Lander MBA student refused to let challenges define his future

Lander University graduate student Trevor Batastini has an impressive resume of academic and athletic achievements.

Before arriving in Greenwood to seek his MBA at Lander, Batastini was an undergraduate student at St. John’s University in Queens, New York, where he earned the Elizabeth Lapchick Award for academic excellence. He was named three times to the Big East All-Academic Team while participating in service projects on campus and serving on St. John’s student athlete advisory committee.

When an injury sidelined Batastini during his fourth year on St. John’s lacrosse team, he entered the NCAA Lacrosse Transfer Portal — just as he was preparing to graduate with a bachelor’s degree in marketing.

“I knew that I also wanted to pursue a master’s degree in business,” he said, “and I looked for a university that would offer me the chance to play lacrosse and earn my graduate degree.”

Recruited by colleges and universities throughout the United States, Batastini talked to Anthony LePore, Lander’s head coach for lacrosse. “I didn’t have a long time to decide. But I knew exactly what I wanted to do and what I needed to succeed.”

After talking to LePore about Lander’s online MBA program in the College of Graduate and Online Studies and visiting Lander’s campus, Batastini said he was impressed by the “nice, close-knit community … I saw amazing athletic facilities and found opportunities to succeed academically.”

He talked to Dr. Lloyd Willis, dean of Lander’s College of Graduate and Online Studies, and was awarded a graduate assistantship for the 2024-25 academic year.

What Batastini’s resume doesn’t include is the story of a student whose early elementary school years were affected by dyslexia, a learning disorder that affects reading and language skills.

“I struggled a lot, and I was behind the other students in reading and writing,” said Batastini, whose family was living in Chicago. “The challenges were very difficult for me, so much so that my third-grade teacher told my mother that I probably wouldn’t be able to go to college or pursue opportunities that my family might want for me.”

Fortunately, his mother, Kathleen Benner, refused to accept the teacher’s assessment of her son. She was determined to find a way for him to meet the potential she knew he had and to give him the skills he needed to succeed.

Benner enrolled him at Hyde Park Day School in Chicago, a school known for its innovative programs to help students with learning disorders. It was exactly the environment Batastini needed to thrive. Then, the family moved to Dallas. By then, Batastini was making great strides in the classroom, and his family looked for other opportunities to enhance his future. They thought athletics to be a good fit.

“Playing lacrosse helped recharge me. It became an outlet beyond the classroom,” Batastini said.

As he became a successful high school lacrosse player, coaches began recruiting him to play at the college level. He found St. John’s offered academic accommodations that could assist him with any challenges he might have and give him the chance to play the sport he loved. “By playing on a team, I had a group of supportive friends,” he said. “This was important.”

At Lander, the opportunity to earn his degree through online studies affords him the time to work as a graduate assistant and be a member of Lander’s lacrosse team. “I can plan each day and week, attend school on my own time and not feel overwhelmed,” he said. “To play lacrosse, time management is everything, and Lander’s MBA program allows me to do this.”

Willis said Lander created the graduate assistant program three years ago because the University wanted to attract high-quality students and provide them with work experience that would prepare them for their chosen careers.

“Trevor Batastini is exactly the type of student we were looking for,” Willis said. “He comes to us with an outstanding academic background at St. John’s, and even in just the first several weeks on the job as a graduate assistant he has already helped our college think of its marketing, outreach and recruitment operations in new ways. His perspective is invaluable, and we look forward to seeing his further contributions throughout his time here.”

Batastini’s goal is to have a career in medical or technology software sales after graduating next year. “And I would love to be an assistant coach for a high school lacrosse team and continue to share a sport that I love so much.”