Senior Kafia Jackson-Woods was an athlete from elementary to high school, basketball, track, softball, cheer, gymnastics, yet she found her fate in the one she began her freshman year. Since she began volleyball her freshman year she knew it would stick, and discovered her love for the sport.

“I just realized how much I loved it more than any other sport I’ve played.  So that’s when I realized I wanted to continue playing volleyball in college,” Senior Kafia Jackson-Woods said.

On March 8, 2026, Jackson-Woods committed to volleyball for Miles College, a Division II institute in Fairfield, Alabama, where she will be majoring in Environmental Science. Miles is a small college, around 5,000 students, and close to home, allowing her to maintain relations with her family will also create many new ones with teachers and teammates at school.

“I chose Miles because of the close-knit family dynamic, and they really wanted to make sure that I knew that they’d be able to help me with my career after college and after volleyball,” Jackson-Woods said.

According to Jackson-Wood’s mom, Natasha Johnson, Miles was not at the top of the list while she was in the middle of the process but after visiting the school she found her home.

“We have been talking about school for some time now so finding the right fit has been a journey and bit of a roller coaster ride,” Johnson said. “She was sought out after visiting and meeting with other schools. I could see her playing at Miles after watching her practice during her visit.”

According to Jackson-Woods the recruitment process takes a long time, sending out emails constantly, updating and posting film to every social media account possible, and while some colleges will email you, there are many you have to reach out to.  When she finally decided to commit, a big weight was taken off her shoulders.

“Its a draining process, it would take me up to two hours every day just to email, coaches, having to find a school I liked then email them and do that multiple times a day every other day, so when I finally finished it was a great feeling, and there was no more pressure anymore to commit,” Jackson-Woods said.

Jackson-Woods started the process of emailing, visiting, and looking for just the right schools around the end of her sophomore year, and although it took a lot of time and effort out of her, she had her best friend and like a sister on the court senior Aaniya Thornton right by her side, who also recently committed earlier this season.

“Kafia is a very sweet and confident player, sometimes she gets down on herself, but it doesn’t take long for her to regroup and be that loud and energetic player that she is,” Thornton said

Being side by side in the process Thornton and Jackson-Woods have worked together the past years and influenced each other, while making these important decisions.

“I just told her to be patient because her commitment journey was a little bit more stressful than mine,” Thornton said.  I just told her to be patient, and that she will find the right school for her.” 

Agreeing with Thornton, Johnson says that Kafia will find her own path in her way and that the final decision is hers to make. 

“My hope for Kafia in college is that she has the space to explore her interests and support to find her interests and passion and to grow,” Johnson said.

While still undecided, Jackson-Woods visited the Miles campus, where she was able to play with the team and experience what her new life could be. However, after visiting, she immediately knew she knew she had found the one.

“It was definitely my top choice, but I was still thinking about it because I was scared of the commitment, but after playing and meeting with the team, it just felt right,” Jackson-Woods said.

According to Jackson-Woods if it weren’t for volleyball she says she wouldn’t have seen herself at this school when she was at the beginning of the process, but after making the decision all her supporters are behind her back in agreeing Miles is the perfect spot for her. 

I think she’ll bring a lot of energy to their team, and I think that she is going to be a great impact to their program and also to the school” Thornton said.

Bringing the whole package Jackson-Woods moves on to the next chapter of her volleyball and school career through her passion and love for the sport, and her determination as an athlete.

 “I think Kafia brings so many qualities, including her unique personality, to any environment,” Johnson said. She is passionate about volleyball and loves competition and loves to win so she will bring a strong work ethic. She will also enhance the team cohesiveness because loves people and loves the team dynamic and has a knack for bringing people together.”