In the evolving landscape of collegiate athletics, few leaders demonstrate the blend of vision and inclusivity that Jenn Hunter brings to her role as Chief Impact Officer at the Big 12 Conference. Appointed in 2022, Hunter oversees the development of more than 7,700 student-athletes across 16 institutions, focusing on creating experiences that are both transformative and life-changing. With two decades in sports administration, her career path has wound through professional basketball with the Portland Trail Blazers, prestigious academic institutions including Brown University and the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and now the highest levels of collegiate athletics.
A Howard University graduate with a law degree from Texas Southern University’s Thurgood Marshall School of Law, Hunter approaches her work with a commitment to holistic development. Her philosophy centers on preparing student-athletes not just for competition, but for sustainable success beyond their collegiate careers. As one of the increasingly visible Black women in sports leadership, Hunter represents a new generation of executives working to ensure the doors that opened for her continue to welcome others, particularly those from underrepresented communities.
Talk about impact and your vision of making an impact in sports
I’m really fortunate. Sports has the ability to really help move not just communities, but also individuals to the next socioeconomic level. For me, I have the privilege of working in college sports. I oversee sixteen institutions. I have over 7,700 student athletes.
My goal is to make sure that each and every one of them have an experience that it’s going to be life changing and transformative. And so impact for us at the Big twelve Conference is really focused on: how do we develop the holistic student athlete to really get them to the next level? And that they’re a positive reflection of our conference and what our different institutions, athletic departments and campuses are offering.
Can you describe what you’ve seen and how women have evolved in their roles in sports?
We’re fortunate today to have Cynt Marshall speaking. When you think about the evolving of women, you have a woman that has a degree from Cal Berkeley. So educated, highly educated, but an innovator. Cynt is a leader in sports. And so when I think about women and particularly black women and where we can evolve, she really serves as the model. I’ve been in this industry for roughly twenty years now and to see us move into leadership roles, general manager roles, presidents of leagues, presidents of conferences.
This is something you didn’t see twenty years ago and definitely not with women that looked like me. And so when I think about the evolution and where it’s going and where we’re continuing to grow, I really believe the sky is the limit. As long as those doors continue to be open and as long as women like myself and the Cynt Marshalls of the world continue to reach back and bring young women along as well.
What are three things you’d want to make sure young women always walk in the room with?
You earned it. There is never a room that I walk into that I felt like I was not deserving to be in. And I make sure that my light is reflected. So, one know that you deserve it. Two, make sure that your light shows. And three, make sure that you go in with an open mind to continue to learn because life is about learning. We are never so far or so high in our career that there’s something new that we can’t gain. And so really going in with that open mind, I think, are the three things that really can take you to the next level.
When you think about goal setting, how are you goal setting for your own professional life and what tips do you suggest for women who want to get into the sports industry?
I think the biggest goal setting for me is that I continue to be a student of my work. I look every year at what I’ve done and how can I grow it and make it better. I never want to be complacent. A lot of times we can get into a space where it’s easy to rinse and repeat. But life change, society changes, people’s needs and what resonates with them is very different. And so continuing to educate myself and to learn, to understand my markets, that has been something that I do.
My goals may shift every single year in my career, but it’s based off of where the industry stands. I think the second goal that people need to really set for themselves is the ability to be fluid because sports continues to change. If you want to work in sport and you want things to be the same every single day, this is not the industry for you. But I think being able to pivot and to thrive in the pivot, that is the goal that I make sure that I don’t fall or fail when I do have to pivot.
From a goal-setting perspective, look at how you continue to grow and educate yourself. Look at how you make sure that you have the skills needed to handle the pivot. And I think lastly, like making those career goals, like if it is, I hope to one day be at this level, well, sometimes I may have to move. What sacrifices am I willing to make in order to get there?
Can you describe your superpowers?
My two superpowers, humility and leading with humility is the biggest thing for me. I would say that’s my number one. I am really blessed and I worked really hard to get where I’m at in my career. But I also know that it is a gift to get up every day and to be able to have the impact that I have. And so I do not take that lightly. I’m not prejudiced about it. I’m just very proud of what I do, but very thankful and very grateful every day. And then I would say the second piece is definitely patience.
One of the things that I see a lot with a lot of young people is that they take NOs as a sign of their work. In this industry, you’re going to get a lot of NOs. And maybe ten, 15 NOs before you finally get a YES. But those NOs are never a validator for me. It means that I have to redo and restructure and remote the package, but that eventually I will get that YES. And so the patience to know that my work is going to get me to my end goal. I think those are my two superpowers.
