Dec. 26, 2010

Jordan Christian, Texas Media Relations

Stephanie Logterman, a former soccer standout at Texas, is transitioning from her athletic family on the Forty Acres to a new family at The University of Texas Medical School at Houston.

"I had a great time playing soccer. It was hard work but I had a blast, and my teammates were awesome and my coaches were great," Logterman said. "Just being with the UT Athletics family is special, and I appreciate all of the relationships that I was able to form."

Logterman said she gained lifelong friendships from playing soccer, as well as skills that have contributed to her success in the world outside of collegiate athletics.

"Being a student-athlete has made me very disciplined, and my time management skills are awesome," Logterman said. "All of those skills are transferable to life and the workplace."

Logterman has accomplished many goals, and her next one is to graduate from medical school.

"I am very grateful for Dr. Randa Ryan and my coaches who were so supportive of me and of my academic career. I feel like being an athlete sometimes the student side gets overlooked, but I was always supported at Texas," Logterman said.

With Logterman on her way to medical school, many Texas traditions will continue.

"There is a long tradition of Texas athletes going to UT medical school in Houston," Logterman said. "Our team doctor went there. We have Dr. Denton Cooley and all of his wonderful history there, and several other athletes will be around, so I am thankfully keeping the tradition going."

The dream of medical school is not anything new to Logterman. Medicine and helping others has been one of her passions since she was a child.

"I love science and I am a total science nerd. I love the human body and this idea of healing people," Logterman said.

Before leaping right into medical school, Logterman took some time to participate in the two-year Teach for America program. She was based in Houston as a science teacher and soccer coach.

"It is a very eye-opening experience, and it changes you and how you look at the world. The things you see, you won't really see anywhere else," Logterman said. "I encourage other people to do Teach for America." 

What is your favorite memory from being a student-athlete at Texas? My favorite memory was when we won two Big 12 Championships and how we always made great runs in the NCAA Tournaments. I can't pinpoint just one moment but the culmination of all of it was great. I had so much fun and have no regrets about any of it.

How did college help you with your decision to do Teach for America and go to medical school? College was very informative for me, and it opened my eyes to the world and what is all out there besides soccer and especially in terms of education and health. It exposes you to all the need and suffering in the world and I have a very service-oriented heart. I love playing soccer but you want to do something fulfilling. I can spend four hours a day on the soccer field or I can spend that time changing someone's life.

What would you like your focus to be in medical school? I want to be a surgeon and do policy research on the side and consult with policy makers. It is an interest I have to help consult so the medical and education policies are better.

Have you always been interested in health policy? I have always been very interested in health and education policy and that is why I wanted to do Teach for America, so I could see what it was like in the classroom so that I could learn and then do policy work later.

What postgraduate scholarships did you receive? I won an NCAA and Big 12 postgraduate scholarship.

How did you feel when you won those scholarships? I was very excited about it, and I am using that money to go towards medical school. I was flattered and honored to be one of the few that received one of those scholarships and it was awesome. When you win something like that it makes your dream so much of a reality.