“My research is mainly focused on youth with diabetes with much greater risk of developing all sorts of complications in later life, including cardiovascular disease, kidney disease. My research is focused on how nutritional factors result in those complications of diabetes.”
What turned you on to public health, and specifically disease prevention?
“I had always been interested in health. My father is a physician and both my sisters are physicians, so I always thought I would go into a health-related career, but growing up really all I knew about health-related careers was being a physician or being a nurse or a physical therapist. When I got to Furman, I took the fundamentals of public health class, and I really got exposed to prevention rather than treating people with disease. Really trying to focus on ‘how can we prevent people from having the disease altogether?’ That’s what piqued an interest in public health for me.”
What is it like getting to teach at your alma mater?
“It is really special getting to teach at your alma mater. You have so many wonderful memories as an undergraduate student. Coming back to teach students and helping them…you have the same impact on some of the students that you teach in the same way I had professors who had an impact on me when I was there.”
What was the biggest lesson you learned as a student-athlete? How have you applied it to what you do now?
“I think the biggest lesson that you learn as a student-athlete, myself included, is time management and determination. As a student-athlete, you have to be on top of your classwork. You have practices, matches and travel. So you really have to be organized and figure out how you are going to not only play well on the court, but how you are going to do well in the classroom. It takes time and organizing your schedule so that you have all the time that you need to dedicate to tennis or studying. Then I think determination…realizing that to get where you want to be it takes hard work. You have to be persistent and know that hard work will pay off, both as a student-athlete and in your profession.”
Do you have a favorite memory from your time as a student-athlete at Furman?
“One of my favorite memories was when we won the Southern Conference my junior year. Then we got the NCAA bid and played LSU in the first round, and we won, which took us to the second round. I don’t think that’s been done before or after our time at Furman. So that was really special to advance in the NCAA tournament, even if it was one round. We’re a relatively small school, so that was pretty cool for us.”
What advice would you give current student-athletes, especially upperclassmen approaching post-grad life?
“I would tell them to really appreciate your remaining time, whether it’s this season or a couple of years. For most people, this is it for them in terms of competitive athletics. So I hope they appreciate the competition, the hard work and the camaraderie of the team. I think those are things that are really hard to replicate once you leave the athletic world. Obviously, some will go on to be coaches and that kind thing, but as an athlete you kind of miss that. The other thing I would suggest is to really think about how you can make sure you translate those lessons that you’re learning as a student-athlete into all parts of your life. If they can take those intangible characteristics that they’re learning from the athletic experience as they move into their careers, it will lead them to a lot of success.”
What do you enjoy doing in your free time? Do you still play tennis?
“I enjoy running, being active, being outdoors and spending time with friends and family. Before I had my [one-year-old], I occasionally played tennis. I have teammate who lives not even a quarter of a mile from me, so we used to try to play tennis a couple times a month. But between her having a baby and me having a baby, we haven’t been able to play as much over the last couple years.”
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