Stang Stories
Stang Stories
Teddy Ellis
Mike Connolly
30 minutes Posted Oct 27, 2025 at 8:48 pm.
Welcome to Sting Stories
Memories of Milton
Senior Projects and Their Impact
Transitioning to College
Career Path and Engineering
The Birth of PayForward Coaching
Coaching Challenges and Success
Getting Involved with PayForward
Legacy of PayForward Coaching
Advice for Current Milton Students
0:00
30:50
Download MP3
Show notes
On this episode of the Stang Stories podcast, Molly O'Brien '26 interviews Mike Connolly '96, about his journey from South Boston to Milton Academy—earning a full scholarship, repeating seventh grade, bonding over sports and homeroom, and finding inspiration in an astronomy class and senior projects in photography and essays.
Mike recounts his college years at Tufts, a shift from engineering into sales, the mentors who guided him, and how a personal loss led him to found Pay Forward Coaching in 2022, a nonprofit offering thousands of free career coaching sessions.
He closes with practical advice for current Milton students: do more extracurriculars and keep relationships alive.