#CollegeSeries Women in Sports Business

April Brown is the Vice President of Social Responsibility & Community Affairs for Major League Baseball and the President of Major League Baseball Charities. Brown’s social responsibility team executes community programs with nonprofit partners, oversees the community calendar of events, honors the legacies of iconic baseball legends, serving as the point of contact for the 30 MLB Clubs as they amplify these programs and events within their own markets. Brown is also a member of the MLB Owners Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Committee that is committed to implementing programs and policies to ensure that baseball has diverse representation on the field, in front offices and at the league headquarters.

Over her 25+ year career, Brown has created and executed social responsibility campaigns that empower stakeholders to engage in charitable giving and volunteer service throughout the country. She has honorably served national nonprofit organizations such as the American Cancer Society and Partnership for Drug-free Kids, as well as the corporate foundation of Equitable, a publicly traded financial wealth company.

Through her leadership, constituents, fans and partners can align with Major League Baseball’s investment in social causes such as access to higher education, youth psychosocial development, career readiness, health, military appreciation/support, and social justice.

A native New Yorker, Brown completed her undergraduate degree at Binghamton University and holds a master’s degree in Developmental Psychology from Columbia University. Brown is also a life member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, the oldest African-American sorority dedicated to service for all mankind.

Bonnie Clark joined the Phillies in 2008 as vice president, communications. In this role, her day-to-day responsibilities include directing and implementing an overarching communications strategy for the club. She also oversees player relations, publicity initiatives, crisis and issues management, business communications, creative services and alumni relations. In addition, Bonnie is senior advisor to John Middleton, the team’s managing partner.

Prior to the Phillies, Bonnie spent nine years (1999-2008) working for multi-media retailer QVC, where she served as director of corporate affairs before her promotion to vice president of public relations in 2001. In this role, she was responsible for creating public relations and media relations strategies that increased awareness and enhanced the brand. She also spearheaded all crisis and issues management for the company.

Before QVC, Bonnie worked at Tierney in Philadelphia, where she served as associate vice president for the agency’s consumer public relations division and was responsible for developing and implementing communications strategies for consumer clients. She also held various positions of increasing responsibility with Golin/Harris Communications in Philadelphia and at New York agencies M. Silver Associates and Ogilvy & Mather Public Relations, where she developed and implemented public relations campaigns for industry leaders and internationally respected consumer brands.

Bonnie graduated from Delaware Valley High School in Milford, Pa., where she was inducted into the school’s Hall of Fame in 2013. She received her bachelor’s degree from West Virginia University’s Perley Isaac Reed School of Journalism.

Bonnie is a member of the board of directors for the Greater Philadelphia Film Office. She is also a member of the Major League Baseball Assistance Team (B.A.T.) Awareness Committee and an assembly member for Major League Baseball Players Alumni Association.

Jackie Cuddeback joined the Phillies as vice president, partnership sales and corporate marketing on July 1, 2018, to lead the advertising sales and client services team. She was promoted to her current position in August 2022.

A seasoned, multi-platform executive skilled at leveraging industry trends to create custom solutions for clients, Jackie spent 19 years in media at Time Inc., in a number of key leadership posts, including vice president of client solutions for the food/beverage/spirits and entertainment verticals. In that role, she developed and pitched multi-million-dollar programs for clients using Time Inc.’s entire portfolio of assets. Prior to that, she was associate publisher of People Magazine and People.com, leading client solutions, including marketing, branded content, creative services, events and research for People’s expansive revenue portfolio.

Born and raised in Philadelphia, Jackie attended Germantown Friends School and graduated in 1996 from the University of Vermont, where she played lacrosse and received a Bachelor of Arts degree. She currently serves on the boards of the Boys & Girls Club of Philadelphia and Squash Smarts.

Jackie and her husband John live in Radnor, Pa., with their three children, Jack, Whitney and Cole.

Kayla did not initially set out to work in sports, but a part time job while she was in high school opened up a world of new possibilities. She joined the BlueClaws in 2007 as part-time Game Day Staff while she was studying to pursue a career in elementary education. However, in 2015 plans shifted when she was offered a position with the BlueClaws as a Special Events Assistant and hired full-time shortly thereafter as the Events and Operations Manager. She was managing the same Game Day Staff she was once a part of.

In 2017, after 10 consecutive years with the team, Kayla sought to diversify her experience and pursued an opportunity with the Event Operations team at the New Jersey Devils and Prudential Center in Newark, NJ. She spent 3 years as the Assistant Manager of Event Services and learned new skills from incredible colleagues, planned and executed larger than life events, and built invaluable relationships. During that time, Kayla managed Devils events, A-list concerts, college graduations, and even the 2019 MTV Video Music Awards.

Kayla grew up a beach kid from the Jersey Shore, though, and soon the ocean was calling her back home. Armed with her elevated skills and experience, she returned to the BlueClaws in 2020 as their Director of Events and Operations. In this position, she leads her own department, effectively operationalizing 66 home games, 25+ non-game day events, and wearing various other "hats" as necessary.

Kayla graduated from Stockton University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology and Anthropology with a minor in Latin American and Caribbean studies. She currently resides in Waretown, New Jersey and in her free time she likes to talk all things Taylor Swift.

Claire Smith covered all things baseball as an award-winning reporter, columnist and content editor for 40 years before accepting a position as an associate professor at Temple University in 2021. Smith will teach journalism and was honored to be named co-director of the newly established Claire Smith Center for Sports Media within the Klein College of Media and Communication.

Smith was born in Philadelphia in 1953 within blocks of Temple, her alma mater. She later worked within miles of her hometown at her first newspaper employer - The Bucks County Courier Times. She soon moved on to The Philadelphia Bulletin where her dream of becoming a sports reporter became a reality. Smith went on to work for the Hartford Courant, covering the New York Yankees from 1983 to 1987, the first female to have a full-time Major League beat. She later worked as a columnist for The New York Times from 1991 to 1998, and was an editor and columnist for The Philadelphia Inquirer from 1998 to 2007. She rounded out her career as a content editor at ESPN, 2007-2021.

Smith traveled the world covering baseball, with assignments as wide-ranging as labor negotiations in The Oval Office to witnessing the first-ever Major League games played in Europe and Puerto Rico. The veteran reporter’s achievements were recognized by her peers when she voted the 2017 recipient of The Baseball Writers Association’s Career Excellence Award; the first woman and fourth African American to be so honored. She has also been recognized for her pioneering efforts and career milestones by her alma mater as well as The Association for Women in Sports Media, The National Association of Black Journalists, The Jackie Robinson Foundation, The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum and The Josh Gibson Foundation.

Smith was among the subjects of A League of Her Own, a short biographical documentary about the women who shattered glass ceilings throughout sport media. The film was screened in 2018 at the Hall of Fame's annual Baseball Film Festival.

An outfielder for the 1993 National League champs and hitting coach for the 2008 World Series champions, Milt Thompson returned to the Phillies organization as a community club ambassador in March 2022. In this role, he serves as a club resource for community outreach with an emphasis on youth baseball and softball development, working with the Phillies RBI program and the Phillies Urban Youth Academy.

Milt previously served the Phillies as major league hitting coach (2005-10) following one season as first base coach (2004). From 2005-09, Milt guided Phillies hitters to the National League lead in home runs, RBI, runs, extra-base hits and total bases. He also served as a coach on the NL All-Star team in 2009.

Originally drafted by the Atlanta Braves out of Howard University in 1979, Milt played 18 years of professional baseball, including 13 seasons in the majors with the Braves (1984-85), Phillies (1986, 1993-94), St. Louis Cardinals (1989-92), Houston Astros (1994-95), Los Angeles Dodgers (1996) and Colorado Rockies (1996). He hit .313 with six RBI in 1993 World Series and set a Phillies record with five RBI in Game 4 at Veterans Stadium.

Milt began his coaching career in 1997 as minor league outfield/baserunning coordinator for Tampa Bay before joining the Phillies minor league system as a coach at Reading (1998-99) and outfield/baserunning coordinator (2001-03).

Born in Washington, D.C., Milt lives in Sewell, N.J. with his wife Carole. He has four daughters: Torri, Jennifer, Courtney and Alyssa.