By Khadijah Torbert

"If I had to pick one even in high school and one volleyball game to go back to, it would be Southern Union out of my whole career," said Courtney.

Courtney Poole played Volleyball at Southern Union Community College from Fall 2016 through Spring of 2018. She says during her freshman year they won the conference tournament with the majority of the team being mostly freshman/ They progressed the following year and went third in the state tournament, which she says had been 10 years since Southern Union had ranked that high. She says the success was good, because the team connected well and held each other accountable.

"Not only in academics but our actions outside the gym. We have to hold each other accountable and going to class on time. We were just really respectful towards each other and not coming in as 'oh i'm better than you'. We all just had positive attitudes and outlooks and we knew negatively was not going to help us grow at a consistent rate to make us successful. I go back to the phrase, 'teamwork makes the dreamwork'.

She says her decision to attend and play for Southern Union came down to a feeling, it simply felt like home.

"I grew up in a small town called Ohatchee, Al, And I've always loved the small town community," said Courtney. "So when I visited SU it was just big enough for me to transition from a small town and the people were so welcoming and all the professors too were very helpful and supportive of athletics."

One professor in particular is dear to her heart, and actually was the main reason why she ended up becoming a 6th grade history teacher.

"Mrs. Patterson, she was an older lady-- she sparked my love for U.S. History. I took U.S. History I and II and that's actually what I'm teaching right now is the first part of U.S. History which I think is just God given because I loved it so much I didn't want to leave her class but she really had an impact on me."

Courtney is taking on an important role of educating young minds and engaging them in American History on top of being selected to coach volleyball. She says her time at SU being a student-athlete helped prepare her for her career post college.

"It's pretty hectic, but being a college athlete you're always on the go, you're always doing something or be on time and being really responsible. So it's been all easy transitioning and being a teacher and a coach. It goes back to time management and responsibility, it goes hand in hand."

She also spoke on the irony of being coached, versus now being the coach.

"It's amazing how the coaches at  SU were such a role model for me, like how they coached," said Courtney. "Now the things I say and do now I'm like I am them, I am turning into them. But it's because I respected them so much."

Her advice to all students and student athletes is to get out of your comfort zone and to try new things to have new experiences, because you never know what it might lead too.

One new experience is being a cat mom of eight!

"Some might call me a crazy cat lady but it was pitiful during the pandemic, people were giving up their animals left to right because they were thinking they could contact COVID-19," said Courtney. "But we adopted eight cats. My mom and I are both history freaks so we named them all after Egyptian Pharaohs."

 Each time she mentioned Coach Jackson and Coach Smith or spoke on the good ol' glory days of playing at Southern Union was pure joy.

 "I always thought, coaching wise I want to be like you one day, I want to do this, and I did," said Courtney. "You set anything you put your mind to. And that's what I tell these kids some of them are like oh I can't do that or want to be that and I promise you if you put your mind to it you'll be able to do it. And they're like wow you went to college, I was like, yes you can too."