Jazmine Smith is the founder and CEO of Eyekonz, a non-profit organization which provides sporting opportunities for African American girls aged 5 to 15 in Philadelphia through participation in field hockey and lacrosse. Smith was nominated as a White House “Changemaker” for her work with Eyekonz. She would attend the United State of Women Summit from June 14 to 15, 2016 at the White House.
Raised in Radnor, Pennsylvania, Smith played both field hockey and lacrosse growing up. With regards to field hockey, Smith competed at both Radnor Middle School and Radnor High School. In high school, she played for Phyllis Kilgore., a nationally renowned field hockey coach. Afterwards, Smith gained an athletic scholarship for basketball and played club field hock for
Kutztown University
Kutztown University of Pennsylvania (Kutztown University or KU) is a public university in Kutztown, Pennsylvania. It is part of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE) and is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher ...
.
Having also worked as a coach, Her lacrosse and field hockey programs for African-American and Latino girls include clinics, the chance to participate on club teams, while working towards establishing teams on public and charter schools throughout Philadelphia. One of her players, Margret Stewart (who was once homeless) was awarded the “Strong Kid of the Game” Award by the NBA’s
Philadelphia 76ers
The Philadelphia 76ers, colloquially known as the Sixers, are an American professional basketball team based in the Philadelphia metropolitan area. The 76ers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eas ...
in November 2015.
Eyekonz
Smith’s efforts to establish these sporting programs exists is coordinated through an organization that she founded, known as Eyekonz. Among the organizations that Eyekonz has participated with includes U.S.A. Field Hockey Association, U.S. Lacrosse Association, and the United Women's Lacrosse League
UWLX
The United Women’s Lacrosse League (UWLX) was a women's lacrosse league in the United States. It was co-founded in Boston, Massachusetts, by Digit Murphy and Aronda Kirby of the Play It Forward Sports Foundation, under the ownership of Unite ...
, a professional women’s lacrosse league dedicated to having a positive impact in the female sporting community, highlighted by players working in the community and participating in lacrosse clinics for youth players.
Smith brought Philadelphia’s Strawberry Mansion High School girls’ lacrosse team to the inaugural UWLX weekend at Lehigh University, where the team also participated against other youth teams. Her field hockey work with Eyekonz shall also be the subject of a documentary by the USA Olympic Field Hockey Association.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Jazmine
Living people
American female field hockey players
Year of birth missing (living people)
21st-century American women