TAKING CHARGE OF YOUR FUTURE: HOW TO BE A PROACTIVE STUDENT ATHLETE

David Jackson

University of Massachusetts Amherst - Men's & Women's Track & Field Director & Head Coach

David Jackson enters his 13th season with UMass track and field and 2nd as the director of both men’s and women’s men's track and field and cross-country programs in 2020-21. He previously served as director of men's track and field and cross country for three seasons, associate head coach for one season, and an assistant coach on the staff for seven seasons. During his tenure, Jackson has seen many of the record book's top-five lists rewritten the areas he coaches: field events, multi-events, short sprints, and hurdles.

Prior to coming to UMass in 2009, Jackson spent the previous two years working with the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill sprinters, women's pole vault and multi-event athletes, including three All-Americans and four ACC champions.

Before coaching at UNC, Jackson was the assistant men's and women's track & field coach at Roberts Wesleyan College in Rochester, N.Y. He also served as a NY State track an official and coach at the High school level for several years.

A Rochester NY Native Jackson graduated from SUNY Buffalo with a Bachelors of Arts degree in Media Study and went on to earn a Masters of Arts in Organizational Communication from SUNY Brockport.

Michael Willett

CEO & Founder of WalkOn Nation, Former Division 1 Athlete

In 2018, Michael founded WalkOn Nation to bridge the gap between student-athletes and the real world. Michael uses his skills and knowledge to guide student-athletes on their journey of becoming something outside of sports. He wants all athletes to be able to reach their maximum potential and is what he has dedicated his career to after college.

Michael is a former D1 student-athlete at the University of Central Florida. While being a part of the football team he noticed that his teammates were not prepared for life outside of sports. This became his inspiration to start up WalkOn Nation. From being a walk-on to earning his scholarship, then to have a career-ending injury he learned valuable skills and life lessons to shape him into the man that he is today.  

Amobi Okugo

Professional Soccer Player and Founder of A Frugal Athlete

Amobi is a professional soccer player for Austin Bold FC of the USL. He has been playing soccer professionally in the U.S. since 2010 when he was drafted into the MLS after his collegiate soccer career at UCLA. Amobi has played in cities all over the country and has represented the U.S. as a member of the 2012 Olympic squad. 

Amobi is also an established entrepreneur as the founder of his financial literacy platform, A Frugal Athlete, where athletes can learn how to educate their financial decisions through other professional athletes. He achieved this by continuing to pursue his education after going pro and graduating from the University of Louisville. He has also recently completed his Masters at Arizona State University, as well as UCLA. 

Tanya Vogel

Director Of Athletics at George Washington University

Tanya Vogel assumed the role of Director of Athletics and Recreation on July 1, 2018 after serving as Acting Director of Athletics and before that Deputy Athletics Director, Senior Woman Administrator and Deputy Title IX Coordinator at her alma mater. In her third stint with GW Athletics, Tanya Vogel has seen intercollegiate athletics from every vantage point. First as a student-athlete competing in soccer as an undergraduate at GW, Vogel learned firsthand what the student-athlete experience should be. She later returned to the university as head coach of her former program, before serving in a development capacity until she departed for a three-year stint at Northern Arizona, where she worked as Senior Associate Athletics Director, Senior Woman Administrator and Title IX Deputy. Vogel returned to GW in 2015 to fulfill the same responsibilities she carried at NAU, while also overseeing strength and conditioning, sports medicine and facilities and working on student-athlete and staff development. Most recently, Vogel was named to the NCAA Division I Men's Soccer Committee. 

A GW Athletic Hall of Famer, Vogel handled a number of roles NAU, which included oversight of nine sports, with supervision responsibility over academic support, compliance, sports medicine and strength and conditioning. Vogel's versatility and experience are also manifested in the number of committees on which she's served, including the NCAA Amateurism Cabinet, the Big Sky Ethical Conduct and Violations Committee, the NAU Student Safety Task Force, as well as the IAC Code of Conduct, Gender Equity Student-Athlete Well-Being and Diversity and Inclusion Group subcommittees.

In 2013, Vogel was selected for the prestigious NCAA Pathway Program, which works to elevate senior-level administrators to the next step as directors of athletics. Most recently, Vogel was selected to participate in the Women Leaders in College Sports (formerly NACWAA) Executive Institute. The program was designed to teach executive leadership solutions and help advance high-level women administrators to executive positions within athletics.

Prior to her time at NAU, Vogel served as assistant director of athletics development, focusing primarily on annual giving for the Department of Athletics and Recreation.

After a four-year standout career as a soccer student-athlete with the Colonials, Vogel served as her alma mater's head coach for 12 seasons. Hired in January 2000, Vogel won 82 games as head coach of GW's women's soccer team. She was also an active fundraiser for women's soccer, cultivating relationships with alumni, parents and boosters of the program. In 2002, Vogel became the first women's soccer player inducted into the GW Athletic Hall of Fame. She holds both a bachelor's and master's degree in exercise and sports science from GW and completed her MBA at GW in 2006.