Post Details

Michaela Porter

Barack Obama Academy of International Studies

Duquense University Women’s Basketball Assistant Coach

Former women’s basketball professional.

Her international career spanned Portugal, Iceland, Finland, and Mongolia.

 

Growing up in Pittsburgh Public Schools, when did you first realize that sports could be more than a game for you—and how did your school experience shape who you are today, on and off the field?

 

My love for the game came much before school. Having a dad who played and had great success, as well as a brother who went before me to pave the way— my love came naturally. Growing up in PPS allowed for me to cultivate relationships that I will cherish forever. Playing with people from all different backgrounds prepared me for what was to come much further down the line. PPS experience helped me work on critical thinking, problem solving, and discipline on and off the court. Working with so many different personalities and skill sets was not always easy but helped me in the long run.

 

People often see the highlight reels, but not the preparation. What lessons from your time at PPS—inside the classroom or through coaches and teachers—helped you develop the discipline required to compete at a professional level?

One of my earliest lessons in sports was the “Five Ps”—Proper Preparation Prevents Poor Performance. This verbiage has stuck with me my entire life. On and off the court, in the classroom, and my day-to-day life, I have applied this and it has helped me get far. I remember not fully understanding what this TRULY meant until my last season of high school. By then we had won every year since middle school, and I would be lying if I said I was not starting to get complacent. We all know what it feels like to just be comfortable but then my brain went back to the “Five Ps” and my focus was no longer deterred from the main goal.

Every athlete faces setbacks—injuries, losses, self-doubt. Can you share a moment when things didn’t go as planned, and how the mindset you developed as a PPS student helped you push through?

Dr. Walter’s used to walk the halls of Obama Academy and repeat the jingle “Excuses are Symbols of Nothing”. Every time something in my life has not gone as planned, naturally I started to feel sorry for myself. The second I start to feel sorry I hear Dr. Walter’s voice telling me, “Excuses are symbols of nothing.” And I get up, dust myself off, and try again. I take pride in never giving up when things do not go as planned, and that very pride and mindset was built through my PPS experience on and off the court.

As a Black professional athlete, how do you think about representation—especially knowing that PPS students are watching and learning from your journey?

Representation is HUGE to me. I had two amazing examples as parents, when it came to representing for the ones who look like “US” in spaces that we are not always welcome. I have always said that my main goal through it all is to be able to play it forward to the next generation. I think it is so important now more than ever that the younger generation see multiple examples of success stories especially ones outside of sports.

Sports careers don’t last forever. How has your education and life experience prepared you for success beyond athletics, and what should students understand about building skills that last a lifetime?
 

Education is the most important thing in the world, and I would urge the youth to never stop feeding their brain information. There is so much more to the world than we are taught in school, so we need to continue to expand our horizon and learn as much as we can. Building skills that last a lifetime are extremely important especially with how advanced the world Is becoming. We are not always going to be able to rely on computers, phones, and technology to help us. We need to have better attention to detail, sense of direction, and awareness of what is going on around us. It may seem very simple, but it could save your life.