Idaho assistant soccer coach Laura Jackson was originally planning to go into the medical field. Her undergraduate degree is in biology and she has her master’s in neuroscience.
“I was into medicine so I was like, OK, let me do biology, let me do neuroscience,” she said. “And then I came out here and after two years I was like nope. I’m going to be a coach. There was no question after that.”
Now, she’s working on her doctorate in sports psychology and as an assistant coach for the Idaho women’s soccer team.
“I love the game,” she said. “I just didn’t know there was a career in it until I came to the States.”
Jackson was accepted into the 30 Under 30 program through the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA).
The NSCAA program recognizes 30 young coaches, 15 male and 15 female, from the club, junior college and collegiate levels.
The program is a year-long mentorship and educational opportunity for those who have made coaching soccer their career. It aims to support new coaches and foster growth in the early stages.
Jackson will be attending the NSCAA conference January in Los Angeles.
“I’ve already got a mentor,” she said. “I get to talk to (my mentor) weekly, there’s some webinars you do online.”
Jackson will also be writing a few online coaching sessions.
“It’s basically just getting you and your profile out,” she said. “It’s a great opportunity for me to get more resources from outside our program and hopefully have that help us here.”
Jackson has been playing soccer since she was three years old.
“From when I went to school for the first day, I played every day of my life,” she said. “I would go to the park and play every single day. I don’t remember a life without it.”
The 2016 season will be Jackson’s fourth with the Vandals. Jackson helped lead Idaho to their best season in program history in 2015, winning the Big Sky Regular Season Championship. The team set school records for goals, assists, points and shutouts. Eight Vandals earned All-Big Sky accolades and five were placed on an All-Big Sky first team.
Jackson grew up in London, a city in a country where soccer is king.
“Everybody loves soccer,” she said. “It was a bit different coming over here where way more women and kids play it in America.”
Jackson said that soccer is stereotypically a man’s sports in England.
“You get treated a little bit as a tomboy,” she said. “I didn’t meet another girl that played soccer until I was like 12. Once that happened I joined a team.”
Jackson began her collegiate soccer career at Syracuse, where she started 18 of the 19 games as a freshman. She later transferred to Iona College. Jackson was voted team captain as a senior and earned two All-MAAC selections. After graduating with her bachelor’s degree in biology, Jackson came to Moscow.
She holds an NSCAA Premier Diploma, a USSF D coaching license and the FA GK Level 1 diploma. During her first year at Idaho, Jackson worked with goalkeepers, before transitioning to field players her second year on.
Head coach Derek Pittman said it’s been fantastic to have Jackson on his staff.
“She’s grown each and every year,” he said. “We’ve been very thankful to have her. She’s been exactly what I needed.”