Student: Sarah Maisto

From growing the Pirate Sales Club to shaping future leaders through the Toolbox Leadership Academy, Sarah Maisto has established herself as a standout student at East Carolina University.

Throughout her time at ECU, Maisto has embraced numerous opportunities to develop her skills while uplifting others. Her passion for leadership and community shines through in all her endeavors, whether leading student organizations, mentoring high schoolers or representing ECU as a Brinkley-Lane Scholar.

Although Maisto grew up in Apex, less than two hours from ECU, she wasn’t initially drawn to becoming a Pirate.

“I wasn’t sure about even applying at first, to be honest with you. But the more I got involved with just coming on campus and taking tours, and then the more I learned about the Honors College program, that was kind of the turning point for me,” Maisto said.

Selected as one of 20 Brinkley-Lane Scholars for the 2025 cohort, Maisto received a merit-based scholarship that fully funds her education, including tuition, fees, room and board, and a $5,000 study abroad stipend. Her involvement with the Honors College expanded beyond being a scholarship recipient.

“I have the privilege of working with our director of programming, Dr. Diane Majewski. She’s in charge of putting on every Honors College event. The bulk of my job is helping with event planning, but I also lend a hand to anyone in the Honors College building,” she explained.

Sarah Maisto spent five weeks at ECU’s Tuscany campus. (Contributed photo)

Maisto frequently assists Margaret Turner, director of admissions for the Honors College, during prospective student events. Turner regularly introduces prospective students to Maisto as her go-to marketing student.

“Meeting prospective students is one of my favorite things to do because I know how important it is for prospective students to hear from current students,” Maisto said.

Beyond the Honors College, Maisto has participated in numerous campus organizations. She credits upperclassmen for inspiring her extensive involvement.

“The Honors College is why I came to ECU, but it’s why I’m also so involved in this campus. I think that older students encouraged me to do the things that I wanted to do while I was here or ended up doing while I was here, whether it was joining a sorority, running for student body president or taking on the position with Dr. Majewski,” Maisto said.

As co-president of the Pirates Sales Club, Maisto has helped prepare future sales professionals through experience and continuous growth. Under her leadership, the club has exceeded its goals for growth, engagement and competition opportunities.

“We recruited from day one. We started at Get a Clue and were able to recruit about 80 students on just that first day by talking to them and getting them engaged,” she proudly shared.

The club now boasts 230 members with a 12% increase in attendance. This semester alone, club members will participate in four competitions, including one at ECU.

“We hosted N.C. State, Campbell, UNCG, The Citadel and UNCW. It was super exciting to have them here at ECU! And then last but not least, we have the Hendrick Sales Competition. There are over $10,000 in cash prizes,” she said.

Maisto’s leadership extends to the Toolbox Leadership Academy, which empowers underrepresented high school students in eastern North Carolina to develop leadership skills and explore business opportunities.

“It was actually a requirement for one of my sophomore year classes to do a community service-based research project, and the Toolbox Leadership Academy was one of the offerings. As soon as I learned about their initiatives of inspiring leadership among younger generations and informing them that leadership doesn’t have to be about a title, I was all in,” she explained.

Working alongside faculty members Dr. Christine Kowalczyk, Dr. Linda Quick and Dr. Shirley Mai, they created the pilot program and are now mentoring their fourth cohort.

“We work with the Innovative Early College High School. They’re very intelligent but very shy. At the beginning, only maybe two students spoke during the first session. But by the end, they have to present a vision board to the dean of the Honors College, the dean of the College of Business, strong leaders on campus and community leaders. Watching them go from being very quiet to confidently presenting to leaders is a huge transformation,” Maisto said.

Her ECU experience has extended beyond campus to include studying abroad in Italy the summer after her sophomore year.

“I always wanted to go to Italy because I’m part Italian, so I wanted to get that off my bucket list, and I never thought I was going to be able to do it during my college experience. It was a great experience,” she said.

Cinque Terre became the highlight of her international experience.

“Cinque Terre translates to five towns, so it’s kind of five places all in one, but my favorite place was Monterroso, which is a beach town in Cinque Terre. It was gorgeous. I could live there. It was incredible,” she recalled.

With graduation approaching in May, Maisto has already secured her post-college plans.

“I had the privilege of interning with a company called TEKsystems. At the end of my internship program, they gave me a job offer, so I’m going to be a sales development representative for them, so I’m very excited,” Maisto said.

Her advice for current and future students reflects both wisdom and encouragement: “Everyone tells you this, but your time at ECU will fly by. So, take time to breathe. Obviously, you need to reflect on what you need as a person, but also push yourself outside of your comfort zone.”