Education
- Ed.D.Earned Doctorate
East Tennessee State University - M.S.Master of Science
Virginia Commonwealth University - B.A.Bachelor of Arts Degree in Communications, Minors in Spanish and Dance
University of Richmond
Meet Our Co-Founder
Dr. Courtney Hughes-Harris
Co-founder of The Laurel School and a member of its Board of Trustees. Twenty years at the University of Richmond helping students make the leap from high school to college, and a conviction that the leap goes better for children who were known, challenged, and supported from the very beginning.
Co-Founder and Trustee
An educator who knows where the road leads
Dr. Courtney Hughes-Harris has spent the last twenty years at the University of Richmond, where she serves as Assistant Athletics Director for Academic Support and Co-Curricular Initiatives, directs the Bridge to Success Program, and teaches on the faculty of the School of Professional and Continuing Studies. Her work begins where elementary school ends: helping young adults arrive at college ready to learn. She and her husband, Dr. Johnathan Harris, co-founded The Laurel School to give Richmond families a school that builds that readiness from the first day of Junior Kindergarten.
Her Story
From the Spider track to Salem Church Road
Dr. Hughes-Harris is a native of Amherst, Virginia, and a University of Richmond graduate, where she competed in track and field and earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Communications with minors in Spanish and Dance. She went on to earn a Master of Science from Virginia Commonwealth University and an earned doctorate from East Tennessee State University.
She returned to Richmond in 2007 and has worked with every varsity sport at the university in some capacity since. Promoted to Assistant Athletics Director in 2020, she oversees academic support for men’s and women’s basketball, baseball, cross country, women’s track and field, field hockey, and women’s lacrosse, coordinates study halls, skill sessions, and tutoring, and serves as the Athletics department’s Disability Liaison, working closely with student-athletes with diagnosed learning differences. She also leads student-athlete civic engagement, including learning experiences abroad in South Africa, Cuba, Chile, and Costa Rica.
As Director of the Bridge to Success Program, she guides a five-week summer experience that brings first-year student-athletes and other new students to campus early to strengthen their academic skills and build community before the school year begins. And she teaches: Dr. Hughes-Harris is on the faculty of the University of Richmond School of Professional and Continuing Studies.
Twenty years of watching students arrive at college shaped her view of what an elementary school owes its children: strong foundations in reading and mathematics, habits of independence, and adults who notice. Those convictions are built into The Laurel School.
On the Board
A trustee and a Laurel parent
As a member of the Board of Trustees, Dr. Hughes-Harris helps steward the school’s mission, finances, and long-term plans, including the effort to establish a permanent endowment for The Laurel School.
She is married to Dr. Johnathan Harris, co-founder and Headmaster of The Laurel School. Their daughter, Caydence Justice Harris, is a first grader at Laurel, which means the Harris family holds the school to the same standard every Laurel family does: is this the school we would choose for our own child?
At a Glance
Education, Leadership, and Service
20
years at the University of Richmond in academic support, co-curricular programs, and teaching
Leadership and Teaching
University of Richmond Athletics
Assistant Athletics Director for Academic Support and Co-Curricular Initiatives
Bridge to Success Program
Director
University of Richmond
Faculty, School of Professional and Continuing Studies
Professional Memberships
National Association of Academic Advisors for Athletics
Women Leaders in College Sports
Association on Higher Education and Disability
Service
- Board of Trustees, The Laurel School
- Disability Liaison, Richmond Athletics
- Student-athlete civic engagement and study abroad
- Atlantic 10 Student-Athlete Welfare Committee
- VCU Center for Sport Leadership Alumni Advisory Board
In Print and Around Campus
Recent Work
- New book, 2026, with Dr. Johnathan Harris Phonics Foundations: Letters, Short Vowels, Digraphs and Blends An A–Z phonics workbook for ages 4–7.
- University of Richmond, URnow Richmond offers new Spiders a Bridge to Success
- University of Richmond Athletics Staff profile
Come See Laurel
The school the Harris family chose
The best way to understand The Laurel School is to visit it. Inquire, join us for a visit, and see the school Dr. Hughes-Harris helped build.