Soline fell in love with rowing when she studied abroad at St. Peter's College, Oxford University.  After watching Oxford Blues, her mom encouraged her to "try rowing" when she was in England.  She tried out and rowed for St. Peter's College's Women's 2nd VIIIs.  Many years later, in 2023, she discovered the New Orleans Rowing Club and fell in love with the sport all over again through the NORC family.  With NORC, she has competed in the Head of the Charles, Masters Regionals, Southeast Regionals, and the Head of the Hooch.  With Fools Fest Sprints, she has competed in multiple indoor rowing races and earned the title of "Mutant Ninja Rower" in 2025.  She is also a USRowing certified Level I Coach.      

When she is not on the water, Soline is the Preschool/Lower School librarian and the Information Services Department Chair at Academy of the Sacred Heart.  She is currently serving as the President of the Louisiana Association of School Librarians as well as a Teaching with Primary Sources mentor for the Library of Congress. She previously chaired the New Orleans Information Literacy Collective, served as Secretary and a Member at Large for the Graphic Novels and Comics Roundtable, and co-chaired the editorial board for the Association for Library Services to Children's peer-reviewed journal, Children and Libraries.  Soline also holds a juris doctor from New York Law School.  She lives in New Orleans with her husband (also a Masters rower), their thirteen-year-old daughter who recently joined the NORC Juniors team as a coxswain, a crested gecko named Omelette, and their dogs, Nipper and Vespoli.   

As President of NORC, Soline is excited to share her passion for rowing with the New Orleans community and guest rowers, helping everyone feel like they belong on the water whether they are Juniors, Masters, competitive, recreational, new to the sport, or veteran rowers because, as George Pocock said, "Rowing teaches us that, in unity, we achieve greatness."   

Christa Payne started rowing in the winter of 2023.  She joined Learn to Row last winter after attending regattas to cheer on her husband, Bill, and daughter, Padgett (Class of 2028), who row with the NORC masters and juniors. She committed after meeting the supportive, welcoming, and generally hilarious NORC community. She continues because of the pre-dawn wake-ups, the relaxation of erging, the never-ending reminders to roll-up early and lean into her rigging, and the constant possibility of rowing over a gator.  

Christa grew up all over the South where she was a competitive swimmer. She graduated from Sewanee and earned an MBA from Tulane University’s A.B. Freeman School of Business. She currently works at Tulane University as a Chief Business Officer and as an adjunct professor. Prior to Tulane, Christa consulted with economically distressed cities and school districts and served as Vice President at the Public Education Foundation in Chattanooga, TN. She is dedicated to educational access and opportunities for all students.

Christa lives in New Orleans with her husband, three daughters, the sweetest elderly dog, and two terrible orange cats.  In her free time, she enjoys running (slowly), watching live music, traveling with her family, and all things New Orleans. Christa is an active supporter of Upturn Arts, the Willow School, and Eden House. She currently serves as a board member for the national organization UPCEA: The Online & Professional Education Association and on the board of the Knorr Family Foundation.  Building on the amazing work of past and present NORC board members, Christa is excited to help grow the club so it can continue to welcome rowers of all abilities- newbies (like herself), competitors (like her husband and daughter), and every level in-between. 

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A relatively recent convert to rowing, Beth grew up in the seacoast area of New Hampshire and spent nearly all her time at gymnastics practice. She competed at the Division I level for the University of Pennsylvania and graduated with a double major in History and Latin American Studies. She moved to New Orleans in 2000 to attend Tulane University, receiving her Ph.D. and starting a position at Xavier University in 2008. Currently, she is the Kellogg Endowed Professor of History and teaches classes in Caribbean history, women and gender studies, and historical theory. She is an active member of the Xavier community as well as a long-time supporter of and fundraiser for the Roots of Music program. In addition, she supports a number of non-profits throughout the city and beyond including the Music and Culture Coalition of New Orleans, the Historic New Orleans Collection, and the Equal Justice Initiative.

After taking her first Learn-to-Row class in 2017, she realized she had finally found something she loved as much as she had gymnastics. Since then, she has enjoyed practicing and traveling with NORC, including attending her first regatta in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, for Masters’ Nationals in 2021. She has her Level II U.S. Rowing coaching certificate. She also enjoys traveling and rowing with other clubs, most recently spending nine months with the CHAOS Rowing Club in Apex, North Carolina. She is excited to help keep NORC growing and introducing more people to the sport.

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Colleen discovered her love of rowing at the University of Rhode Island where she rowed for their novice and varsity teams from 2002-2004, helping the team come in 2nd at A-10s. She rejoined the rowing world in 2019 with NORC, where she has been able to enjoy being competitive again.

Outside of rowing Colleen has two kids ages 9 and 6 and works as a premium auditor for The Hartford. She is currently an Assistant Lieutenant for the Krewe of Iris. As an active member and former Captain of the 610 Splits she served as the Deb Ball chair twice, helping to raise substantial funds for community non-profits. She and her family are engaged parishioners and parents at the Holy Name of Jesus Catholic Church and School. Colleen was also named one of Cystic Fibrosis Foundation’s ‘New Orleans Finest’ for her community engagement.