Overview:
@GoPSUTV Field Hockey Associate Head Coach Laura Gebhart ’15 Agr visits the Following the Gong studio to discuss all things field hockey, coaching, and community & economic development. Laura grew up in Lancaster County and came to Penn State and the Schreyer Honors College as a Scholar Athlete. She shares how she worked to find the right major for her, got involved in THON, and won a Big Ten Title in Field Hockey. Laura gives her advice for Scholars and student athletes on navigating perfection and demanding schedules, and provides insight on life after athletics, which looks different for everyone. She also pulls back the curtain on coaching an Olympic sport and talks about NIl and gender equity in sports. This is a must watch/listen for any Scholar – especially those unsure of what comes after College, is heavily involved on campus, dealing with rejections (like hers from the US national team,) and those who are interested in coaching or community & economic development careers. It’s also great for any student athlete, whether a Scholar or not. Laura’s full bio and chapter markers detailing the topics discussed are below.
Guest Bio:
Laura Gebhart ’15 Agricultural Sciences is the Associate Head Field Hockey Coach at Penn State, where she engages in all areas of the program – from player development and on-field coaching, to recruiting and operations. Before coming back to Penn State, Laura coached at Bryant University in Smithfield, Rhode Island – first as the assistant coach, and then as the head coach. Prior to that, Gebhart led a career in economic development, working with two separate non-profits: EDC of Lancaster County (Lancaster, PA) and the Montpelier Development Corporation (Montpelier, VT). Along the way, Gebhart trained with the U.S. Women's National Team, coached a high school program, and volunteer coached at the University of Vermont.
Gebhart earned a B.S. in Community, Environment, and Development (Community & Economic Development Option) with Honors from Penn State in 2015. Gebhart is also happy to speak further about ice cream, birding, and crocheting. Please feel free to connect with them at @coach_gebhart on Instagram or LinkedIn.
Episode Topic & Chapters:
00:04 Introductions and how Laura discovered field hockey
02:38 Pursuing playing D1 college sports
03:44 Collegiate sports recruitment
05:36 Selecting the CED major in Ag Sciences from being undecided
07:18 Planning for life beyond being a Scholar Athlete
08:33 Balancing life as a Scholar and as an Athlete
09:27 Roles of different advisors
10:20 Additional campus opportunities
12:01 THON as an athlete
15:31 Reflecting on athletic accomplishments
16:53 The Honors Thesis
18:37 Transitioning to life as an alum
22:59 Overcoming setbacks
24:08 Full time roles in economic development
25:58 Getting into coaching
28:42 Volunteer coaching
31:52 Taking a step back to take two forward by returning to Penn State
34:25 The roles of the coaching staff
37:19 Year in the life of a Division I coach
40:42 Day-in-the-life of a coach in-season
42:33 Challenges of coaching and supporting high-achieving students
46:01 The impact of NIL on athletics
53:07 Jump here for post NIL discussion to the Olympics
55:25 Coaching against former teammates - personal vs professional in the workplace
57:32 Fundraising and facilities
59:55 Things not asked
01:04:02 Biggest successes and failures
01:09:27 Laura's thoughts on mentorship
01:11:12 Shoutouts
01:12:36 Work life balance
01:15:13 How to connect with Laura
01:15:37 Laura's final piece of advice
01:16:20 Which Creamery flavor Laura would be and why
01:18:23 Final thoughts
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Credits & Notes:
This show is hosted, produced, and edited by Sean Goheen '11 Lib (Schreyer), '23g Bus.
The artwork was created by Tom Harrington, the College’s Web Developer.
The sound effect is “Chinese Gong,” accessed via SoundBible used under Creative Commons License.
