituals looked like, I knew the amazing volunteer work that the athletic teams put in, and I knew that ‘Joe had to wear the same socks on game day or he thought he was going to lose.’ I want the community to see those things too!

I want to make the student-athletes more of a face/personality everyone knows. I work on achieving this through short videos to show the community more about the athletes and what they do on a day-to-day basis they would normally never know about.
 

What is your favorite part about the job?
KS: There are so many great things about what I do, it is hard to pick one. 

Something I really love about my job is getting to know the athletes. At Colorado State University Pueblo, we have an amazing group of student athletes that come from a ton of different backgrounds and stories. I enjoy spending time with them, getting to know their personality/background, and watching them succeed in the sport they put so much time and effort into.

There are not a ton of NCAA Division II institutions with a dedicated creative services/social media position. Do you foresee more athletic departments investing in similar roles for their universities?
KS: My position might be rare in a non-Division I school, but I only believe that is for now. Social and digital media has become such a dominant platform that universities and conferences must rely on it for messaging, advertising, marketing and sharing news.

Also, social media is a huge tool for recruiting. Athletes love the exposure and engagement and the love when they see themselves on a social media graphic or are featured in a video!

What advice can you give young and new athletic communications professionals as they pursue this career?
KS: Coming into the sports communication industry my biggest pieces of advice would be to never stop teaching yourself new things!

In social media particularly, everything is constantly changing! Do not be afraid to step out of your comfort zone and learn about something you are not used to doing.