College is usually the time when students try and figure out what they want do with their lives. Senior Nathalie Borgella, however, seems to have had it figured out long before she came to Pace.

Aside from being a full-time student at Pace New York City, Borgella is also a member of the New York Islander’s Ice Girls team as well as a figure skating coach.

Borgella admits that can it be difficult balancing everything out, but that her schedule is a bit more flexible than one might think.

“It’s difficult, but, at least with teaching, it’s not a tough schedule and it’s usually a schedule I can control,” said Borgella who is majoring in human resources. “With the Islanders there are certain games that I have to be at, but most of the games are in December, January, and February.”

Being an Islanders Ice Girl, Borgella gets to participate in a variety of activities, mentioning that every game there is always something new. Whether it’s dancing with kids in the audience, participating in fun promotions, or performing new cheers, Borgella is always looking forward to next game.

There is one thing in particular she enjoys most though: the fans.

“I don’t know what it is, but there seems to be so much spirit with the Islanders fans,” Borgella said. “The fans get really into the games, and it makes it so much more fun. I’ve been to Rangers games as well and the fans there are great, but there’s just something about the Islanders fans. They seem to have more enthusiasm.”

Enthusiasm is something Borgella brings into her own life with her coaching. She started out in high school around the age of 16 when she was taking lessons. Quickly her instructor suggested she take a job as an assistant coach which would give her some “free ice time.”

Borgella jumped on the offer, knowing that coaching was something she hoped to do eventually. Once she hit the age of 18, Borgella was able to earn her certification, allowing her to become a coach.

“I love it and I’ve been able to build a good clientele,” Borgella said. “With teaching, you not only help other skaters, but also your own skating. Sometimes there are moves you just know how to do, but you don’t notice certain things about the move. When you’re watching others perform and you have to explain certain things to them based on what you see, you yourself start to learn more about the moves, which in turn helps improve your skating.”

Despite her success thus far, Borgella dreams of becoming a performer for Disney on Ice.

She already possesses some experience having worked for an entertainment company a couple of years ago. But, she mentions that what appeals to her most about the “Disney” life is the opportunity to meet with kids and make an impact in their lives.

“Performing is basically telling a story through skating,” Borgella said. “Before skating, I used to do ballet and dance, and dancing and skating pretty much go hand-in-hand, so it’s been with me my whole life basically.”

Despite having high aspirations, Borgella keeps herself grounded with her major in human resources. Understanding that figure skating does have a shelf-life, Borgella sought a career path that would be able to carry her in the years following her skating dreams.

Human Resources seemed to be a natural fit for the skater, as she describes herself as someone who has always loved working with people.

“I like the business world, but I don’t want to be behind a computer and a desktop all the time,” Borgella said. “With HR, I can train people, meet people, and interact with them on a daily basis. I also have the option of doing HR globally and travel. There are more opportunities in HR as opposed to accounting or finance.”

While Borgella has worked hard to build her life, her parents have always been supportive, even if they didn’t always understand.

With parents from outside the U.S., Borgella notes they were unfamiliar with the skating world and perhaps may still not understand everything about it. However, her parents have been there every step of the way, even though Borgella makes her own decisions.

“A lot of things I’ve done on my own, without permission or anyone’s consent,” Borgella said. “The Islanders Ice Girls, for instance, was something that I just went and auditioned for to see what would happen. I didn’t tell my parents until afterward. Once I got the job, I said to my mom ‘look what I did, I’m officially an ice girl.’ She was really happy for me; my parents have been so supportive.”

With big dreams and a supportive team behind her the sky seems to be the limit for this skater.