How did I get here?

This is something I ask myself almost weekly at this point in my life. I finally landed my dream job as the Assistant Director of Business Affairs for the Naval Academy Athletic Association in Annapolis, Maryland, just a few months ago in September 2016. The title may sound fancy, but in essence I just do all of the accounting and finances for all of the Naval Academy sports teams … which I find pretty cool, actually. But trust me when I say, things weren’t always this smooth sailing. This shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone that knows me, because I am probably the least graceful, most uncoordinated person on the planet. 

To start off, a little bit about me…

I graduated from SVC in 2012 with a double major in accounting and business management with a minor in international business (anything for those 150 credits, right?). I was a member of the women’s swim team (apparently I’m only uncoordinated on land) and was involved in Student Government Association and Student-Athlete Advisory Council. After graduating, I went to work for a CPA firm in Baltimore, where I interned the summers following my sophomore and junior years of college. The industry that I worked in involved A LOT of travel, I’m talking about at least 50% of the year, to a wide mix of places: Virginia, North Carolina, Las Vegas, the Virgin Islands, Seattle, Florida, etc. So it wasn’t all entirely bad, just exhausting after a while.

I was on my way to Seattle, where my sister lives, after spending a couple of weeks in Gainesville, Florida, for an audit. It just so happened to be the day of the giant Southwest Airlines system shutdown in July 2016. I was literally stuck in the Jacksonville, Florida, airport for an entire day, outside of security, without Starbucks, and completely miserable. I kid you not, people kept coming up to me as I sat in my uncomfortable chair pouting with my oversized suitcase, asking me if I was OK. It was not the greatest of days. That is, until I got a phone call telling me that there was a potential job opportunity opening up at the Naval Academy that I had been pining over for years. Full disclosure, I was not searching for a new job by any means; this was completely out of the blue and a total surprise. Nevertheless, I probably would have applied for the job while I was stuck in the airport, except for the fact that I had none of my information with me and hadn’t updated my resume in about five years.

Spoiler alert: I got the job! I picked up the life I had made in Baltimore and moved to Annapolis (although only 30 minutes apart … two completely different cities) to start a new job for the first time in six-ish years. It was kind of like the start of freshman year all over again, only no orientation staff to help me move all of my stuff. Side note, it is very upsetting that this is not an option in the real world. I feel like anyone who has ever had to move on short notice can attest to this … random guys named Mike and Steve are just not the same as 50+ upperclassmen cheering you on and unloading your parents’ minivan for you. The real-world struggle is real.

When asked to write an alumni blog, I honestly had no idea what I would write about. I’ll do my best to try and keep you entertained with stories from my life and what I’m up to, lessons I’ve learned post-graduation and anecdotes that will hopefully make you realize that your bad day really isn’t that bad.

Please feel free to contact me at any time either by email (jesskennedy42@gmail.com) or via Facebook with any questions or suggestions!