Jodi Baeza '21 Recruiting Profile

Growing up in a low income community I knew that the decision would be upon myself to stay in a small town or make a greater impact on the world. My 8th grade year of middle school, a teacher (who also was the track coach for middle school) encouraged me to join. This was the start of my track career, a long, bittersweet, life changing experience. Upon joining my freshman year track and field no longer was simply a hobby but my motivation. I became a member of the early college program and have already nearly completed my associates degree in multidisciplinary studies as a junior in high school. Track set the foundation for success and taught me the importance of responsibility, handling pressure in a time sensitive situations and most importantly showed me how to work efficiently and bond with a team. I still look forward to continuing not only my education but also my track career. My family as well as my community have been the main supporters throughout my journey and I hope to continue to be able to give back to them. I am here to set an example that you can come from anywhere and any background and rise just as high or even higher than those more fortunate.