Posted 8:24 a.m. Thursday, Aug. 30, 2018
Angie Lee: always there for students.
Angie Lee: always there for students
Angie Lee may have given up a career coaching women’s basketball at the Division I level years ago. But for nearly 14 years, she’s been a big-time life coach for UW-La Crosse students. The one-time, 1995 Associated Press Division I National Coach of the Year left the gym in 2003, leaving on her terms disillusioned with the Division I athletics. After various non-academic jobs, Lee returned to collegiate life as a UWL admissions counselor in 2005. After four years, she became a Career Services counselor for a year, before joining the Student Life Office, where she’s been for the last eight years. “I think my heart has always been in coaching,” says Lee. “I was still able to do that — just a different kind.” In Student Life, Lee appreciated the many different situations she encountered each day. Through it all, she helped students navigate through oftentimes tumultuous college life.“I thoroughly enjoyed the ability to work with students one-on-one and meet them where they’re at,” she says. Lee met with students who were questioning whether they should be in college or looking for a major, along with those who made poor choices. She always offered a listening ear and didn’t judge. “Mistakes are OK,” she would tell them. “Turn that mistake into a good thing to help develop you. You’re the sum of the experiences that you live.” Lee often told students that life is a series of peaks and valleys. “You never always live on the peak,” she explains. “No one ever gets to stay on the peak. There will be valleys, embrace those valleys where you will learn what is required to reach another peak.” Looking over her 14 years at UWL, Lee doesn’t refer to one, single accomplishment. Rather she sees success as a culmination of little things. “When I saw students struggling and on the edge, it’s comforting to see them bounce back and be successful,” she notes. “You’re so proud of them.” Even more fulfilling was commencement. “You would hear their name and see them walk across the stage and say ‘They did it!’” Lee says. She saw herself grow by meeting so many students from so many walks of life. “Some of my greatest learning lessons have been with students,” Lee notes. After learning her peers had selected her as the Academic Staff Excellence Award winner, Lee was humbled. With retirement beginning in July, Lee says it’s been an honor and privilege to work at UWL. “You never have to do things alone here. There’s so much support,” she says. “I’m humbled to have had the experience. I’ve grown so much.”“When I saw students struggling and on the edge, it’s comforting to see them bounce back and be successful.”