DeKALB – Courtney Hughes is a professor of public health at NIU and is the faculty athletics representative. Hughes spoke to the Northern Star about her role at NIU and being awarded the 2024 Mid-American Conference Outstanding Faculty Award for Student Success.

CAN YOU TELL ME A LITTLE BIT ABOUT YOURSELF? WHAT DO YOU DO IN YOUR FREE TIME?

“I grew up in upstate New York and have lived in a number of states around the country, but I settled here in Illinois in 2010,” Hughes said. “I always loved playing sports, and I played a lot of platform tennis, and enjoy reading. I enjoy traveling and going on adventures, travel adventures with my family.” 

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE SPORT?

“I guess, like a lot of sports,” Hughes said. “I think to play, it would be platform tennis. I really like any racquet sports in terms of playing. I also enjoy biking. I enjoy hiking. I’m going on a hike with my family this summer.” 

HOW DID YOU GET INTO TENNIS?

“Growing up, we had tennis courts in our local park and I would just meet there with, like, anyone that wanted to play,” Hughes said. “And just spend all day, especially in the summers, just playing tennis. It was just a nice community to grow up in where there were lots of people that would stop by. And so that’s how I got into it and then just kind of fell in love with the competition and being able to play singles and doubles, and there’s a lot of strategy involved.”

WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO GO INTO HEALTH SERVICES?

“I mean, better health improves lives, and I wanted to have a career where I could play a role in improving people’s health at a population level,” Hughes said.

WHAT IS YOUR POSITION FOR ATHLETICS AND WHAT ARE YOUR RESPONSIBILITIES?

“I’m the faculty athletics representative,” Hughes said. “The main thing I focus on really is student-athletes’ well-being as it relates to that and part of that involves maintaining, helping student-athletes maintain that balance between the academic side, the athletic side, there’s also everything else that kind of goes along with being a student. There’s a wellness piece. Our athletes are involved in a lot of service, in keeping tabs on that representing NIU, within the MAC and in NCAA and acting kind of as a liaison on campus between the different groups that interact with student-athletes.” 

WHAT DOES YOUR TYPICAL DAY LOOK LIKE?

“One thing I really like about my job is that there isn’t a typical day per se, but I would say within each week, I likely meet with research teams, we interact with students in the classroom and then office hours, work on various committees and I guess attend an NIU athletics events root on the Huskies,” Hughes said.

WHAT WAS IT LIKE BEING AWARDED THE 2024 MID-AMERICAN CONFERENCE OUTSTANDING FACULTY AWARD FOR STUDENT SUCCESS?

“Oh, well, just very appreciative and I feel like it’s great, just so honored. I think too it’s just motivating to continue trying to find opportunities to foster a positive learning environment so that students can thrive,” Hughes said.

“I was thrilled when I heard it. A student, one of my students, actually sent me a message and it told me about it so it was really a pleasant surprise,” Hughes said.

WHAT CLASSES DO YOU TEACH AT NIU?

“I teach a variety of public health courses from intro for undergraduates like intro to public health, and undergraduates to more health systems courses for master’s students,” Hughes said. “I also teach knowledge integration in the health sciences to Ph.D. students. So it kind of runs the gamut within health sciences.”

WHY DID YOU COME TO NIU?

“I was fortunate enough to teach as an instructor in the 2018-2019 academic year,” Hughes said. “So I was part-time, and I just could see what a special place NIU is, and I really wanted to be part of this community.”

WHAT GOALS DO YOU HAVE FOR NIU IN THE NEXT 5 YEARS?

“I would say for NIU to continue being a student-centered university where students of all backgrounds can receive a top-notch education,” Hughes said. “Also  NIU has that reputation as a hub of innovation, and I think we’re on that trajectory. I see a lot of transdisciplinary research happening across campus and there are systems in place to support this focus, so I’m excited for what lies ahead. Also can’t leave out winning some MAC championships for the Huskies.”