About

Van is the President of the VanAdams Sports Group where since 2004, she has represented a number of iconic sports celebrities and executed marketing campaigns for their personal celebrity and/or business ventures. Van has produced upscale live events for athlete and corporate clients in Super Bowl, MLB, and NBA All-Star cities across the nation.  Van is the Founder & Chief Experience Architect of Gathering on the Greens®, the premier golf experience for executive women since 2012.

Van brings over 20 years of entrepreneurial experience in marketing, business development, and strategic athlete engagement—consistently delivering innovative strategies that unlock new business, drive revenue, and accelerate growth. 

Van is a Top 25 Leading Women Entrepreneurs and Business Owners award recipient, and was most recently named to Crain’s NY 'Most Notable Women in Sports Business' list. She was a member of the inaugural WISE Executive Leadership Institute cohort at Dartmouth. In addition, Van is a former adjunct professor and regular contributing writer and guest speaker for various industry outlets. In addition to her role as chapter president, Van is the national chapter liaison for WISE where she supports 20+ chapter presidents throughout North America.

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By day, Na'eema is Senior Vice President, Arts & Culture Sponsorships and Global Experiential at Citi with more than 15 years of events marketing, special event production, and management experience. Na'eema began her career in talent recruiting with Goldman Sachs and has held event marketing roles with Major League Baseball and J.P. Morgan. She also worked on a short-term contract assignment with the National Basketball Association planning a multi-city tour event.

A longstanding WISE member, Na'eema held volunteer roles with the WISE national office before joining the NYC Metro Chapter events team and later serving on the board of directors as the WISE Within Mentoring Program chair and coordinating the annual Speed Mentoring Roundtable event for nearly a decade.

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By day, Christine is Senior Vice President of Club and Labor Finance at National Football League. She is an accomplished Finance executive with a 20 year career specializing financial strategy and risk assessment. Christine leads the Labor Finance group, which oversees the league economics and strategy that factors into the calculation of the Salary Cap.

Prior to the National Football League, Christine worked for Arthur Andersen, where she was part of the enterprise division, focused primarily on auditing technology clients. Christine is an alumni of the Women in Sports and Events (WISE) Executive Leadership Institute at Dartmouth.

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Katie is a Director, Performance Marketing Sales for The Walt Disney Company with more than a decade of experience creating and selling creative solutions. As Membership Director for WISE NYC Metro, she oversees the membership team responsible for corporate member recruitment, membership growth and retention activities, including quarterly member meet-ups.

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Sarah thrives at the intersection of content, technology, and consumer behavior, having driven significant growth for high-profile organizations like Yahoo Sports and the NBA. With over 15 years of leadership experience in sports media and entertainment, she brings extensive expertise in sports programming, business development, and content marketing, positioning her to make a powerful impact on the chapter's success. In her role with WISE NYC Metro, she supports the chairs of the digital tech and communications committee—helping ensure the chapter’s external voice and content strategy stay aligned with its broader goals.

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Lauren is a strategic leader in media sales and brand partnerships with three decades of experience. She currently serves as National Sales Director at TelevisaUnivision and has held leadership roles at the Professional Fighters League (PFL), Sinclair Broadcast Group, The WB, AEG, BBDO and FOX Sports. Her expertise spans video advertising, multi-platform monetization, and go-to-market strategy. At WISE NYC Metro, Lauren leads the partnerships team and plays a key role in driving the Chapter’s revenue-generating efforts.

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Cristina is Vice President, Marketing Operations at CBS Sports where she has spent nearly two decades leading campaign strategy and execution for marquee properties including the NFL, NCAA March Madness, The Masters, Big Ten Football, and the WNBA. With more than 20 years of experience in sports media and a foundation in television production, she brings deep expertise in brand marketing, cross-platform execution, and experiential activations to her role with WISE NYC Metro.

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Natalia Pedroza, Senior Director of Leadership & Learning at the USTA brings comprehensive expertise in talent acquisition, recruiting operations, and organizational development. She leads USTA’s leadership pipeline initiatives, designing programs that emphasize growth, inclusion, and operational efficiency. Her career spans senior roles at Wiley Publishing and Nestlé Waters, where she built talent systems that support both individual development and business outcomes. With nearly 20 years of experience, Natalia will help guide the strategy to strengthen professional development and career resources through a workforce-focused lens.

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Nachamah leads a strategic marketing and communications consultancy specializing in the financial services industry, where she has held senior executive roles for more than two decades. Her career includes leadership positions with organizations such as Americas for Newedge, Fimat USA, and the New York Mercantile Exchange. Among her notable achievements, Nachamah introduced a groundbreaking sports marketing program, spearheading the first-ever corporate sponsorship of a regular-season series in MLB history. Nachamah held the role of Vice President for WISE NYC Metro for over ten years, serving through 2024. Before stepping into this role, she served as the Chapter’s Communications Chair, following her start with WISE on the National Communications Committee.

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Nicole is an adjunct faculty member at New York University’s - SPS Preston Robert Tisch Institute for Global Sport, where she teaches graduate students about the business of professional sports. She brings over 15 years of experience facilitating and leading strategic, operational, and cultural initiatives for major organizations like the National Football League, National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), and Actors' Equity Association. In addition, Nicole is the founder and principal of Smart EDI Solutions LLC. 

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Sarah Jamieson is a Senior Director of Communications with MLS NEXT Pro with nearly 20 years in professional sports. She currently leads media strategy and executive visibility for Major League Soccer’s MLS NEXT Pro. Prior to MLS, she spent time with the Cleveland Cavaliers, overseeing PR for both their NBA and AHL properties, and began her career with the New York Liberty and Madison Square Garden. Sarah brings a strategic lens to stakeholder engagement and excels at shaping narratives that elevate organizational objectives.

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Cheryl is Associate Vice President-Global Content and Business Operations at National Basketball Association bringing more than two decades of experience spanning advertising, media, entertainment, and sports. Her leadership in driving innovation and operational excellence has made her a key player in shaping content strategies and business growth on a global scale. She brings fresh perspectives and dynamic energy to elevate NYC Metro's efforts to new heights.

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