McKinsey Poole Threlkeld thought she was supposed to be a middle school classroom teacher, but the COVID-19 pandemic gave her the space to take a step back. That consideration led her to pivot to The University of Alabama Online’s Master of Arts in Higher Education Administration.
McKinsey has a passion for public education and the Crimson Tide. She credits her mom, a former teacher, for instilling those values into McKinsey and her brother as they were growing up in Thomasville, Georgia.
The Poole family has a solid foundation as Bama fans, traveling to Tuscaloosa for games and events for decades. But when it was time to earn her bachelor’s degree, McKinsey followed her mom’s example, studying English and secondary education at Clemson.
After graduation, McKinsey led her own classroom but questioned if it was the right place for her. And then COVID-19 brought the world to a standstill. It was the pause McKinsey needed to evaluate the path she was on and map a better way forward. She loved teaching and working with students, but the structure of secondary education felt limiting. She formed a plan to make her next move, enrolling with UA Online for Summer 2020.
By the start of school that autumn, McKinsey was back in her classroom full time while also taking a full-time graduate courseload, all while navigating the COVID-19 changes. She had her goal in her sights and was staying afloat when life threw a curveball.
“My mom was diagnosed with cancer in November 2020. By Summer 2021, it was just chaos. My mom was getting sicker. She had a stroke, and I had to be available to my family as a caretaker for my mom. It was so personally challenging to keep it all going. But I’m so grateful to my professors for understanding.”
McKinsey pressed on, using classwork as a welcome distraction that fit her schedule. Her dedication paid off with recognition as a Most Outstanding Student in the College of Education.
“The flexibility of the graduate program was wonderful for the way that I had to show up in my life. I was able to figure out a way that worked for me. My professors were wonderful. I learned a lot of theory and practice too. UA has a good balance that’s hard to achieve in an online program.”
McKinsey’s mom passed away on graduation weekend in May 2022.
When the time was right, McKinsey’s supportive colleagues at the middle school threw her a graduation ceremony and wished her well. McKinsey shifted to her next goal, using her new master’s degree to transition to higher education.
“It’s very powerful to say that I have a master’s degree from The University of Alabama. The recognition, the brand, I appreciate that level of confidence. I know what I’m doing, because I got a really good education. I feel prepared with the knowledge I gained from the degree. I can build on that as I move forward.”
McKinsey is thriving in her new role as a student success coach at Tri-County Technical College. She’s recently been selected to present at a NACADA conference in 2025.
“I’m still teaching, but I’m learning how to translate those skills into my current position in higher ed. I’m helping students remove barriers so that they can be successful, because we all know that students don’t come to college necessarily prepared in every way. So how can we best help students, especially those from underserved populations, get what they need to get where they need to go?”
McKinsey’s journey toward her degree has positioned her to empathize with her students’ struggles.
“A student came to me recently to share that her mom was just diagnosed with cancer. I told her, ‘I understand what you’re going through. Let me help you figure that out, because I’m on the other side of that.’ When you’re in that space, you need someone to understand and be there for you so that you can still reach your goals.”
McKinsey has a few more plans up her sleeve but nothing that she’s quite ready to put out there just yet.
“My goals are evolving in ways that I didn’t know or think were possible. I really feel like I am where I need to be, and I couldn’t have done it without this degree, truly. And that was the ultimate goal.”
Define your career with The University of Alabama Online. Find the degree program that’s right for you at online.ua.edu/degrees.
Published: May 9th, 2025