University of Georgia Athletics
Pastino Makes Juggling UGA, ROTC And Internship Look Easy
November 08, 2023 | General, The Frierson Files
By John Frierson
Staff Writer
It did not take long for student intern Meghan Pastino to make on impression on Claude Felton and his staff in Georgia's Sports Communications department.
"She sometimes keeps the official book at baseball, and she has the best handwriting in the official book of anybody we've ever had. Ever," said a smiling Felton, the Loran Smith Senior Associate Athletic Director of Sports Communications.
Felton, who has headed the Bulldogs' media relations department since 1979, has seen hundreds of student interns come and go during his long career. Some stick around for a semester or two, others stay for years and maybe even join the staff full-time one day.
One thing that makes Pastino different is that she is also an Air Force ROTC cadet. On Saturday, when undefeated Georgia hosts Ole Miss on Veteran's Day — this is also Military Appreciation Week — Pastino will be on the field at Sanford Stadium during halftime.
She's one of the UGA students that will be recognized for their achievements in Georgia's ROTC programs. In Pastino's case, she will be recognized as a Distinguished Graduate of the Air Force ROTC's Field Training program over the summer. Among all of the participants at the boot camp-style program at Maxwell Air Force Base in Montgomery, Ala., which all Air Force ROTC cadets must complete, she ranked in the top 10% among her peers in completing the physically and mentally demanding program.
"It will be me and a couple of cadets from my unit that have completed that program this summer that get recognized," she said. "That will be an exciting time to kind of crown that achievement."
The daughter of a retired Marine — her dad, Philip, retired as a colonel after 30 years in the Corps — she's organized, disciplined and driven to excel in everything she does. Case in point: Pastino is a double-major, working toward degrees in the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communications and in Religion, with a minor in Aerospace Studies.
She said that before she completed the training program over the summer, being in uniform felt a little like "playing dress-up." But now, she has a much deeper connection to the Air Force ROTC program and her future in the military.
"Coming back with the confidence that as long as I graduate and earn my commission, I'm going to be a part of the Air Force. Getting to say that this is the uniform that I'm wearing, a representation of my country, and I'm not just part of ROTC but the greater fighting force, I definitely feel a lot more pride and excitement when I put it on," she said.
When Pastino first reached out about volunteering during baseball games, and then doing more regular work, Felton, understandably, wondered how she could handle everything on her plate.
"I was very impressed with her" after the initial interview, Felton said, "but then, when I found out she was in Air Force ROTC, my first thought is, I don't know how you're going to do that and this, and go to school."
But then he remembered former Georgia walk-on football player Jack Loonam, who was on the team a decade ago while also an Army ROTC cadet. If Loonam could do it, then Pastino certainly could, too.
"She's been terrific with us," Felton said.
Two-plus years on since she started working home baseball games as a freshman, Pastino is handling everything just fine.
"Knowing that she was ROTC was another thing, because my older brother was ROTC at VMI, so I knew how demanding that was," said Christopher Lakos, an Assistant Athletic Director in Sports Communications who oversees media relations for baseball and women's tennis. "The bottom line was, she figured out the games she could work, she did a great job, and she keeps one of the best scorebooks that I've ever seen."
By completing the two-week Field Training Program for which she will be recognized Saturday, Pastino assured herself of being commissioned as an officer once she graduates and fully joins the Air Force. She will begin her military career in less than two years, commissioning as a second lieutenant in May of 2025, she said. Pastino doesn't yet know which direction her career will take other than she "is not pursuing an aviation track," she said. Ideally, she'd like to work in Public Affairs, for which her intern work is excellent training.
"At the end of the day, I'll serve in whatever capacity they tell me to," she said.
And that's kind of what she does with Sports Communications.
"She did such a good job during her first baseball season, I asked if she was interested in maybe doing a little bit more and maybe working with some other sports. And it grew from there," Lakos said.
Last Saturday, Pastino was working in the Sanford Stadium press box during the football team's win over Missouri. The next day, she was in the Foley Field press box keeping score during the baseball team's fall ball game against Kennesaw State. And Monday night, she was in Stegeman Coliseum, working the women's basketball team's season opener against North Carolina A&T.
When Pastino isn't in class, a press box or working in the Sports Communications offices, you will often find her over at Hardman Hall, the Air Force ROTC Detachment 160 building located roughly halfway between Stegeman Coliseum and Sanford Stadium. Cadets are required to attend physical training sessions twice a week, plus do their own workouts on other days, plus take academic courses in Aerospace Studies and attend leadership classes.
"What's required of you is probably a little bit less than what most people expect — it comes out to about six hours of fitness and classroom time (a week), but there are so many other different opportunities. It can kind of be as much or as little as you want," Pastino said of her ROTC schedule.
Between school, ROTC and her work with Sports Communications, Pastino has a very full schedule. But hard work and a commitment to service seem to be the Pastino family way.
Philip and Kristen Pastino have three children: two daughters (Meghan and Kaitlyn) and a son (Connor). Connor is in the Marine Corps ROTC program at Virginia, and Kaitlyn, a Virginia Tech graduate, is pursuing a master's degree in Foreign Service at Georgetown.
"The rivalry with my little brother is very fun," Meghan said. "To have that Marine Corps-Air Force banter has been nice."
Pastino's dad spent three decades in the Corps, her mom is a first-grade teacher, and she and her siblings are all on track for a career in service to their country.
"That desire to be a part of something bigger than yourself," Pastino said, "for sure, was instilled in all of us."
Staff Writer
It did not take long for student intern Meghan Pastino to make on impression on Claude Felton and his staff in Georgia's Sports Communications department.
"She sometimes keeps the official book at baseball, and she has the best handwriting in the official book of anybody we've ever had. Ever," said a smiling Felton, the Loran Smith Senior Associate Athletic Director of Sports Communications.
Felton, who has headed the Bulldogs' media relations department since 1979, has seen hundreds of student interns come and go during his long career. Some stick around for a semester or two, others stay for years and maybe even join the staff full-time one day.
One thing that makes Pastino different is that she is also an Air Force ROTC cadet. On Saturday, when undefeated Georgia hosts Ole Miss on Veteran's Day — this is also Military Appreciation Week — Pastino will be on the field at Sanford Stadium during halftime.
She's one of the UGA students that will be recognized for their achievements in Georgia's ROTC programs. In Pastino's case, she will be recognized as a Distinguished Graduate of the Air Force ROTC's Field Training program over the summer. Among all of the participants at the boot camp-style program at Maxwell Air Force Base in Montgomery, Ala., which all Air Force ROTC cadets must complete, she ranked in the top 10% among her peers in completing the physically and mentally demanding program.
"It will be me and a couple of cadets from my unit that have completed that program this summer that get recognized," she said. "That will be an exciting time to kind of crown that achievement."
The daughter of a retired Marine — her dad, Philip, retired as a colonel after 30 years in the Corps — she's organized, disciplined and driven to excel in everything she does. Case in point: Pastino is a double-major, working toward degrees in the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communications and in Religion, with a minor in Aerospace Studies.
She said that before she completed the training program over the summer, being in uniform felt a little like "playing dress-up." But now, she has a much deeper connection to the Air Force ROTC program and her future in the military.
"Coming back with the confidence that as long as I graduate and earn my commission, I'm going to be a part of the Air Force. Getting to say that this is the uniform that I'm wearing, a representation of my country, and I'm not just part of ROTC but the greater fighting force, I definitely feel a lot more pride and excitement when I put it on," she said.
When Pastino first reached out about volunteering during baseball games, and then doing more regular work, Felton, understandably, wondered how she could handle everything on her plate.
"I was very impressed with her" after the initial interview, Felton said, "but then, when I found out she was in Air Force ROTC, my first thought is, I don't know how you're going to do that and this, and go to school."
But then he remembered former Georgia walk-on football player Jack Loonam, who was on the team a decade ago while also an Army ROTC cadet. If Loonam could do it, then Pastino certainly could, too.
"She's been terrific with us," Felton said.
Two-plus years on since she started working home baseball games as a freshman, Pastino is handling everything just fine.
"Knowing that she was ROTC was another thing, because my older brother was ROTC at VMI, so I knew how demanding that was," said Christopher Lakos, an Assistant Athletic Director in Sports Communications who oversees media relations for baseball and women's tennis. "The bottom line was, she figured out the games she could work, she did a great job, and she keeps one of the best scorebooks that I've ever seen."
By completing the two-week Field Training Program for which she will be recognized Saturday, Pastino assured herself of being commissioned as an officer once she graduates and fully joins the Air Force. She will begin her military career in less than two years, commissioning as a second lieutenant in May of 2025, she said. Pastino doesn't yet know which direction her career will take other than she "is not pursuing an aviation track," she said. Ideally, she'd like to work in Public Affairs, for which her intern work is excellent training.
"At the end of the day, I'll serve in whatever capacity they tell me to," she said.
And that's kind of what she does with Sports Communications.
"She did such a good job during her first baseball season, I asked if she was interested in maybe doing a little bit more and maybe working with some other sports. And it grew from there," Lakos said.
Last Saturday, Pastino was working in the Sanford Stadium press box during the football team's win over Missouri. The next day, she was in the Foley Field press box keeping score during the baseball team's fall ball game against Kennesaw State. And Monday night, she was in Stegeman Coliseum, working the women's basketball team's season opener against North Carolina A&T.
When Pastino isn't in class, a press box or working in the Sports Communications offices, you will often find her over at Hardman Hall, the Air Force ROTC Detachment 160 building located roughly halfway between Stegeman Coliseum and Sanford Stadium. Cadets are required to attend physical training sessions twice a week, plus do their own workouts on other days, plus take academic courses in Aerospace Studies and attend leadership classes.
"What's required of you is probably a little bit less than what most people expect — it comes out to about six hours of fitness and classroom time (a week), but there are so many other different opportunities. It can kind of be as much or as little as you want," Pastino said of her ROTC schedule.
Between school, ROTC and her work with Sports Communications, Pastino has a very full schedule. But hard work and a commitment to service seem to be the Pastino family way.
Philip and Kristen Pastino have three children: two daughters (Meghan and Kaitlyn) and a son (Connor). Connor is in the Marine Corps ROTC program at Virginia, and Kaitlyn, a Virginia Tech graduate, is pursuing a master's degree in Foreign Service at Georgetown.
"The rivalry with my little brother is very fun," Meghan said. "To have that Marine Corps-Air Force banter has been nice."
Pastino's dad spent three decades in the Corps, her mom is a first-grade teacher, and she and her siblings are all on track for a career in service to their country.
"That desire to be a part of something bigger than yourself," Pastino said, "for sure, was instilled in all of us."
Assistant Sports Communications Director John Frierson is the staff writer for the UGA Athletic Association and curator of the ITA Men's Tennis Hall of Fame. You can find his work at: Frierson Files. He's also on Twitter: @FriersonFiles and @ITAHallofFame.
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