Mitchell College senior and women’s basketball point guard Le’Sandra Turner was recently selected to attend the NCAA DIII Student Immersion Program in Indianapolis, Ind., Jan. 19-22, 2022. The program takes place annually in conjunction with the NCAA Convention.

 Through the program, talented ethnic minority students with a strong interest in a career in Division III athletics, either in coaching or administration, receive full funding to attend the convention and participate in programming to gain an understanding of Division III, its members and its governance process. Student-athletes will also receive DiSC training related to workplace performance, including teamwork, communication and productivity.

 Matt Finlayson, Mitchell College director of athletics, said, “When I saw this opportunity come across my email from the NCAA, I knew one of our Mariners had to participate. I put out a call to coaches for nominations, and women’s basketball coach Courtney Burns recommended Le’Sandra Turner right away. Given Le’Sandra’s future career goals and her recent completion of a coaching internship here, this experience is the ideal next step for her.”

Burns said, “Le’Sandra immediately came to my mind as someone who would take advantage of this opportunity and learn all she can from it. We are very excited for her and look forward to hearing about her experience when she returns from the program.”

Reflecting on the opportunity, Turner, who is studying sports management, said, “Ever since I was a kid I knew I wanted to be a basketball coach, either men’s or women’s, and once my playing career is over, I’m certain I will jump into the coaching side of the game. However, I am very interested in exploring the sports administration side as well. Through the student immersion program, I’m looking forward to networking and meeting new people. I think it is so valuable to learn from other people’s stories and experiences with the profession.”