Elise Segrest White

What is your current role and what are your primary responsibilities?

I currently work in the commercial real estate industry, mainly in multifamily and retail sectors. I work for a lender in the Asset Management department, where we monitor asset performance and assist with borrower requests. I have most experience working with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, but have also worked on other lender portfolios. 

What skills from your time at SPHS have been most valuable to you?

Communication skills, grammar and writing help tremendously in my client facing role. The groups, committees, and team sports I participated in like show choir, TNT, SP tennis, etc also helped me to build social and teamwork skills. 

How did your career path evolve?

I graduated from Samford University. I began in the nursing program but decided after my first year that was not the career path for me. So I majored in English and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts. I graduated during the recession so finding jobs was difficult. I worked in retail for a year before finding my first career-oriented job, which was writing for a Golf Vacation magazine. After that, I went to Wells Fargo and worked as a loan processor, and eventually found myself at Grandbridge Real Estate Capital, where I’ve worked for 11 years.  

What advice would you give your past self about career planning?  about life planning?

Don’t sweat the small stuff. Hard work always pays off.

Who was your favorite teacher and why (and which class did they teach)?

Mr. Peoples- he was my AP English teacher and tennis coach. I enjoyed his class and his leadership on the tennis court. 

What extracurriculars did you participate in and how did that shape your time at SPHS?

Show choir, concert choir, women’s choir, TNT, tennis, FCLA. I made friends with a lot of different people and learned time management and responsibility. 

What advice would you give students to maximize their high school experience?

Problems are never as big as they seem! And your plans are going to change 1000 times, and that’s ok. 

What are you most proud of since graduating from SP?

Graduating from Samford and working my way into a career that I love. There were a lot of stepping stones along the way that could have discouraged me, but I used them as fuel and knowledge for the wonderful career that I have now.  My children, June (7) and Rob (2) make me extremely proud. I’m also so proud to be married to Josh White, a Corporate Safety Director at Brasfield & Gorrie. I’ve learned so much from these three wonderful people, and am immensely grateful for them every day. They’ve taught me patience, self control, selflessness and that I’m stronger than I ever believed.

 What are your favorite memories from your time at SPHS?

Show choir and tennis. Being with friends!