How Haire found her way from breaking point to breakthrough
Ali Haire was ready to quit.
The mother of two had nearly finished her logistics and supply chain management degree at San Jacinto College when a curriculum change stretched her final semester into three. Balancing full-time work, motherhood, and classes became overwhelming.
"I was very close to dropping out," Haire said. "I'd struggled mentally, and I could only give so much of my time."
But a conversation with her logistics professor, Ivy Jenkins, shifted her perspective.
“He reminded me of how many people I’ve supported and pushed forward,” she said. “‘Don’t give up now, because that bigger picture of yours is going to disappear.’”
That encouragement became a turning point. Haire pushed through, earned straight A’s, and graduated in May 2025 with her associate degree. She also landed a new role at Third Coast, launching the next phase of her logistics career.
Haire’s path to the industry was far from traditional. A Pearland native, she left a softball scholarship at Lafayette University due to family hardship. She then began working part time as a certified nursing assistant before her stepmother introduced her to Gulf Winds, a logistics company, at the age of 19.
“I had no clue what logistics was,” Haire said. “But I needed a full-time job.”
She spent nearly five years there before moving to other logistics jobs. Then COVID-19 struck. Childcare costs outweighed her hours, and she stepped away from the workforce.
Although she returned to school to study anesthesiology, she quickly realized the medical field no longer fit her priorities.
“I don’t want to be working 12-hour days and missing my kids’ sporting events,” she said.
She enrolled in the San Jacinto College logistics program in 2022 and juggled work, school, and parenting.
I had a lot of self-doubt. Being a mom and working full time weighed on me. I’m so glad I pushed through it. My husband was a huge supporter.
Now, at Third Coast, Haire is learning the petrochemical side of logistics and hopes to become a project manager, eventually advancing in leadership — and maybe even teaching.
“I want to give back the way professor Ivy did for me,” she said. “And I want to show young people how incredible this career path is.”
Her advice for struggling students? “Take a step back. What you're going through is just a small piece of the bigger picture.”
And she’s not stopping at her associate degree. Haire plans to enroll in the College’s logistics and supply chain management bachelor’s degree program.
Learn more about logistics and supply chain management
About San Jacinto College Surrounded by monuments of history, evolving industries, maritime enterprises of today,
and the space age of tomorrow, San Jacinto College has served the people of East Harris
County, Texas, since 1961. The College is ranked second in the nation among more than
1,100 community colleges, as designated by the Aspen Institute and was named an Achieving
the Dream Leader College of Distinction in 2020. As a Hispanic-Serving Institution
that spans five campuses, plus an online college, San Jacinto College serves approximately
45,000 credit and non-credit students annually. It offers more than 200 degrees and
certificates across eight major areas of study that put students on a path to transfer
to four-year institutions or enter the workforce. The College is fiscally sound, holding
bond ratings of AA+ by Standard & Poor’s and Aa2 by Moody’s. San Jacinto College is
accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges.
