\u201cEducation wasn\u2019t plain sailing for me,\u201d Allana explains. \u201cI was diagnosed with dyslexia aged 15, which explained a lot about why I\u2019d struggled at school up until then. I felt I had the stigma of being labelled \u2018lazy\u2019. My English GCSE teacher was dyslexic and recognised the signs in me which led to me being tested and diagnosed. That played a big part in building up my confidence and I learned more about what dyslexia was.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI found myself struggling again. The brick university was so big, and I was overwhelmed by the size of the campus. We would attend lectures in a lecture theatre with 900 to 1,000 students and I found it hard taking notes from a white board and too intimidating to ask questions when I didn\u2019t understand.<\/p>\n
\u201cI failed my first year and went home and told my mum that university wasn\u2019t for me and I wanted to drop out. Mum had seen an ad for The Open University and told me that with the OU you could work alongside your studies.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gaining the support to succeed<\/strong><\/h3>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Allana-Francis-Ashmeil-portrait-crop-643x600.jpg\")
Allana began her Sport and Fitness Coaching degree in 2014 and chose to study full-time, graduating in 2016.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I began my OU course, I was a sessional sports coach for a coaching company, so I\u2019d study in the morning and coach in the afternoon. I actually found my current job (teaching sport at a private school) through coaching there. Once I started the teaching job, I\u2019d do my OU study in the evenings, at weekends and during school holidays. I was lucky as my school were very supportive of my study.<\/p>\n
\u201cI initially found the written work hard \u2013 partly due to my dyslexia \u2013 but the OU tutors were so supportive and approachable. Even if I felt a bit self-conscious about asking during a lecture, I could drop them an email afterwards. I\u2019d never had that before. Although I wasn\u2019t physically seeing my tutors day-to-day, I felt that they knew me. You always get a response very quickly at the OU.\u201d<\/p>\n
Allana continued to lean on the support of her tutors and says this was especially needed when she suffered a family bereavement. After needing to attend a funeral overseas, Allana\u2019s tutors ensured she had an extension, so she didn\u2019t fall behind:<\/p>\n
\u201cI felt appreciated as a student and it helped me to know that if I was ever in trouble or in need, I\u2019d be fine. I felt the OU understood that life happens.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Beginning a career as a sports coach<\/strong><\/h3>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Allana-Francis-Ashmeil-coaching-CROP-493x600.jpg\")
‘Coach Ace’ Allana with some of her students<\/p><\/div>\n
\u201cWhat I really liked about my particular route of study was that I had to complete a Level 2 coaching course as part of my degree. I\u2019m now a Level 2 cricket coach and Level 2 football coach and it inspired me to try to get more badges \u2013 I now have so many!\u201d<\/p>\n
It was during her degree that Allana set up \u201cProject Ace<\/a>\u201d, a sports coaching business aimed at empowering young people to pursue sport. Allana and her teams offer a range of sports clubs and academies, as well as a Sports Ambassador programme<\/a> for teenagers who have shown an interest in sports leadership.<\/p>\n\u201cI always wanted to set up a business in sports to \u2018give back\u2019. Coaching for a time in the US and Canada gave me an insight as to how they do it over there and OU study made me feel I had the capability to do more.\u00a0 Parents come to us and say, \u2018My daughter doesn\u2019t really like football\u2026\u2019 Not all kids like the \u2018generic\u2019 sports \u2013 some like tennis or golf. I never want to cut off the opportunity to work with children and I\u2019ve learned a lot from the other sport coaches.\u201d<\/p>\n
Allana continues to work at the school where she was promoted to Senior Sports Coach before being appointed Head of Diversity and Inclusion.<\/p>\n
Advice for OU students<\/strong><\/h3>\nNow a proud OU graduate, Allana shares her top tips for fellow students:<\/p>\n
\n- Know the type of studier you are<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
\u201cAre you more of a visual learning person or do you like the social aspect?\u00a0 Do you prefer to go at your own pace?\u00a0 The OU gives you options \u2013 full or part time study, and you\u2019ll have the support system of the OU along the way.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n- Focus on what works for you<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s easy to get drawn into what everyone else is doing.\u00a0 It might be the \u2018norm\u2019 to go to a brick university but that\u2019s not for everyone, particularly if you have an unseen disability such as dyslexia or dyspraxia. Education should be available to people in different ways.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m really proud to say I\u2019ve been an OU student,\u201d says Allana. \u201cEspecially coming up to graduation time, seeing motivational quotes from graduating students makes me really proud.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
\u201cThe Open University played a huge part in my success and I want to share that,\u201d says sports coach and Open University graduate Allana Francis-Ashmeil. Known as \u2018Coach Ace\u2019 to her students, Allana launched her children\u2019s coaching business while studying for her Sport, Fitness and Coaching degree. After struggling with dyslexia at school, she says […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":19212,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[862,1525,1640,1643,2403],"class_list":["post-19208","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-student-stories","tag-faculty-of-wels","tag-news-home","tag-ou-home","tag-ou-news","tag-wels"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19208","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19208"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19208\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/19212"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19208"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19208"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19208"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
Allana began her Sport and Fitness Coaching degree in 2014 and chose to study full-time, graduating in 2016.<\/p>\n\u201cI felt appreciated as a student and it helped me to know that if I was ever in trouble or in need, I\u2019d be fine. I felt the OU understood that life happens.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Beginning a career as a sports coach<\/strong><\/h3>\n‘Coach Ace’ Allana with some of her students<\/p><\/div>\n
\u201cWhat I really liked about my particular route of study was that I had to complete a Level 2 coaching course as part of my degree. I\u2019m now a Level 2 cricket coach and Level 2 football coach and it inspired me to try to get more badges \u2013 I now have so many!\u201d<\/p>\n
It was during her degree that Allana set up \u201cProject Ace<\/a>\u201d, a sports coaching business aimed at empowering young people to pursue sport. Allana and her teams offer a range of sports clubs and academies, as well as a Sports Ambassador programme<\/a> for teenagers who have shown an interest in sports leadership.<\/p>\n\u201cI always wanted to set up a business in sports to \u2018give back\u2019. Coaching for a time in the US and Canada gave me an insight as to how they do it over there and OU study made me feel I had the capability to do more.\u00a0 Parents come to us and say, \u2018My daughter doesn\u2019t really like football\u2026\u2019 Not all kids like the \u2018generic\u2019 sports \u2013 some like tennis or golf. I never want to cut off the opportunity to work with children and I\u2019ve learned a lot from the other sport coaches.\u201d<\/p>\n
Allana continues to work at the school where she was promoted to Senior Sports Coach before being appointed Head of Diversity and Inclusion.<\/p>\n
Advice for OU students<\/strong><\/h3>\nNow a proud OU graduate, Allana shares her top tips for fellow students:<\/p>\n
\n- Know the type of studier you are<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
\u201cAre you more of a visual learning person or do you like the social aspect?\u00a0 Do you prefer to go at your own pace?\u00a0 The OU gives you options \u2013 full or part time study, and you\u2019ll have the support system of the OU along the way.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n- Focus on what works for you<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s easy to get drawn into what everyone else is doing.\u00a0 It might be the \u2018norm\u2019 to go to a brick university but that\u2019s not for everyone, particularly if you have an unseen disability such as dyslexia or dyspraxia. Education should be available to people in different ways.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m really proud to say I\u2019ve been an OU student,\u201d says Allana. \u201cEspecially coming up to graduation time, seeing motivational quotes from graduating students makes me really proud.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
\u201cThe Open University played a huge part in my success and I want to share that,\u201d says sports coach and Open University graduate Allana Francis-Ashmeil. Known as \u2018Coach Ace\u2019 to her students, Allana launched her children\u2019s coaching business while studying for her Sport, Fitness and Coaching degree. After struggling with dyslexia at school, she says […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":19212,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[862,1525,1640,1643,2403],"class_list":["post-19208","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-student-stories","tag-faculty-of-wels","tag-news-home","tag-ou-home","tag-ou-news","tag-wels"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19208","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19208"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19208\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/19212"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19208"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19208"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19208"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
‘Coach Ace’ Allana with some of her students<\/p><\/div>\n
\u201cWhat I really liked about my particular route of study was that I had to complete a Level 2 coaching course as part of my degree. I\u2019m now a Level 2 cricket coach and Level 2 football coach and it inspired me to try to get more badges \u2013 I now have so many!\u201d<\/p>\n
It was during her degree that Allana set up \u201cProject Ace<\/a>\u201d, a sports coaching business aimed at empowering young people to pursue sport. Allana and her teams offer a range of sports clubs and academies, as well as a Sports Ambassador programme<\/a> for teenagers who have shown an interest in sports leadership.<\/p>\n \u201cI always wanted to set up a business in sports to \u2018give back\u2019. Coaching for a time in the US and Canada gave me an insight as to how they do it over there and OU study made me feel I had the capability to do more.\u00a0 Parents come to us and say, \u2018My daughter doesn\u2019t really like football\u2026\u2019 Not all kids like the \u2018generic\u2019 sports \u2013 some like tennis or golf. I never want to cut off the opportunity to work with children and I\u2019ve learned a lot from the other sport coaches.\u201d<\/p>\n Allana continues to work at the school where she was promoted to Senior Sports Coach before being appointed Head of Diversity and Inclusion.<\/p>\n Now a proud OU graduate, Allana shares her top tips for fellow students:<\/p>\n \u201cAre you more of a visual learning person or do you like the social aspect?\u00a0 Do you prefer to go at your own pace?\u00a0 The OU gives you options \u2013 full or part time study, and you\u2019ll have the support system of the OU along the way.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s easy to get drawn into what everyone else is doing.\u00a0 It might be the \u2018norm\u2019 to go to a brick university but that\u2019s not for everyone, particularly if you have an unseen disability such as dyslexia or dyspraxia. Education should be available to people in different ways.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m really proud to say I\u2019ve been an OU student,\u201d says Allana. \u201cEspecially coming up to graduation time, seeing motivational quotes from graduating students makes me really proud.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" \u201cThe Open University played a huge part in my success and I want to share that,\u201d says sports coach and Open University graduate Allana Francis-Ashmeil. Known as \u2018Coach Ace\u2019 to her students, Allana launched her children\u2019s coaching business while studying for her Sport, Fitness and Coaching degree. After struggling with dyslexia at school, she says […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":19212,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[862,1525,1640,1643,2403],"class_list":["post-19208","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-student-stories","tag-faculty-of-wels","tag-news-home","tag-ou-home","tag-ou-news","tag-wels"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19208","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19208"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19208\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/19212"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19208"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19208"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19208"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Advice for OU students<\/strong><\/h3>\n
\n
\n