Jordan Franey

Classroom

Franey has a 3.38 grade point average in history and has captured Quarterly Dean’s Honors several times. As part of an emphasis in her major, Franey is studying the Portuguese slave trade in Brazil. Her minor is athletic coaching. Her career interest is in teaching/becoming an administrator in education. She has worked at Santana High School, her alma mater, as a teacher’s assistant during the summer sessions for special education and English.

Character

Beyond her significant achievements on the court, in the classroom and in the community, Franey has faced a personal obstacle that has made her success as a collegiate athlete even more admirable. Franey has a speech impairment that causes her to stutter. For years, this affected her confidence, her ability to speak in public or in the classroom, and even her ability to be a leader to her teammates because she was hesitant to speak up. However, during her collegiate career, she has worked towards improving her speech and becoming more comfortable expressing herself despite the stutter. Last year, Franey took part in a stuttering treatment program called MPI, which stands for Modifying Phonation Intervals. The research that she participated in is supported by a grant from the National Institutes of Health, and looks at the use of Pet Scans, MRIs and brain imaging as treatment techniques for speech impairments. Franey travelled to San Antonio on several occasions during the year to take part in the research, while at the same time balancing the demands of being a high level student-athlete.  While there is not a specific “cure” for stuttering, Franey’s decision to overcome this personal obstacle has been an inspiration to watch. An active booster club supports the Gaucho women’s basketball team, and the players are often asked to interact with the members. In the past, Franey would be hesitant to speak to them, lacking the confidence to express herself in public. This year, because of all the work she has done on her speech, she was asked by her coach to be the featured speaker at a big event. Franey spoke eloquently at the event about her experience as a student-athlete here at UCSB, and how grateful she is for the scholarship funding provided by the boosters.

Community

As a member of the women’s basketball team, Franey has been involved with many community service projects. Each year, the team participates in a winter YMCA Winter League Basketball Clinic where the UCSB coaches and players provide instruction for about 200 kids (ages 5-13) and teach the basic principles of passing, shooting and dribbling, while also stressing the importance of sportsmanship and teamwork.  Franey has served as an instructor for the last 3 years. In the spring, the players have participated in the annual Family Service Agency’s Children’s Festival, which is open to the public free of charge.  The players volunteer to lead and provide enthusiasm at the various game booths.  Last spring, Franey was in charge of the two bowling lanes as well as the sumo-wrestling ring. The team adopted a stretch of Highway 217 (leading into the University) and twice a year, Franey spends a couple of hours cleaning up the litter along the highway. In December 2008, the men’s and women’s basketball programs started a holiday project named “Holiday Swishes and Baskets of Fun.” The programs raised $3,000 and provided $100 Kmart gift certificates to 30 local, underprivileged kids.  Franey was assigned to a child and helped her spend the $100 gift certificate on themselves and on gifts for their families. In September 2009, the entire team visited a domestic violence shelter and interacted with the mothers and children living there.  Franey played basketball, painted, and decorated cupcakes with all of the kids.

Competition

Franey returns for her senior season after averaging 6.3 points and 4.3 rebounds last year, earning her All-Big West Honorable Mention honors. She is the Gauchos’ leading returning scorer and rebounder. With five seniors on the 2008-09 team, Franey was the only non-starter in the Big West to earn all-conference honors. She was named the Big West’s Freshman of the Year in 2006 and enters her senior season with the 1,000-point career goal in sight. Franey has not missed a game in her previous three seasons, playing in all 96 possible UCSB contests. Last season, she averaged 7.6 points and 5.3 rebounds per game in Big West play and reached double-figures in six straight games in January, a stretch where she averaged 11.3 points and 5.5 rebounds. She currently ranks 6th all-time in UCSB history for FT percentage.