Yolett McPhee-McCuin (center, in blue) is congratulated by Oxford Mayor Robin Tannehill (center, in red) and McPhee-McCuin's Ole Miss women's basketball staff at the Ole Miss Women's Council's Emerging Young Philanthropist presentation. Photo by Amy Howell/UM Development
Ole Miss Women’s Council celebrates basketball coach’s spirit of giving
By Jonathan Scott
Whether she’s training athletes to work together on the basketball court or working to improving the lives of young people in communities large and small, Yolett McPhee-McCuin, head women’s basketball coach at the University of Mississippi, incorporates service to others in all aspects of her life.
McPhee-McCuin’s philanthropic spirit was celebrated August 29, when she was honored with the Emerging Young Philanthropist Award by the Ole Miss Women’s Council for Philanthropy. Coach Yo’s fans, family members, UM students, and Women’s Council members and supporters filled the ballroom of The Oliver Hotel for the event.
To be recognized for the work she does to assist others off the basketball court was enormously touching, McPhee-McCuin said.
“This award means so much to me, and I was so surprised when they told me I was being honored with the Emerging Young Philanthropist Award by the Ole Miss Women’s Council,” she said.
Coach Yo said the award was particularly meaningful because she participated in the council’s ceremony last year when Tywanna Smith, a former UM student-athlete, professional women’s basketball player and philanthropist, was the recipient.
“I’m familiar with the incredibly impactful work that members of the Women’s Council do for our Ole Miss students, as well as their efforts to promote a culture of service to others,” she said.
One of the council’s founding principles is to nurture philanthropic behavior.
“What an honor it is to recognize Coach Yo with our Emerging Young Philanthropist Award,” said Betsy Collier Smith, an active council member. “Her passion for mentoring and community service inspires us all.
“If you have heard Coach Yo speak before, you know she brings so much positivity and encouragement, and she motivates us all to be better. The spirit to serve others is the most important trait we want our Women’s Council scholars to learn while here at Ole Miss.”
In presenting the award, the council noted the 42-year-old Ole Miss coach’s positive impact with her nonprofit foundation, No Ceilings with Coach Yo.
“To me, #NoCeilings represents living your life without limits, regardless of whether that’s referring to what you do on a basketball court or what you do in your life every day,” McPhee-McCuin said.
Born in the Bahamas, McPhee-McCuin created the foundation in 2019 to help fund relief efforts aimed at assisting the island country after her homeland was devastated by Hurricane Dorian.
Since then, her foundation has expanded its focus to include supporting women and young people through education and sports in the United States and the Bahamas. This support can come from free Back 2 School giveaways, basketball clinics, and youth workshops.
This summer, for example, No Ceilings with Coach Yo hosted a series of free public events in Mississippi communities. At C.B. Webb, an income-based affordable housing complex in Oxford, McPhee-McCuin and her team put together a back-to-school drive at which they provided backpacks filled with school supplies, handed out snow cones and offered haircuts and face painting for youngsters.
She and her foundation also hosted a free basketball clinic at the Oxford Activity Center this summer.
“Coach Yo and her foundation provide outreach programs like these that not only impact our Oxford community, but many other communities around the state, country, and world,” Smith said.
McPhee-McCuin said the importance of assisting others was instilled in her at a young age.
“I think I inherited my philanthropic spirit from my parents as I was growing up in the Bahamas,” she said. “My parents always gave to those who were less fortunate. This was something they were passionate about and this same desire to help others became a part of who I am.
“Serving others is not as much about how many financial resources you can give because no amount is too small or too big. It is more about the impact you can make, regardless of whether it is giving of your finances, your time, or whatever skills and talents you might have.”
This fall, McPhee-McCuin begins her seventh season as head coach at Ole Miss. During her first six seasons, she helped elevate the women’s basketball program back into the national spotlight. During the 2023–24 season, she led the program to a record 12 SEC wins and the school’s third straight NCAA Tournament appearance.
This past basketball season also saw McPhee-McCuin picking up her 100th win as the team’s head coach, becoming only the second coach in program history to achieve that milestone. She also took the women’s basketball team to the Bahamas, where they claimed the 2023 Battle4Atlantis Championship.
She and her husband, Kelly, have two daughters, Yasmine and Yuri.
For more information about her nonprofit, visit No Ceilings with Coach Yo Foundation.
For more information about supporting the Ole Miss Women’s Council, contact Suzanne Helveston, OMWC program director, at shelveston@olemiss.edu or 662-915-2956 or click here.
