Mikelle Ackerley '15 Recruiting Profile

I am excited to re-invent myself as a student and as an athlete in college. My goals are to make the Deans List and to compete at an NCAA championship. I have learned a lot about balancing my athletics with academics in my past three years of high school, and to be honest it has been one of the most challenging things I have faced in my whole life. For a long time I put my athletics before school, but I have realized that to carry on my athletic career, I have to thrive in school, which as always is easier said than done, but I am up for the challenge.

On the outside my academic transcript is less than exceptional, but underneath I have learned a lot about myself as a student, and have become more determined. I have good relationships with my teachers and they have been more than helpful to me in trying to keep up in classes as well as understanding of my athletic pursuits and have inspired me to be a better student athlete. I want to renew myself as a student, because I know that I love learning, and I am a hard worker and I have big goals for myself...I want to do better.

I love being part of a team, although I have been involved in very individual sports such as track and field and swimming, I love working alongside my teammates pushing each other to be tougher and better athletes. I have high expectations for myself, I try to push myself further than anyone else, and I try to be a good teammate and always stay positive. I am not going to lie, I get disappointed if I don't do well, as do most people, but I try to stay light hearted and think about the bright side of any situation because it is helpful for me and it is good for my teammates. I am always excited to compete, I love the challenge and I love the experience, and I am ready to push myself on the next level. I think I am at a very good point in my life because although I have struggled a bit in the classroom, I am very motivated to do the best that I can do and I know that I can do better, which is a very important thing.