Forged by FAU - Brianne Wojciakowski - Florida Atlantic University Athletics

Brianne Wojciakowski helps guide Florida Atlantic University student-athletes throughout their college careers as a student-athlete services coordinator. An FAU alum herself, Wojciakowski says she’s “absolutely, 100 percent” like a big sister to her student-athletes.

More than a decade ago, in Grand Rapids, Michigan, Wojciakowski began her college athletics journey thanks to a big sister of her own.

“She was my everything,” Brianne Wojciakowski said of Nicole Wojciakowski, who is three and a half years older. “Growing up, we both played sports. If she played basketball, then I played basketball. If she started volleyball, I played volleyball. So, she was kind of my role model and idol when we were younger. She was the reason I started volleyball when I was 12, and I never stopped because I fell in love with it.”

Nicole was equally infatuated with the sport. So much so she hoped to be the first Wojciakowski daughter to earn a college volleyball scholarship.

But her hopes derailed in 2009. That year, Nicole was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes, effectively ending her athletic scholarship pursuit. She eventually earned an academic scholarship to St. Mary’s College and graduated in 2014.

“She was really my inspiration,” Brianne said. “Once [the diabetes diagnosis] happened, I was like, ‘I’m not giving up. I’m not going to stop.’ I do love it, and now I have even more reason to get a scholarship and to make this count for something and help our family by getting a scholarship.”

Wojciakowski competed her way onto colleges’ radar: Over her volleyball career at Forest Hills Northern High, she earned one All-State and two All-Conference selections. FAU began showing interest in Wojciakowski her junior year, and the two parties eventually scheduled a campus visit.

And despite the visit being Wojciakowski’s first, she saw all she needed to commit.

“Because of just the culture and the coach and of course Boca Raton – I mean, is it not amazing? – I actually committed,” Wojciakowski said. “That was my first visit and my commit: FAU.”

Wojciakowski played for the Owls from 2013-16, an experience she succinctly describes as “a ride.” The middle blocker’s ride included competing at the highest level, developing “new sisters” among her teammates and excelling academically.

The time commitment all that required was “insane,” Wojciakowski says, but she “loved every minute” and feels it helped mold her a better professional.

“I tried my best in volleyball – and again I had my ups and downs, but overall, I think my career was pretty steady – and I did the same in academics,” said Wojciakowski, who led FAU with 17 solo blocks as a senior. “I tried my best and every opportunity that knocked, I took with open arms.”

One opportunity Wojciakowski took while playing for FAU stands out. In summer 2016, she attended the NCAA Career in Sports Forum in Indianapolis. There Wojciakowski learned professional sports isn’t the only path to working in athletics, the field she loves, and began focusing on the rest.

“Being able to represent FAU at the Career in Sports Forum was an unbelievable experience, and I still to this day tell the student-athletes, ‘Apply for this, go to these different forums and workshops and opportunities,’ because it was absolutely amazing and it made me learn more about myself and college athletics in general,” Wojciakowski said. “So, I think that forum really sealed the deal as far as me working and having a career in college athletics. I guess a combination of that forum and my experience at FAU and my love for sports led me down this path to now working in athletics.”

Wojciakowski inched closer toward her professional path by graduating with a communications degree in spring 2017. While walking the graduation stage, her sister was “on my mind, as well as my family, every step of the way” like they were from the start of her student-athlete journey. And they sat rows away from Wojciakowski as the journey reached its conclusion.

Initially, Wojciakowski wanted to begin working immediately after graduation instead of pursuing a master’s degree. But she changed her mind upon learning about FAU’s vaunted MBA in Sport Management program.

“Obviously, realizing how much my scholarship changed my life and affected me and FAU affected me, I thought, what better of an opportunity to continue living this dream, amazing world at FAU than getting my master’s there,” Wojciakowski said.

While studying for her MBA, Wojciakowski served as an assistant academic athletic advisor at FAU. And that wasn’t all she did professionally. Wojciakowski also worked for the Miami Dolphins’ gameday and event staff. One semester she stretched herself even further by taking a third job at FAU’s ticket office.

Wojciakowski admits it’s unlikely she’ll work three jobs simultaneously again any time soon, but her FAU student-athlete experience prepared her for the challenge.

“I wouldn’t have been able to do that if not for my four years as a student-athlete because I learned how to juggle everything at once,” Wojciakowski said. “You learn how to juggle being social, having a social life. You learn juggling talking with your family that (doesn’t) live near you. You juggle athletics, academics. You juggle traveling, everything.”

In August of 2019, Wojciakowski earned her master’s degree and began applying for jobs across the country, even in states she “never really aspired to live in.” Then an “unexpected blessing an unexpected opportunity” came Wojciakowski’s way: FAU offered her its full-time student-athlete services coordinator position.

The job gives Wojciakowski an opportunity to mentor the student-athletes who reside where she once did, those sitting in the same classrooms, learning from the same coaches and working with the same advisors. It’s also giving Wojciakowski an opportunity to be the inspirational force her sister was over her student-athlete journey.

“I almost feel like it’s what I’m meant for,” Wojciakowski said. “I’m meant to guide and help and get these student-athletes what I went through.”

Forged by FAU - Brianne Wojciakowski

Wajih AlBaroudi

7/19/2020

Gallery: Brianne Wojciakowski