Premier Sport Psychology is excited to welcome one of our Summer 2018 interns, Tara Stilwell! Read below to learn more about Tara.
Let’s start with a fun fact about yourself.
I’m Native Hawaiian (like Moana lol)
If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would you go?
I would travel to Greece. It has the perfect balance of history and the beaches to relax.
What is the best show you’ve watched on Netflix?
The Office is the best show on Netflix and also my favorite show.
What is your favorite song? Favorite artist?
Bad at Love by Halsey is my favorite song; Halsey being my favorite artist.
You are being sent to a deserted island you can bring one person and one item, who and what would you bring, and why?
I would bring my best friend because we would never get bored and I would bring something to play music on.
If you could have one superhero power, what would it be?
My superpower would be to read minds.
When you were in Kindergarten, what did you want to be when you grew up?
In Kindergarten, I wanted to be a teacher.
What is one thing that scares you?
Bugs and horror movies: I hate both of them equally because they creep me out.
Favorite sport to play? How about to watch?
My favorite sport to play is grass volleyball but my favorite sport to watch is hockey.
What is your experience with sports?
I’ve played soccer, basketball, and volleyball throughout middle school and into high school. But in high school I specialized in volleyball. I’ve played club volleyball for 6 years and won a national championship at the club level. At the high school level, I lettered all 4 years and was a 2x state champion in Colorado. At the college level I currently play for Ithaca College and have played in 2 different Elite Eight Championships, this last year making it to the Final Four. I also play beach and grass volleyball on the side.
What has drawn you to the sports psychology world?
At Ithaca, we have a great Sport Psychology team that works with all the athletes and that is what initially got me interested- especially because I love sports and am an applied psychology major. After taking an introductory sport psychology course I added sport psychology as a minor and have tried to incorporate it into my own play, with the hopes of doing more in the future with applied work.
What is your educational background and future aspirations?
I will be a senior at Ithaca College, doing a dual major program in Applied Psychology (business and psychology) with a minor in Sport and Exercise Psychology. My future aspirations are to get my masters and potentially look into doctoral programs.