Jennifer King says she’s thriving as an NFL coach by being herself everyday.
Jennifer King, the trailblazing coach who became the first Black woman to coach full-time in the NFL, reflected on her groundbreaking journey in sports during Cornell University’s “Breaking Barriers: The First Black Woman to Coach in the NFL” event on May 3.
“That’s something that the other women coaches in the league, and I take very seriously…just to be great [role] models and be the representation that we didn’t have, for the people coming behind us,” the former Guilford College athlete said.
The coach resigned from coaching basketball to chase her dream of working in football. “Don’t be afraid to make that leap into the unknown,” she advised attendees.
“I think we’re entering a new era in sport, where for a lot of these guys now in control, it’s not new for them to have women in these positions anymore,” she said. “We have a lot of work to do, but I haven’t experienced a lot of the [negative] things you probably think I would have because people are so much better, and we’re moving into a new generation.”
She has dedicated her platform to closing the gap in sports and building community programs for kids through her involvement with the NFL’s Women’s Forum, Women’s Sports Foundation, and her own King Group organization.
Source: Black Enterprise
