Name: Jordan Houston
Year: Junior
House: Wilder
Major: American Studies
Hometown: Logan, Utah
How many years have you been playing soccer? Do you play any other sports? I’ve been playing soccer for 16 years now! I used to ski competitively on a team back home in Utah but had to give it up halfway through high school because it conflicted with soccer.
If you had to choose a different extracurricular what would it be? If I had more time, I would definitely participate/be more active in our Smith TV organization. Broadcast journalism is my passion, and because we don’t offer any communications or journalism courses here at Smith, I think it’s awesome that we have an independent student newspaper and an up and coming broadcasting program!
Why did you pick Smith? I was originally contacted by our previous soccer coach and came to visit over fall break during my senior year in high school. The coach was so welcoming and friendly, and even though the campus was empty, it looked so beautiful with the pond and the autumn leaves! I immediately fell in love with the campus. I was also a huge fan of the housing system!
What’s your favorite thing about playing a varsity sport at Smith? Definitely the sense of community that I have with my team. Because we spend so much time together, we really are like a family! I know that I’ve made friendships that will last a lifetime.
How do you think playing a sport at a women’s college differs from playing at a co-ed school? Well, I know that at most co-ed schools men’s sports usually take the spotlight and priority of the administration and student body. At an all-women’s college, it’s nice to not have to compete with men’s teams in addition to other fall sports teams, especially in terms of sharing our field.
How has the season been going so far? What’s the next step for the soccer team? Our conference season is over now, but we finished 6th overall so we’re actually going to the playoffs! Woo! Our first playoff game is this week on Tuesday, Nov. 4th against Babson. This is the first time since 2007 that Smith Soccer has made the playoffs so we’re all very proud of ourselves. Wish us luck!
What’s your dream job after you graduate? Do you hope to keep playing soccer? I think I gave up on playing on the women’s national soccer team back in high school, but I hope to continue to play in pick up leagues whenever I can! My dream job would be some position (preferably along the lines of TV broadcasting) with either the Huffington Post, CNN, ABC or any of the other big name news networks. Yeaaa, I’m dreaming big over here.
What kinds of other activities are you involved in at Smith? I used to be the Opinions Editor for our school newspaper the Sophian, but I gave that up this year to work for my internship with the Huffington Post as our campus editor-at-large. For any college students who are interested in blogging for the College Vertical of the Huff Post, please feel free to contact me at my email Jmhouston@smith.edu for more details!
If you could give your first year self a bit of advice, what would it be? SLEEP. Regardless of the circumstances, sleep should always be a priority. All-nighters ARE NOT brag worthy by any means. There is no point staying up all night studying for an exam when your brain is too tired to retain the information. Sleep is crucial for success in college.