Tenaciously Beating the Odds
From drugs and homelessness to succeeding at BYU In the accounting program. Hear from one grateful student.
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Running the Track, Classroom, and Boardroom
December 2024
Before graduating and becoming an elementary school teacher, Brenna Porter set a BYU record in the400-meter hurdles. She returned to BYU two and a half years later, ready to use the experience she gained as an elite athlete and an educator to take her career in an entirely new direction.
“It was a combination of wanting to learn and being inspired by powerful women in my inner circle who empowered me to go to BYU for an MBA,” Porter says.
Porter was surprised to discover that her skills as a schoolteacher transferred well to the world of business. “I had a lot of impostor syndrome coming in,” she says. “But I realized that there is so much that you do in a classroom that is directly related to business, especially the soft skills.”
In the program, Porter worked on Cougar Capital (a student-led venture capital firm) and oversaw the first-ever BYU-hosted Faith and Belief at Work Case Competition. After graduation, she landed a job in business development for a tech company.
Earning a BYU Marriott MBA degree stretched her capacity in many ways. “There’s no way to come out of it unchanged,” says Porter.
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