Getting To Know Jasmine Jones
Freshman Jasmine Jones is a hurdler, sprinter and jumper from Duluth, Ga. who is in her first season on the USC track and field team. She was a 12-time individual Georgia state champion with bests of 13.19 in the 100m hurdles, 60.6 in the 400m hurdles and 20-2.00 in the long jump. We had a chance to catch up with her last week.
Q - How are you doing? How are you adjusting to Los Angeles?
J.J. - I'm doing pretty well. We started practicing this (last) week, so that's exciting. We haven't really gotten the chance to explore [L.A.] that much, but my grandparents live here so we had visited a couple times a year before. I like it here. There's less seasons here than in Atlanta, where it's getting colder and raining a little bit. It's still pretty sunny and beautiful here.
Q - So, why did you choose USC?
J.J. - I chose USC because on my visit talking to the coaches and the team, it already felt like home and family and somewhere I could be comfortable, and somewhere where I could become my best athletically and academically.
Q - How have your classes been? Do you feel like you have adjusted to online learning?
J.J. - Online learning had been a challenge in the beginning, just getting used to the new format, but I think that it makes it a much more direct way to learn. The professors have been really accommodating and nice, and my courses are interesting, so that keeps me engaged.
Q - Which is your most interesting course?
J.J. - I guess the most interesting but also the most challenging is this art history class that I'm taking. I've never had an art history class [before]. I think the content is interesting, it's about Mesopotamia through Rome, and the culture and art behind them.
Q - You're a Biological Sciences major. What interests you about that field?
J.J. - I just think that learning about the environment and the way that our bodies and the world work on such a small level is really interesting, especially to see how it builds and how things that are out of our control are always working for us.
Q - Are you considering a long-term career in science?
J.J. - Right now it's just an interest, but I am considering the medical field, or maybe the ecology field. Something like that.
Q - In what ways have you been staying involved through remote learning? Could you tell me about ATL Zoom?
J.J. - ATL Zoom was my track team through middle school and high school, and it was run by my friend's dad and my dad, who are two coaches, and it was a community for kids to run track during the summer and for service during the school year.
Q - What are you most looking forward to this year?
J.J. - I'm most looking forward to the training and seeing how much better I can get from high school, and also meeting new people and having new experiences and different styles of class…So a lot!
Q - Do you have any particular goals for this upcoming season?
J.J. - I really want to try to make it to the Olympic trials, and also place in the finals for NCs or even for Conference in the 100m hurdles. Another goal I have is to break 13 in my time for 100m hurdles, and run a 12.9 or 12.8, hopefully.
Q - Lastly, what are you doing to stay sane in times like these?
J.J. - I've started watching random Broadway shows on Youtube. I watched Once On This Island, I tried to watch Wicked, but it's kind of hard to find. And then I go down these rabbit holes of watching all these interviews with the actors, and learning all about them and how they got to that point. So it's like a whole little case study every week [laughs].