My College Days

One of the mainstays of the Westminster College (MO) sports community is Terry Logue, the Sports Information Director. He sent me an email a couple of weeks ago, asking if it would be okay for him to do a profile on me for their website, as they are highlighting Westminster grads who are currently working in athletics.

I'll pull this one out someday when I'm trying to convince my kids that I actually WAS a decent basketball player (and student!) back in the day...

Who is a Westminster College Student-Athlete...

1/30/2012
Athletic News - Basketball (W)

Fulton, Mo. - Who is a Westminster College student-athlete? Amy Herman, the Associate Athletics Director for Compliance at the University of North Carolina (UNC), is a former Westminster Blue Jay student-athlete.

Herman, who grew up in Owensville, Missouri, and was known as Amy Schaeperkoetter during her collegiate days and prior to her marriage, graduated from Westminster with degrees in physical education and secondary education. She was a Dean’s List student, a four-time academic all-conference honor winner, a CoSida Academic All-District pick and a four time all-conference basketball selection. Amy left Westminster with the career scoring record of 1,282 points, which still stands, and she is in the top ten in both rebounding and assists.

During her senior year at Westminster, Amy earned an NCAA Women’s Enhancement Program Post-Graduate Scholarship and it led her to UNC, where she earned her graduate degree in Sports Administration. As a result of her success in her graduate program, she has remained on the Tar Heel staff and has risen in the ranks to her current position overseeing the overall development and administration of the UNC compliance program.

Herman credits her involvement in sports and her upbringing with helping pave the way for her educational and career success. “Sports have played a role in basically every aspect of my life for as long as I can remember…I knew quite early that I wasn't going to be the quickest, tallest, or strongest player on the court. But, I truly believed that I could be the smartest, and I made it my goal to learn as much as I could…As a point guard in basketball, I tried to be the coach on the floor,” said Herman. “This attitude carried over quite easily to the classroom. Though a lot of my perfectionist tendencies are genetic (thanks, Mom and Dad!), I do think that participating in sports throughout my youth played a large part in enhancing my desire to perform well in the classroom.”

While she credits her sports participation with providing a structure for academic success, Herman says her parents influenced her career direction. “Growing up with a math teacher for a mom and a lawyer for a dad, it's not surprising that I've always enjoyed working with numbers and have been intrigued by the legal system. When I graduated from Westminster, I tossed around the idea of going to law school,” she said. “However, I ultimately decided that I wanted to take a shot at athletic administration, which led me to UNC. The second year of the program consists of an internship in the athletics department and from the time of my arrival on-campus to the start of the program, I knew that compliance would be right up my alley. It was an opportunity to be involved with the legal system of college athletics, as well as to put my love of numbers to use in the area of athletics financial aid. And I guess it didn’t hurt that it's in a field in which I can put to good use my general nature of being an almost-to-a-fault rule-follower."

It is not surprising that Herman, who learned early in life to follow the rules, is now entrusted with enforcing the rules.

Photo Cutline: The Herman Family (L-R) - Ivie, Amy with Bryce, Macie, and Dale.