How College Swimming Changed My Life: Auburn Tiger Libby Pruden George

Photo Courtesy: Libby George

By Cathleen Pruden, Swimming World College Intern

Libby Pruden graduated from Auburn University as an SEC Champion in the mile and an NCAA All American. Upon her graduation in March 1988, she was no longer a student-athlete, but she still identifies as an Auburn swimmer and is driven by the qualities and values that college swimming instilled in her. Today, Libby (now Libby Pruden George) is a wife, a mother, the Director of Investments at North Carolina State University, and a loyal Auburn University alumna.

The Student-Athlete

Photo Courtesy: Libby George

Swimming defined George’s college experience. She described the team as a “sorority and fraternity combined.” Although she was attending college 10 hours from her home in Wilson, North Carolina, she immediately found an “extended family” among her teammates, for this was “a group of people that had the same interests and goals.”

Twice a day pool practices and dry land training took up much of her time and added a whole new level of exhaustion to the college experience, but George used her swimming to motivate her to excel in the classroom.

“I relied on determination, work ethic and self-discipline learned from the many miles logged following the little black line, to prove wrong those professors that doubted student-athletes had the ability to become successful in the classroom and ultimately in a career,” she recalls. While achieving the student-athlete balance was difficult, George believes it “enhanced [her] academic experience and made [her] a better person today.”

For George, “The determination and work ethic did not just go away once my swimming career ended, but it transferred to the next chapter in my life: work and family.”

The Parent

Photo Courtesy: Libby George

George is now a mother of two and her daughter Sammy is a distance runner at North Carolina State University. While George spent her distance workouts submerged in chlorine, she sees similarities between the sports, and is able to “’listen’ and identify with Sammy’s struggles as well as her successes.

“I have often drawn upon my experiences as a collegiate athlete in providing advice and guidance,” explained George.

The impact of swimming on parenting goes beyond her children’s athletic pursuits.

“As I have told my kids many times, one’s true character is determined not by a wrong turn or disappointing moment in your life, but how you ultimately react to that moment,” said George. Perseverance is perhaps the most important quality she gained from collegiate swimming, and it is a value she emphasizes with her children.

The Professional

As impressive as her collegiate swimming career was, George moved successfully beyond the aquatic lifestyle and into the working world, taking her first job with a regional public accounting firm in Atlanta. Here too, her background as a collegiate swimmer was invaluable. The time commitment required by Division I swimming, which during her college years had often felt like “working a full-time job while going to school,” became upon graduation “a blessing providing the necessary experiences and tools to navigate the ‘adult’ world.”

She found that “the competitive nature does not dissipate after swimming,” and that urge to excel continued to drive her forward. For the last 24 years George has worked at NCSU where she is currently the Director of Investments, a position that undoubtedly uses some of the leadership skills she honed while serving as a co-captain during the 1985-1986 season.

Coaches and parents always like to remind their swimmers that the sport’s lessons, teamwork, and leadership skills will support them the rest of their lives. George has no doubts, asserting, “Bottom line, swimming taught me life lessons.”

“In the work environment, we work in teams, have a ‘group think’ philosophy, as well as work independently toward a common goal, much like swimming.” She draws a direct parallel to her experiences at Auburn where, “in swimming, you work independently in your discipline in order to accomplish a common team goal of SEC or NCAA championship.”

Photo Courtesy: Libby George

George believes the greatest gift she received from her time at Auburn is the Auburn Creed, which defines the values instilled in her not just by the swimming program, but by the University as a whole. Swimming shaped every moment of George’s daily schedule at Auburn, and continues, 27 years later, to exert a powerful, positive influence on her daily life.

The Auburn Creed:

“I believe that this is a practical world and that I can count only on what I earn. Therefore, I believe in work, hard work. I believe in education, which gives me the knowledge to work wisely and trains my mind and my hands to work skillfully. I believe in honesty and truthfulness, without which I cannot win the respect and confidence of my fellow men. I believe in a sound mind, in a sound body and a spirit that is not afraid, and in clean sports that develop these qualities. I believe in obedience to law because it protects the rights of all. I believe in the human touch, which cultivates sympathy with my fellow men and mutual helpfulness and brings happiness for all. I believe in my Country, because it is a land of freedom and because it is my own home, and that I can best serve that country by ‘doing justly, loving mercy, and walking humbly with my God.’ And because Auburn men and women believe in these things, I believe in Auburn and love it.”

–George Petrie (1945)

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Eric Anderson

8 years ago

WDE Libby!!!

Mercy Cain

8 years ago

Wow lovely family.