SAN FRANCISCO — It was while visiting AT&T Park two years ago with her Broadcasting Sports for TV classmates at Dominican that Katy Batchelder '13 discovered her calling.

Led by her class instructor, Barry Tompkins, a four-time Emmy Award-winning network television veteran, Katy toured the Editing Suite on the club level of the ballpark and walked into a new career.

"I knew then this is exactly what I wanted to do," Katy recalls. "This is crazy. This is my dream job. How do I get in there?"

With Tompkins' mentorship and assistance, Katy secured an internship with the Giants that blossomed into a 40-hour-a-week job as a production assistant for San Francisco Giants Productions. Rotating through several roles, Katy last year edited an in-game highlight video that aired on the centerfield scoreboard while she worked during the Giants' playoff and World Series home games. Last month, Katy assisted with artistic direction for a "Hunter Pence-On-The-Fence Doll" promotion currently being played at AT&T Park.

Katy's goal is to someday be a producer, though she enjoys every aspect of the jobs around her – editing, shooting, and media management. She is surrounded by talented individuals more than willing to show her the ropes, so to speak, to learn and advance in the industry.

"I've always wanted to work in sports. Seeing a job that was involved with sports and creativity was really appealing to me," Katy says. "Barry made all the difference. I wouldn't have even known this is something I could do without Barry showing us."

Born and raised in San Francisco, Tompkins began his broadcasting career at KPIX TV in 1968.  Since then he has spent five years at NBC,  10 years at HBO, eight years at ESPN, 15 years at Fox Sports and currently does the ShoBox and Championship Boxing series' for Showtime while continuing to do a full schedule of college football and basketball. He also appears as a host and guest on Comcast SportsNet Bay Area's Yahoo Sports talk show.

Tompkins has invited guest lecturers to campus including Comcast SportsNet Bay Area President Ted Griggs, veteran Comcast and Fox Sports TV director Mark Wolfson, KNBR's Kate Scott and Joan Ryan, award-winning sports columnist and author. In addition, Tompkins takes his class at Dominican to Comcast SportsNet Bay Area and AT&T Park for on-site visits.

The greater reward for teaching in Dominican's Department of Communications and Media Studies is having an impact on his students and their future.

"That's what keeps me coming back. I wouldn't do it if I never had a Katy," Tompkins says. "She's one of those kids who are the reason you teach. I knew from the get-go that she had the goods."

Katy came to Dominican to play volleyball. She played two years for the Penguins' NCAA Division II team. She was inducted into the National College Athlete Honor Society Chi Alpha Sigma and was named twice Pacific West Conference Academic All-Conference as a Communications major with an emphasis on cinema.

During her final year as an undergraduate, Katy produced, shot and edited a documentary on the Dominican women's volleyball team for her senior project.

"I always liked the small atmosphere of Dominican," Katy says. "Having professors who genuinely care about your success really helped me in that sense."

Her last year at Dominican happened to be Tompkins' first year. That led to the fateful trip to AT&T Park.

"The second he introduced me to everybody, I was in awe of how fun it would be to work there and from there on out. I made that my goal," Katy says.

"All I did was open the door for her," Tompkins says. "Really she sold herself."

Determined and motivated, Katy followed Tompkins' advice to contact key personnel in the Editing Suite. Katy met Matt McKee, Senior Producer/Creative Lead and Chris Gargano, Senior Director of SFG Productions and Entertainment, who told Tompkins in spring training he wanted to find a greater role for Katy this season with the three-time world champion Giants.

"Getting hired on has really been a step in the total right direction and there is a ton of room for growth here," Katy says. "I just want to make myself valuable to the team."