Age: 20
Year: Junior
Hometown: Portland, Oregon
Major: Journalism, Business minor
HCO: How did you get involved with the Emerald Media Group and what do you do?
I applied for the Daily Emerald Fall term of my sophomore year, and got hired at the end of that term. When I first started working at the Emerald I was the sports copy editor, but since moving to a more online-based newspaper, I am simply a copy editor. So, I edit all stories, including sports, news, editorials, special sections, and more. As a copy editor, I edit stories for grammar and punctuation, fact check, and write headlines and captions for photos. It has been a great opportunity working for the Emerald. It’s constantly a hands-on experience in the world of journalism. I hope to start writing sports stories for the Emerald soon, also.
HCO: When did you know that pursuing a career in the sports industry was right for you?
I grew up constantly around sports. I played organized basketball for 12 years amongst other sports including volleyball, track and field, gymnastics, and horseback riding. I also attended my brother’s and sister’s basketball games growing up, and my dad was my basketball coach first through eighth grade, so my passion for sports began at a very young age. When I got to high school, I joined the newspaper staff and realized how much I loved writing, especially about the thing I love, sports, and I’ve never considered any other career since.
HCO: The NBA All-Star Game just passed. What upcoming sporting event are you most excited about?
March Madness is easily my favorite sports event (if you would call it that). I love college hoops over any sports. There’s a lot more passion in college players that professional athletes lack, and I love seeing that play out in the final games of the tournament. And it’s also fun selecting brackets with my family and friends, I’ve won the last two years, so I’m excited to see my winning streak go 3-0!
HCO: Favorite sport or team?
Depends on what sport, I have lots. For the NBA, Dwight Howard is my favorite player, for college basketball I love my Ducks and the Kansas Jayhawks, for the NFL, I’m a New Orleans Saints fan, and for college football I love my Ducks once again and I’m a big LSU Tigers fan, too.
HCO: Is there a particular sport you’d like to be involved with?
For my career, I’d definitely love to cover any sort of basketball or football, as those are my favorite sports. I’m a coach at the Portland Trail Blazers Hoops Camp this spring break and summer break, so I’m hoping my connections with the Blazers may be able to point me in the right direction for getting involved with the NBA business.
HCO: What excites you most about this opportunity?
I feel very blessed to have this opportunity. I’ve been a basketball coach at other basketball camps before, but I guess you could say this one is a bigger league camp. I love working with kids and getting them involved with such a positive activity at a young age. I also hope to get more girls involved with basketball. My senior project in high school was a basketball camp for girls because I feel less and less girls are interested in basketball because they think it’s a “boys” sport. At every basketball camp I’ve coached at, I’ve been the only girl coach and very few girls attended the camps, so I hope to be an inspiration to kids. This is also an amazing opportunity for my future career. I am told having connections is a great tool when looking for a career after graduation, so I hope this can create great relationships that will lead me to other great opportunities.
HCO: Does the Erin Andrews of basketball sounds like an ideal job for you?
Sounds perfect. Although, I’m more interested in writing than broadcasting. I like telling peoples’ stories, particularly with sports, since growing up I looked up to athletes as role models, and I know many other kids do too.