朱莉 ·福尔克斯 ’00 understands the connection between academia and athletics, leveraging insights from both domains to drive innovation and excellence. With two decades of experience as a women’s basketball coach, the 2024 WBCA NCAA Division III Coach of the Year has continuously found a way to embody the dedication and passion needed to lead both in and outside of the classroom.
“[The award] is a reflection of how good our team is and has been for a long time. I appreciate that everybody recognizes the collective efforts that go into [the game], 但最终, the players deserve all the credit,福尔克斯说。. “We have a great administration and I can’t say enough good things about the people that I’m surrounded with at Transylvania. I like working with all types of people that are passionate about things.”
2024年3月, ·福尔克斯 completed her tenth season as the head coach of the Transylvania University women's basketball team. The team's journey in the NCAA Division III Tournament Final Four at 资本 concluded with the end of their winning streak against NYU. ·福尔克斯, who has always held a deep love for the game, has observed a noticeable rise in its popularity in recent years.
“There have been very different perceptions on how these things evolve, but the piece that we always knew was women’s sports were highly popular. A lot of people care and want to watch,福尔克斯说。. “There is a fan base and I’m excited to see where this keeps going.”
·福尔克斯 graduated from 资本 in 2000 with a major in biology and a minor in psychology. She later earned her Master of 艺术s in education from Defiance College and her doctorate from the University of the Cumberlands in leadership studies. ·福尔克斯 was a member of the 1997 资本 team that reached the Final Four after winning the Ohio Athletic Conference title.
“I think ultimately my brain is a very systematic brain that being a biology major played into well. Even on the basketball court, all we really do is just trial and error. Try something and if it works, great, and if not, try something different,福尔克斯说。. “My doctorate played into how we use our biological wiring to better understand leadership, to create trust factors more quickly within teams and group environments.”
·福尔克斯 has always been intrigued by the prospect of enhancing her leadership skills through evidence-based scientific principles rather than relying on assumptions.
“I think that was probably the crux of being a science major, the very idea of just furthering, understanding and learning how everything works. If I had to do it all over again, I’d probably be a neuroscience major. A considerate part of my doctorate was using neuroscience hacks for leadership,福尔克斯说。.
“I think we take that same approach to basketball. I believe our basketball program has a very high IQ. We really want our players to understand why we do what we do, 背后的原因, and be able to really think about and articulate why things work and how it applies to them.”
As ·福尔克斯 coached her final game of the 2023-2024 season at the 资本 Center, she was surrounded by memories of her time on campus and friends and family who came out to support her.
“The first chance I had, I took a break and wandered over to the science building. It was really fun to see the parts of campus that were the same and what is new,福尔克斯说。. “The piece that I really took to heart was just the idea of loving learning and that it’s fun. We can enjoy the process and yet, there’s always so much more to know.”
To learn more about science at 资本, visit http://www.资本.edu/academics/biological-and-environmental-science/.
To learn more about 资本 体育运动, visit http://athletics.Capital.edu/.