SAAC initiative aims to show they are more than athletes

One of the many great things that Griz Athletics provides are services for its student-athletes, one being a counseling program.

Previously, though, the counseling room was tucked away in the back of the training room, so in order to get there, one would have to walk through a big room – past coaches, staff and fellow student-athletes.

"Everyone knew which room was the counseling room, so there was a stigma to it," said senior volleyball player Catie Semadeni. "People wanted the services but wouldn't schedule appointments."

Through the work of Montana's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC), the group was able to bring their concerns to the athletics department and create change.

Previously, student-athletes were given three, 20-minute counseling sessions for free.

Today, counseling is conducted outside of the Adams Center, through a partnership with UM's counselor education graduate program. Student-athletes are now offered 10, hour-long sessions for free.

Another example of SAAC's impact has come through Montana's expanded nutrition program.

Earlier this fall, SAAC put out a survey and got a response from more than 180 student-athletes. They were then able to take the feedback they received from the responses to work with the strength & conditioning staff in order to give variety to what the nutrition center offers.

"The nutrition center helps us stay nourished, and now we're able to receive the types of foods and drinks that we believe will help us be at our best," said senior high jumper Alfred Peterson.

2023 SAAC river clean-up

Montana's SAAC chapter meets every other Tuesday. They eat dinner together, go through Big Sky Conference and NCAA updates and talk about how they want to incorporate things onto their campus. There are at least two representatives per team, but meetings are open to all student-athletes.

Over the past month, SAAC has hosted a handful of additional events ranging from a river clean-up community-service project to an end-of-year kickball tournament for all Griz student-athletes.

Semadeni started attending SAAC meetings as a freshman in 2019. She quickly became hooked and has served the past three years as president. Peterson also started attending as a freshman and has held an officer role this past year as vice president.

"I got invited to a meeting but quickly realized that this is a place that gives athletes a voice inside the athletics department," Peterson said.

The two attended a Big Sky Conference SAAC conference last summer in Ogden, Utah, where they got to meet other SAAC officers from schools throughout the league. Together, they talked about what they wanted their institutional and league SAAC programs to look like, and how to work toward that vision.

Most importantly, they created a campaign initiative: more than an athlete.

"The thought behind 'more than an athlete' is that a lot of times there is a misconception that we are only athletes and that's what we dedicate 100 percent of our time and energy toward," Semadeni said. "There's a pressure on athletes to succeed in our sport because it's all that people view us as – and all that we view ourselves as a lot of times – and it can be really paralyzing and suffocating.

"As we continued to talk, we all agreed that there are so many teammates in our departments who are doing such great things outside of their sports. We wanted to bring those to light and shift the narrative."

Peterson is a son and friend. He's on target to graduate this month with degrees in business management and management information systems. He's a hunter and rancher, and trains horses in his free time. In 2021, he was selected to attend the NCAA Student-Athlete Leadership Forum in Houston, Texas.

Peterson is a point-scorer in the high jump at the Big Sky Championships, but he is so much more than an athlete.

"It's easy for professors or classmates to see the Griz logo we wear and assume that we only care about athletics," the Dillon, Montana, native said. "We're trying to show the community that we are more than athletes. There are other things that we are passionate about and care about and work hard for."

For Semadeni, a starting pin hitter on Montana's volleyball team, she knows the perks that come with being a Division-I athlete. But for all of the benefits, there are just as many hardships and challenges that comes with being a student-athlete.

"Playing a sport in college is really, really difficult and I've struggled by buying into the false belief that my identity lies solely in my sport," she said. "Realizing that being an athlete only scratches the surface of who I am has been so freeing for me."

Semadeni graduated last May with a degree in health and human performance. She is now working toward a graduate degree in public health and, after her volleyball career is complete, wants to become a nurse. She's spent time outside of volleyball volunteering and interning in ways that will help her pursue her career passions.

"We strive to be successful in our sport, but we can also be successful in so many other ways, and that's what we want people to see."

Peterson and Semadeni are just two of hundreds of Griz student-athletes who have stories to tell of who they are away from competition.

Throughout the summer, Montana student-athletes will write first-hand letters to Griz Nation expressing what the term 'more than an athlete' means to them, and who they are outside of their sport. Check back to GoGriz.com each week throughout the summer for a new letter from a student-athlete expressing who they are, who they want to be and what they are passionate about.

University of Montana Athletics

SAAC initiative aims to show they are more than athletes

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