"Does anyone want anything from Starbucks?"
It's a chilly December afternoon at the Women's Professional Lacrosse League's inaugural Pro Day in New York City. But the energy in the building is warm, inviting and, most of all, empowering for an event with the sole purpose of helping to prepare the organization's players for life after their athletic careers end.
Michele DeJuliis, 42, the WPLL's founder and chief executive officer, is peeking through a barely cracked door, awaiting replies to her coffee question. The group politely declined her offer, but Caitlin Jackson, the WPLL's chief operating officer, said what everyone in the room was thinking: "That's probably the first time a CEO of a professional sports league offered to make a coffee run."
It's this sort of unconventional people-centric leadership style and business philosophy that DeJuliis is confident will set the WPLL apart from almost any other professional sports league, including the WPLL's rival, the 2-year-old semi-pro United Women's Lacrosse League (UWLX).
After a brief run as the UWLX's commissioner, DeJuliis -- or DJ, as she's commonly called -- reimagined the sport that captured her heart nearly 30 years ago as a Maryland teen.
DeJuliis has built a Hall of Fame résumé that includes a 15-year career with the United States women's national lacrosse team and a 2009 World Cup gold medal, making her well-versed on what needs to be improved within the sport.
DeJuliis, who previously served five years as a Baltimore police officer, has long been committed to growing women's lacrosse as a professional sport and enhancing the lives of those who play it. Her experience as a four-time All-American at Penn State, coach and club founder inspired her to act on behalf of female lacrosse athletes who often search for ways to rebuild their lives when their playing days are over.
Rachael DeCecco (nee Becker), a 2005 World Cup silver medalist for Team USA, joined the WPLL as its foundation director after a 12-year career in geriatric health care. She said it's the "community over competition" ideal that will help the league excel.
"The WPLL's goal is to teach [players] that it's not about getting your piece of the pie," DeCecco said. "It's about helping everybody get their piece of the pie."
In less than six months, DeJuliis' vision of founding a professional women's lacrosse league manifested as a five-team, 125-woman league that features many Team USA players, including Alex Aust and Taylor Cummings. The WPLL will compete over a six-week span and is set to debut in June 2018.
Fans eagerly anticipate the official start of the season, which will include several innovative rule changes to make the game more fan-friendly -- for example, there will be more man-up/man-down situations, more substitutions to increase scoring opportunities, a two-point shot and a smaller field. WPLL pros and future pros, meanwhile, have already started benefiting from the league's unprecedented leadership development programs.
Mentorship is at the heart of the league's mission, which boasts a two-part operation. It is both a professional lacrosse league and a development program for the rising talent in the sport. Concurrently, the league and the WPLL Foundation prioritize "character development as a means to excelling in life on and off the field."
But why is a league owner so focused on life after sports? For DeJuliis, the answer is simple: "It's something I would've wanted."