We recently connected with Ashly Mccullough and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Ashly thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. We’d love to hear the backstory behind a risk you’ve taken – whether big or small, walk us through what it was like and how it ultimately turned out.

For years I dreamed of head coaching my own basketball team. From 2015-2022, I worked as a juvenile corrections officer from 10pm-6am and I would coach during the day. In 2020 I jumped from being an assistant coach in high school to an assistant coach in college. It was a tough decision because it lead to me community more and spending more time away from my family. During my 2 years of coaching at Glendale College, I earned my masters degree. Earning my masters degree allowed me for to change professions into teaching after I left my career in law enforcement.

Ashly , love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

My name is Ashly McCullough and I am a special Education Teacher at Eastside HS (Lancaster, CA). I am also the Head Boys Basketball coach at Eastside High School and the branch Director for All In Elite. All In Elite is a Youth Basketball program and we have teams from 9-18 years old. This program travels throughout california and some other states providing a platform for young kids to display their basketball talents. We also help with marketing players to college coaches.

I am most proud of that All In Elite has provided millions of dollars in scholarships for athlete striving to play basketball in college.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

One of the things I take pride in is my work ethic. I believe in being out worked should never be the reason you are unsuccessful. I am known as someone who tireless works hard to provide opportunities for anyone who is apart of my program.

Have you ever had to pivot?

When I realized that I no longer wanted to work in Law Enforcement, I knew I was going back to school in order to change careers. That is when I started my pursuit of my Masters degree. Once I got my masters degree, all these different doors opened up for me. When I was hired to be the Boys Basketball Head Coach at Eastside High School, I also was offered a teaching position at the school. A job I would not have been able to take advantage of if I didn’t have my masters degree.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @coach_ash_
• Facebook: Ashly McCullough
• Twitter: @coachash__
• Other: 2 underscores on the twitter account

Image Credits

Shawn McKlurin took these pictures