In 2018 Virginia native, Jordan Banks, ran her last race in Miami at the ACC championship. Now just a couple of years later she found herself working in sales at General Mills. General Mills, Inc is an American multinational manufacturer and marketer of branded consumer foods sold through retail stores. They are known for brands like Cheerios and Yoplait.

During her time at Wake Forest, Banks competed in the heptathlon, which consisted of seven different events. The 100-meter hurdles, high jump, shot put, 200 meters, long jump, javelin, and the 800 meters. These were seven different events that Banks had to train for while attending Wake Forest. One could say that she was always on the go. “There was a day when I took a final and then an hour later had to do the heptathlon.” Although difficult, Banks felt like she was able to manage it well and now even feels like she works best while busy. “I felt like I was thriving in that environment.”

It’s official!

Jordan Banks scores 5149 points in the heptathlon. That’s good for:

➡️ A personal best
➡️ Fifth on the all-time Wake Forest performer list
➡️ Sixth in the conference
➡️ Second Team All-ACC honors! #GoDeacs pic.twitter.com/wKHRdBY8y6

— Wake TF/XC (@WakeTrack) May 11, 2018

Although the track wasn’t all that kept Banks busy. She was also a part of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC), which is an organization within the school that served as a liaison between the faculty, student body, athletic department, and student-athletes as a means to enhance the student-athlete experience. Her senior year, Banks also was able to display her leadership skills when she became SAAC president.

After graduation, she then went on to attend Wake Forest’s Masters in Management program. “I think I learned more in that year than I did in all four years of undergrad.” She described how the things she learned in graduate school were directly applicable to the things that she currently does at General Mills.

Alongside the experience she gained through Wake’s graduate program, Banks emphasizes the importance of networking and building connections with those around her. These connections and taking advantage of the opportunities given to her are what landed her the job with General Mills. She was connected with General Mills through the career services that Wake’s graduate program offered. “I initially didn’t want to go to the career fair, but I’m glad I did.”

Although she is no longer an athlete her love for sports is something that will always be ingrained in her. She even volunteers as a track coach at her local high school and hopes to one day work in sports. As a Student-Athlete Jordan was able to learn things like leadership, time management, and the ability to build connections. She was able to get an experience unlike regular college students, which all have contributed towards preparing her for where she is now.

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