Jaylyn Sherrod has two major priorities in life: learning and basketball. And she puts the work in to excel at both. The 24-year-old is graduating from CU Denver with her second master’s degree this December, while also playing for the Minnesota Lynx in the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA).
Thanks to both the flexibility of taking classes online and working with supportive, caring faculty in CU Denver’s School of Public Affairs (SPA) Sherrod has been able to discover a passion for mental health and law enforcement through a master’s in criminal justice. And she’s pursuing that dream while competing as a professional athlete. “So many professors—I can go down the list—but everybody’s been very helpful and patient, and I really appreciate that,” Sherrod said. “[One professor] was like, ‘As long as you got the grades and you show up and you’re putting in the effort, then we’ll work with you.’ And they’ve done that.”
Sherrod, who was born and raised in Alabama, began playing basketball at seven years old. “I’m very competitive,” she said. She strives to match the academic success of her mother—a chemist who was valedictorian—while also giving her all to her sport. That conviction led her to CU Boulder at 17 years old, where she played for the women’s basketball team and earned two bachelor’s degrees in three years, one in sociology and one in philosophy, and a master’s in organizational leadership in a fourth year.
Because she’d lost a year of playing time at CU Boulder due to the pandemic, she was eligible to play one more year for the team. That allowed her to pursue another degree in the CU system, and she chose CU Denver. The university’s master’s in criminal justice piqued her interest. “I’ve talked to so many people that when the ball stops bouncing, it’s very, very hard to find your identity,” Sherrod said. “I just didn’t want to be in that situation.” She’d long been interested in forensic work, and this was a golden opportunity to explore that.
Flexibility to Achieve Great Things
Sherrod opted to take all of her courses online so she could make her practices and games. The program, like many others at CU Denver, allows students to be fully in person, fully online, or they can opt for a hybrid courseload. The classes challenged her, but her professors prepared her for it. “It helps, too, when your professors have a relationship with you in some aspect, to know who you are and know your circumstances as well,” she said.
Sherrod was able to complete her required internship at the Boulder Police Department, where she spent time with the crisis management team and first gained experience with teams that integrate mental health best practices with law enforcement. “I think working with them kind of pushed me into what I’m actually passionate about,” Sherrod said. Now, she can see herself pursuing a future in that field, when the time comes to move on from basketball and make a different play.
The Big Leagues
After that internship, Sherrod’s life took a major turn. She wasn’t done with her degree from CU Denver yet, but she signed on to play for the New York Liberty—a WNBA team based in Brooklyn, New York. “My circumstances are a little different than the average,” Sherrod said. But because the classwork was already online, and because she was able to proactively communicate with her professors, she stayed on top of her coursework and grades while playing on the road. “I’ve had to tell professors, ‘I know it’s due Sunday, but I play a game Sunday, and I’m going to be on the flight. It’ll be done, but it might not get sent out for an hour or two later, just because of my circumstances.’”
She also chose not to take any classes over the summer, which is in the middle of the WNBA season. Fortunately, SPA’s master’s degrees, like many of CU Denver’s programs, are already designed to be workable for busy adults at any stage of life, be they professional athletes or working parents.
Forever a Lynx
Today, Sherrod is playing for her second WMBA team: the Minnesota Lynx (no relation to Milo!). She’s completing her capstone project, which is an examination of emerging use cases for AI in law enforcement, and proudly gearing up to be a full-time professional athlete—with three diplomas hanging on her wall. “I’ve learned so much, and I’m so glad that I’ve done it, because 24 [years old] with three degrees in my family is huge,” Sherrod said.
And as much as she loves basketball and is still committed to the game, she knows that no career in sports lasts forever. She’s more than ready for whatever comes her way. “Three years ago, if you would’ve asked me, I would have been like, ‘I don’t really want to do anything else outside of sports,’” Sherrod said. “And if you ask me now, I’m so passionate about mental health … and I’ve enjoyed it. I’ve had fun.”