For Julie Rousseau, the foundation behind a great team — whether on the court, in the classroom or at the workplace — has consistently focused on unity and collaboration. 

Rousseau is currently a USC associate athletic director, but also an adjunct professor of gender and sexuality studies and decorated former women’s basketball coach for top-notch programs like Stanford and Pepperdine. 

I know her as Dr. J, a title she earned after receiving her doctorate from Arizona State University in human systems engineering in 2019.  

Even before she began her professional career, Rousseau’s first love was sports. From quarterbacking her flag football team to playing baseball on an all-men squad when she was a kid, Rousseau has spent her life redefining the idea of what it means to lead, regardless of gender.

“They called me JR. I played with the boys. My team and my coaches knew I was a girl, but no one else, because girls weren’t allowed to play, but I was good enough to play, so I played,” Rousseau said. “The next year, my father said, ‘Hey, if she can’t be Julie, then she can’t play.’ So, they changed the rules and girls were allowed to start playing baseball.”

This would not be the last time Rousseau would enter a sports space and carve her own path. She was a star basketball player and gathered multiple offers to play at the Division I level. She eventually ended up at UC Irvine, where following a difficult first year as a student athlete, Rousseau made the challenging decision to leave school and her college basketball career behind. 

“As we know as athletes, student athletes, when something’s taken from you that you invested your whole life in … you go through a period of grieving,” Rousseau said.

However, this phase of loss was short-lived, as Rousseau came across an opportunity to coach for a high school’s girls’ varsity and boys’ junior varsity teams at Washington Preparatory High School. Through this experience, Rousseau discovered that she not only loved basketball, but had a passion for team building and helping those around her discover their full potential.

While coaching the boys’ junior varsity team, Rousseau was the only woman on staff. Despite being in the minority, Rousseau considers that time in her career as life-changing. Holding a leadership position on an all-men staff and team taught her how men and women can work together in the coaching field. 

“It was one of the most beautiful coaching staffs I think I’ve ever been on, where those young men trusted me because I knew the game, but they also had male role models, in terms of the assistant coaches,” Rousseau said. “What they saw was men and women working together.”

Rousseau’s leadership style and experience stress the importance of cohesive teamwork when it comes to coaching. This collective effort can have great outcomes, while also serving as a positive example for those being coached, creating a society more likely to be able to grasp each other’s perspectives. 

“I think the beauty of working alongside one another, working together, really is a picture of harmony, and it shows our younger generation, ‘Hey, this is how we are, this is how we can work together,’” Rousseau said. 

My first interaction with Dr. J came when I decided to take her class in Fall 2022 called “Identity Development of the Contemporary Female.” This class was composed solely of women student athletes, and it ended up being one of the most transformative experiences of my college career. Not only did this class connect me with other women on the same journey as me, but also presented me with extremely valuable insights into the complexities of identity, especially its interconnectedness with being a woman athlete in today’s world.  

Her ability to help women athletes engage with their intersecting identities and define themselves outside of their sport is inspiring. She has empowered me to see myself as a multidimensional person, and has always encouraged me to dive into different aspects of my identity, outside of tennis. 

And, it’s not just me she impacted. Dr. J has mentored and coached countless incredible women athletes, who have ended up with successful careers beyond their sports.

“When I see those young women that I coach[ed], and I hear what they’re doing, how successful they are — that’s why you do it, right?” Rousseau said.

In light of Women’s History Month, I am feeling extra grateful to be surrounded by women like Dr. J. She is a true example of what it means to be a role model for women in sports, constantly motivating everyone around her to challenge norms and embrace their own identities. 

Sloane Morra is a senior giving her opinions and perspectives on current issues in women’s sports through her column “Second Serve,” which runs every other Friday.