More than glitter and garnet…

Monticello athlete works for her dream as a collegiate gymnast

Ashley Hunter
ECB Publishing, Inc.

At Centenary College of Louisiana, Jenny Jackson is studying biology and business.
Her accomplishments in the classroom has been recognized, and Jackson has made her college's Dean List multiple times and is a member of Tri-Beta – a biology honors society at the college.
At Centenary, Jackson is also a member of the college's gymnast group, where she is making her mark on the world of sports. Before playing under the Centenary colors, Jackson was a Aucilla Christian Academy Warrior and resident of Monticello.
Jenny Jackson, daughter of locals Danny and Lisa Jackson, began her gymnastics career at age four and says that from early on, she developed a passion for the sport.
Her parents enrolled her in training with the Taylor Gymnastics facilities in Perry, Fla., and the sport stuck, with Jackson's dream of becoming a college gymnast growing with each passing year.
Her dream of competing in gymnastics at a collegiate level, however, had several hurdles that Jackson first had to overcome.
“As a little girl, I always dreamed of becoming a college gymnast, but the club I was training at was very small and had never had another gymnast go to college or even reach the level I had,” explains Jackson. Her trainers - Lisa Arrowood and Mike Romano – saw Jackson's potential, however, and encouraged her, supporting her dream where they could.
“Luckily for me, [Arrowood and Romano] wanted to learn how to get me to college,” adds Jackson.
With her trainers' assistance, Jackson began to try and catch the eye of college coaches and recruiters, but it was a difficult journey from the start.
“It was hard to get college coaches to look my way since I was coming from such a small club [that] they had never heard of before.”
To put it into perspective, Jackson says there are only a little over 80 colleges in the country that have all-division college gymnastics programs; she needed to compete against the other gymnasts in the nation to capture the attention of these recruiters and coaches.
While attempting to catch the eye of the collegiate gymnastics coaches, Jackson continued to stunt.
In 2012, Jackson was the first place winner of the Level 8 State Championship for vaults, bars and beams; in 2013, she became the Level 8 AAU Nationals' first place winner for vaults, bars and all-around and won the Level 8 State Championship for vault; in 2014, Jackson was the Level 9 AAU State Champion for the floor.
She continued to gather recognition by qualifying for USA Gymnastics Regionals and AAU Nationals in 2016 and 2017.
She won the 2017 AAU National Championships on bars, beam and in the all-around category, also winning on floor at the Florida State Championships, then placed first in Level 10 at AAU Nationals on vault, bars and beam, winning the AAU State Championship in the all-around compitition.
Competing, training and winning the eye of college scouts was a lot of work, and Jackson explains that on a “light week” she would often be training for 25 hours.
“Gymnastics is a very strenuous sport,” says Jackson.
Throughout it all, Jackson held tight to her dream and continued to stay motivated. She adds that she was inspired by knowing that God had given her the talent she possessed for a reason.
“I know I am supposed to use it to the best of my ability before I can’t anymore,” adds Jackson.
She also felt the weight of being a role model for the younger, upcoming gymnasts at the Taylor Gymnastics facilities.
“I was the oldest at my club gym, the little girls that look up to me motivated me to push past my limits and work hard to show them dreams can come true,” she adds.
Through the long, difficult hours of training, Jackson held tight to her dream, worked to inspire younger athletes and was rallied on by her family and teammates.
Then, it all paid off.
Jackson was accepted into the gymnastics program at Centenary College, located in Shreveport, La., and entered her freshman year with the college in 2018.
Now, two years later, Jackson is still completing her education and stunting with her group of fellow gymnasts.
“At Centenary, I have competed in every meet except one, for an injury precaution, and [I'm] usually competing in more than one event lineup,” says Jackson. “We are currently traveling all over for competitions!”
While college life in Louisiana has definitely been a change of scenery and pace from Jackson's childhood in Jefferson County, she says that adjusting to her new life has been easier, thanks to the wonderful school she's attending.
“Lucky for me, I did not chose to attend a big university. Centenary has an average of about 552 students and 60 percent [of those] being student-athletes,” says Jackson. “This help the transition of living 10 hours away from home easier. I never walk around campus without seeing a familiar face.”
Her family also remains very engaged with her athletic career, as her parents are frequently seen supporting Jackson from the sidelines of her meets – no matter how far away those meets may be from Jefferson County.
“They never miss a meet, whether the meet is in Oregon, Pennsylvania, New York or in Shreveport – one of them is there to be in the stands supporting me,” says Jackson.
She also continues to gain support from her hometown friends as well as her two coaches.
Without Mike Romano and Lisa Arrowood, Jackson says she would not be the athlete she is today; it was their belief in her that has helped to sustain her through these years.
While she is now living in a city with an estimated population of 192,036, compared to Jefferson County's 14,144, Jackson says she is still the same country girl she was before.
“You may can take the girl out of the small town but you cannot take the small town out of the girl.”

Jackson has one more year with Centenary, and she plans to attend an occupational therapy school after her graduation; there, she aspires to obtain her doctorate and specialize in pediatrics.
Even while pursuing the world of medicine and care, Jackson doubts she will ever be able to leave behind the sport she loves so dearly.
“After my career in gymnastics is over, I am sure that I will not be able to get out of the sport, you will most likely either see me coaching or judging,” she concludes. “Its hard to just leave the sport you have been passionate for so long!”