Isolating, But Also Unifying

By: Justin Lafleur, Lehigh Sports Communications

Lehigh field hockey alumna Marie Mignogna '14 is thousands of miles from home in the midst of a pandemic, but she feels as connected as ever with the people in her life, while continuing to make a difference in several significant ways.

Mignogna has lived in London, England since December of 2018. After a smooth first year in the UK, the COVID-19 pandemic picked up this March.

Then in April, Marie learned that her father Michael – the mayor of Voorhees Township, New Jersey – was diagnosed with the virus.

Needless to say, a lot of fear and anxiety ensued, but he recovered and Marie continues to thrive.

Her company could even play an important role in stopping COVID-19 in its tracks…

Mignogna's Road to England
Today, the Voorhees, New Jersey native works for W2O Group, a company that provides marketing and communications services for clients in the healthcare sector

"Our clients range from large pharmaceutical companies to small biotechs and hospitals, as well as patient and advocacy organizations – really anything within the healthcare industry," said Mignogna. "So this has been a really interesting time for us and we're busier than ever. We actually have more than one pharma client working on a potential COVID-19 vaccine and have also supported in communications for the National Health Services (NHS) in the UK around the pandemic.

"It's rewarding to know we're supporting something so big."

Speaking of support… When Mignogna was a senior at Lehigh, she received important support from Lehigh Career Services.

"They passed along a list of names of alumnae who worked in the marketing, advertising and communications industries," she said. "I wanted to do something that was creative and would let me use my writing skills, but wasn't quite sure what yet.

"I reached out to a lot of alums in that industry network and ended up getting my first internship through a Lehigh alum, as well as my first job after graduation."

That job was with Ogilvy in New York City, an advertising, marketing and public relations agency.

"I loved it and spent over two years there; that's where I got started in healthcare and realized it was a space where I wanted to continue," said Mignogna. "Healthcare communications is challenging as it requires you to be creative in a highly-regulated industry, but also provides you with the opportunity to contribute to really impactful work. I appreciated that balance from day one."

Marie went on to spend about two years at W2O Group in New York. Then, her location changed, but company stayed the same.

"I had this itch of wanting to move overseas and experience living somewhere else," said Mignogna. "I wanted to broaden my horizons personally and expand my professional experience, knowing how healthcare differs drastically between the U.S. and other countries globally. When I was looking for a new opportunity, I told W2O Group from day one about my interest working internationally."

After arriving in London, Mignogna quickly learned the different challenges and opportunities that communications in Europe provided compared to the United States.

"On a day-to-day basis, I'm handling all aspects of communications for my clients," she said. "If they have big announcements or milestones like a drug approval, positive clinical trial results, company acquisition or disease awareness day, my team is supporting from development of the strategy to the activation of tactics and launch of the campaign. I'm also handling a lot of communications issues, which is pretty prevalent in the healthcare industry, especially when it comes to big pharma and drug pricing.

"Beyond pricing, I always have to be prepared to advise my clients through difficult circumstances like a failed drug trial or negative news story."

Keep in mind that Mignogna works as part of a larger team (like her time as a Lehigh student-athlete).

"I'm the day-to-day lead on two large accounts, but I work alongside a team, so it's not just me," she said. "My day is always different. I work with my team as well as a huge range of colleagues who specialize in analytics, medical writing, social media, design and many other areas to help provide clients with the best support possible."

The Pandemic Hit Close to Home
Mignogna knows she needs to be ready for anything at any time. That certainly happened – in a big way – with the COVID-19 pandemic, forcing everyone to quickly adjust.

Marie has been very adaptable, but living more than a six-hour flight across the Atlantic Ocean from home has been challenging.

Marie Migogna and teammates — Lehigh teammates visited Marie in London.

"The distance has definitely been the most difficult part of moving," she said. "Family is the most important thing in the world to me and I was lucky enough to go home and see them a lot last year. I was also able to travel so much around Europe since it's so small and accessible, which is a huge benefit of living here."

However, when the pandemic hit, it turned everything upside down.

"All of a sudden, I was in a country by myself, without my family, and I wasn't able to go home," said Mignogna. "I'm lucky that my job is still secure and I've been able to work remotely, but being away from everyone has been a huge challenge for me."

Mignogna hasn't returned to the U.S. since December, but she is grateful for a February work trip.

"It was very last minute," she said. "My family and I got to spend one day in New York City together, then everything surrounding the pandemic hit not long after. In hindsight, and not knowing when I'll be home again, I'm so happy we had that day together."

Marie actually thought she'd return home in early April when her father, who previously had kidney cancer, was diagnosed with COVID-19, paired with pneumonia.

"That was at the height of the pandemic," she said. "Everything you were seeing in the news was about COVID's severity. There was very little coverage on how many people were surviving, so when I heard about my dad being diagnosed, I was terrified and booked a flight home.

"I ended up not going home; my dad didn't let me. He knew he'd be okay and didn't want to worry about me traveling, but it was hard to grasp being so far away during such a scary time."

It took many weeks (like it has for so many people), but Marie's father recovered.

"That month was really long, especially being in a different time zone," said Marie. "I'd wake up and half my day was done before anyone in the U.S. woke up. I would be waiting to hear how he was feeling, trying to focus on work and keeping myself distracted. Being away from loved ones during such a difficult time has really been a struggle, mentally and emotionally."

Marie Mignogna and father — Marie and her father

Lehigh's Impact
While Mignogna has worked through challenges, she has continued to thrive professionally. And she credits a large part of her success to Lehigh.

"Being a student-athlete at Lehigh set such a strong foundation for my career and personal life," said the former All-Patriot League honoree and four-year starter.

Lehigh helped teach a number of skills, both on the field and in the classroom, which are transferrable to the working world.

"I still work in a team to this day," said Mignogna "Now that I'm six years into my career, I'm transitioning into a leadership role for my teams. I went through the Leadership Academy (now called Flight 45) and learned valuable lessons, which have helped me lead and manage people.

"Between our amazing education and the resources we're provided, in addition to time-management skills and work ethic required to be a Division I student-athlete, all Lehigh student-athletes athletes are well-prepared to go into the work force," she continued. "Because of that, it was actually pretty easy for me to transition into the professional world."

It helped that Marie loved, and continues to love, what she gets to do every day.

"I feel like my company is making a difference and I'm excited to be a part of it," said Mignogna. "Communications around helping bring a potential vaccine to market seems pretty minimal, but it's still an important part."

Making a difference for Mignogna has gone far beyond vaccine development.

"We've worked on a lot of patient-focused campaigns in all disease areas, helping patients and caregivers find the resources they need," she said. "We're working with advocacy groups to educate and connect communities, raise money for patients and help support general disease education efforts."

Mignogna's profession demands a number of characteristics which she developed as an athlete.

"I'm competitive, have a strong work ethic and love being part of a team," she said. "A difficult part about working from home the last few months has been being away from my work team.

"I miss that team dynamic and camaraderie in the office."

Keeping LUFH Connected
In the mean time, Mignogna has helped another team stay connected, even from afar – the Lehigh field hockey alumnae.

"The current program has always done a great job keeping alumnae updated, reaching out for insight and to just check in," she said. "I recently started supporting the LUFH Alumnae Leadership Council. We're meeting around once a month as a group to talk about recent updates and helping with outreach for an event like a speaker series where alums talk to the team about our careers."

Current head coach Caitlin Dallmeyer is extremely grateful to work alongside talented alumnae like Marie to continue advancing the Lehigh field hockey program forward.

"When I took the job at Lehigh several years ago, Marie had reached out as a committed alum and has been so selfless in what she has worked to give back to the program," said Dallmeyer. "She hosted our team in New York City several years ago and introduced our student-athletes to a variety of roles within her company. It was inspiring to see her utilize her Lehigh experience in a team-driven setting. It was evident in watching her interact with her peers and speak with our team that she is a well-respected leader in her field.
Marie Mignogna

"Now, Marie is on our Leadership Alumnae Council, helping our staff further enhance the experience for our student-athletes and further develop a strong alumnae base."

Although Mignogna's career has brought her across the Atlantic amidst a pandemic, she feels as connected with her family and friends as ever.

"Knowing I'm experiencing the same thing as everyone else has been a unique feeling," she said. "The pandemic has definitely been a bit isolating, but also unifying."

Mignogna is thankful to be part of so many special networks, including the W2O Group, the clients she works with and also… the Lehigh field hockey family.

"I have great appreciation for an alum like Marie, who can reflect on her experience at Lehigh and have a strong desire to ensure others can be just as fortunate," said Dallmeyer. "We hope for all our student-athletes that they will stay passionately connected to Lehigh and the field hockey program after graduation."

It's safe to say Marie Mignogna continues to bleed Brown and White to this day.

"I still just hold such close relationships with my former Lehigh teammates and feel so closely connected to the current team and staff," she said. "I'm so grateful for my experiences and how they've shaped me.

"It's a really special network to be a part of."

Better Me Better We

Lehigh University Athletics

Upcoming Event: Field Hockey versus LIU on September 28, 2025 at 12:00 PM

Upcoming Event: Field Hockey versus Boston University on October 4, 2025 at 11:00 AM

Upcoming Event: Field Hockey at Colgate University on October 11, 2025 at 11:00 AM

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Upcoming Event: Field Hockey versus Virginia Commonwealth University on October 19, 2025 at 1:00 PM

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Completed Event: Field Hockey at Saint Joseph's University on September 26, 2025 , Loss , 1, to, 6

Completed Event: Field Hockey at Sacred Heart University on September 21, 2025 , Loss , 1, to, 3

Completed Event: Field Hockey versus Lafayette College on September 19, 2025 , Loss , 0, to, 3

Completed Event: Field Hockey versus Temple University on September 14, 2025 , Loss , 1, to, 4

Completed Event: Field Hockey versus Monmouth University on September 12, 2025 , Loss , 3, to, 4

Completed Event: Field Hockey at Fairfield University on September 7, 2025 , Loss , 0, to, 5

Completed Event: Field Hockey versus Wagner College on September 5, 2025 , Loss , 0, to, 2

Players Mentioned

Marie Mignogna

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