This week, johnjayathletics.com caught up with former student-athlete Jamecia Forsythe ('14). Forsythe was a four-year veteran of the women's basketball team. Considered one of the best Bloodhounds to step on the floor, the forward finished her illustrious career with 1,310 points, 1,239 rebounds, 214 blocks, and 138 steals. The Brooklyn native is currently the program's all-time leader in rebounds and is second in scoring and blocks. In her sophomore season, she was selected a CUNYAC second team all-star. The next season, Forsythe was tabbed a CUNYAC first team all-star, ECAC first team all-star, MBWA All-Met second team all-star, and d3hoops.com Atlantic Region third team all-star. In her final campaign, she became the first Bloodhound and fourth player in CUNYAC history since 2002 to notch 1,000 points and 1,000 rebounds. After the season, she earned first team all-star honors. In addition, Forsythe represented John Jay during Division III week. 


1) Where has life taken you since you graduated from John Jay College of Criminal Justice?
After graduating from John Jay, I was at a crossroads of what I wanted to do in life (which is normal for many people who graduate - so graduating seniors, please do not feel like you are running out of time); however, after having a talk with Ms. Carol Kashow, I was able to find a path that works for me. I am now in the education field and am really happy with that.

2) What personal or professional accomplishment(s) are you most proud of since you graduated?
Since I graduated from John Jay, I went to pursue a career in education. Last year, I graduated with my Master's in Education from St. John's University (with a 4.0 GPA). I am currently a math teacher in a school in Brooklyn, NY. 

3) What are you most proud of from your time as a Bloodhound?
I am most proud of the experiences and people that I met at John Jay, because those experiences have truly shaped me to the person that I am today. I am also proud of being a record holder of being the first student-athlete ever to achieve the milestones of recording 1,000 points and 1,000 rebounds, and for being John Jay's all-time leader in rebounds.

4) What advice would you give your college self/current Bloodhounds?
Well, one piece of advice that I would give to my college self and current Bloodhounds is to enjoy these four years, because you will NEVER get them back. Be sure to work hard so that you will never watch film of yourself wishing you could have worked just a bit harder. These four years will be the time of your life, so work hard in practice, push your teammates to be better (whether you get the most playing time or the least), encourage each other, and leave it all out there on the court/field. I sometimes find myself watching old videos of games and wishing that I should have "ran the middle" more like my coaches and teammates would yell at me to do, because maybe the outcome of the game would have been different. Just remember to have fun, the grueling practices will not last forever, and by the time you blink, you'll be in a cap and gown. Please enjoy your time, and if not for you, then do it for ME lol, because I would do anything to play college basketball again!

5) What did you learn in your time at John Jay that has stayed with you in your post-collegiate life?
One thing that I learned that has stayed with me is something that my coach told me that used to get me through rough times until this day which is, "control what is in your control." What that means is, there may be times where you may feel overwhelmed with school or sports, but what you need to know is that you can only do what you have the power to do. If you are upset and feeling overwhelmed with school work, try to plan and organize, because the workload will not change, but how you handle the work can. In addition, the same applies to sports. You may not like something that is happening with your teammates, but you aren't the coach; therefore, you must talk to the coach before trying to burden yourself with things that you cannot do anything about. They are the coach for a reason. I take that advice with me to help me through my professional life and it truly works.

6) Are you still involved with sports? If so, how?
After I graduated, I was an assistant coach with the John Jay women's basketball team. Now, I am currently on the verge of becoming the head coach of the Girls Varsity Basketball team at my high school. 

I would also like to send a big thank you to the staff at John Jay for being supportive in my journey throughout my four years, and I will forever be a Bloodhound! #11


2018-19 Women's Basketball Update: The Bloodhounds finished with their best season in the last six years and returned to the CUNYAC postseason. The team rattled off 12 wins, including finishing 8-8 in conference play. Freshman Katie Healy was selected as the CUNYAC Rookie of the Year after recording 17.7 points per game, 10.8 rebounds per game, 60 steals, 41 assists, and 14 blocks. Head Coach Lynda Day returns her core as well as added new faces heading into the 2019-20 season. 

To view all of the previous Alumni Spotlights, please visit www.johnjayathletics.com/alumnispotlight. 

 

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