COLLEGE STATION, Texas — Texas A&M University's women’s head basketball coach, Joni Taylor, is bringing women together in the Brazos Valley with her mentorship program, Beyond Basketball.
“It’s always been something in my heart,” said Taylor. “As an assistant coach, I always wanted to just have a space where women came together, fellowship and just recharge our batteries. It was something I always had in my back pocket, and then when I became the head coach in 2015, we put some heads together and Beyond Basketball was born.”
From spearheading the program since 2015, Taylor is looking forward to starting the program in Bryan-College Station.
“Beyond Basketball is a space where we come and have people share ideas, give inspiration, provide educational opportunities, and just really pour back into us so we can go back in our communities and be the successful women that we are,” she said.
Angela Jones works alongside Taylor.
She recalls how Beyond Basketball made an impact while Taylor coached in Georgia.
“When I tell you, she has thought of this...seven years ago, but before then, she had been thinking about it, and when she brought it to fruition, she took off with it,” said Angela Jones, executive director of external operations, at Texas A&M. “The ladies in Athens community loved it and as soon as she announced she was coming to Texas A&M, she was like, ‘I have to bring Beyond Basketball.’”
Taylor says this is an opportunity for women to refill their cups.
“It’s just a place for women to come and have life spoken back into them,” said Taylor. “We’re so much for so many. We’re wives. We’re mothers. We’re professors. We’re CEOs. We’re stay-at-home moms. We’re sisters. We’re always giving, constantly giving. Who’s pouring back into us?”
With it being Taylor’s first season, Jones says this is a great way to get the women’s basketball team involved before the season starts.
“They’re going to get to see her in a different element,” said Jones. “I think that’s what I’m most excited about. She’s going to be our first guest speaker...hear her speak, hear her passions, I think that’s just going to make them even more excited to go out and play for her.”
Taylor says there’s a special section at the end of each meeting- community announcements.
“... I’m excited about the opportunities here...you get a chance as a member to stand up and share about something that’s going in the part of the community where you live that you’re passionate about, that you may want Beyond Basketball to have a call to action to participate in...invite...or to make people aware of what’s going on,” she said.
Registration details for Beyond Basketball can be found here.