Leading and learning: Schleicher scores internship with the Packers

Fun, prestige, experience… what more could you ask from an internship? How about a company CEO that knows your name? For Missy Schleicher, it doesn’t get much better than interning for the Green Bay Packers.

The University of Wisconsin-Green Bay Communication major began with the Green Bay Packers in December 2014 as a Brand and Fan Engagement Intern. The fun started almost immediately.

“I was at a pizza party to celebrate a departing employee just after Christmas. Everyone from intern to company CEO was invited,” she explains. “My mom had sent a big bunch of Christmas cookies and I was trying not to eat them, so I brought them to work. Packers President Mark Murphy ate two of them, and said they were two of the best cookies he ever had. Now he waves at me whenever I see him. I met him once and now he knows my name.”

Through her position, Schleicher works with the two Green Bay Packers fan clubs: the Junior Power Pack for kids, and the Packers Partners Club for adults. She answers fan questions, packages items to be sent to fans, and assists in planning events designed for the clubs.

“There is a Junior Power Pack clinic in June and we’re just starting to work on planning that,” she said. “We need to get a T-shirt design in, talk to sponsors about getting money for the T-shirts, send out invites, and talk to players who will come and make appearances. That’s the majority of it.”

Having had no previous internship experience, getting the internship was a pleasant surprise for her.

“I just closed my eyes and threw the resume at them just hoping, crossing my fingers, and never really expecting to get it,” she said. “I thought I would have to start way smaller. I’m just really grateful.”

Intending to pursue a career in sports communication, an internship with the Packers was the perfect first step.

“My passion is sports, and I really fell in love with my major,” she said. “My dream job or end goal would really be to get a job in sports. I knew that experience in an internship would be crucial in progressing my career.”

After several months, the experience has helped her to gain insight into her future.

“I learned that a communication job in sports is unlike any other,” she said. “Your ‘nine to five’ is not ‘nine to five.’ You’re there before anyone else is there and you leave when it’s dark out. You eat breakfast, lunch, and supper there. It’s your life, and I totally fell in love with that. I think it will really help me in progressing in the future and knowing you have to put hard work in to get a good outcome.”

Aside from her internship, Schleicher also serves as the secretary for the UWGB chapter of the Public Relations Student Society of America, is an intramural supervisor at the Kress Events Center, and writes for the Kress Press, the newsletter for Kress employees. These and her classroom experiences have provided Schleicher with a well-rounded look at the field she’s pursuing after graduation in May 2016.

“Right now I’m in Social Media Strategies with Professor Danielle Bina, and my supervisor is the administrator of Packers Everywhere on Facebook and Twitter,” Schleicher said. “Her tweets match up with her Facebook and she’s tweeting at different times to make sure that her target audience is seeing the tweets. So, it’s cool to learn it both in the internship and in class.”

After interning for the Packers, Schleicher is convinced that sports communication is where she is meant to be.
Story by Katelyn Staaben, editorial intern, Marketing and University Communication
Photo submitted.