Working hard, playing hard: An Athlete's perspective

One of the things I am enjoying the most about being Special Projects Editor is that I have the freedom to choose what stories I want to write. I have the ability to shed light on issues that are important to me. Of course I make sure that they are applicable to the larger student body, but it is definitely more enjoyable to work on a piece that I am passionate about. It makes the hours of work that goes into every story well worth the effort. With my baby brother having just started his college baseball career at William and Mary, I have become very focused on the college life of varsity athletes. This week I choose to investigate the college experience of student-athletes.

Junior Jimmy Reyes knew from the moment he arrived at Elon his college experience would be different than most of his peers'. As a baseball pitcher, his days begin at 5:30 a.m. with a morning workout, and are typically completely booked until after 10 p.m. He manages to balance a full academic load along with his daily workouts, practices and games. Yet, for the majority of varsity athletes at Elon, this is nothing out of the ordinary.

Student Athlete or Athlete Student?

Despite the fact that a large majority of their college career is spent on the fields or the courts preparing for competition, most Elon athletes place academics as their first priority.

"I definitely see myself as a student who also plays baseball," junior baseball pitcher Jimmy Reyes said. "When I was choosing a school, I asked myself the same question at each one: if baseball ended tomorrow, would I be happy here? Elon was a yes."

But there are others who feel that since athletics were the avenue which brought them to Elon, it deserves to be top priority.

"Honestly, basketball is the reason I am at Elon," senior guard Devan Carter said. "But I don't take my school work lightly either. Academics are taken very seriously by the entire athletic department at Elon, and that is made clear from day one."

Though the athletes may differ as to the personal order of priority allotted to academics and athletics, the university makes the goals of the institution clear with regards to both arenas. The Athletic Handbook states that Elon University is committed to offering a program that emphasizes and rewards academic responsibility, consistent academic progress toward graduation and preparation for successful living.

The coaching staff for each team emphasizes the importance of academics by creating team GPA goals.

"Each athlete has an individual GPA goal that they are pursuing, but as a team we have a goal of maintaining an overall minimum GPA of 3.0, and we are pushing to achieve a 3.2," men's tennis coach Michael Leonard said. "Nine out of my 10 semesters at Elon we have maintained a 3.0 team GPA, but to earn the Intercollegiate Tennis Association All-Academic Team award, we need to be at 3.2."

Leonard is not alone in the high standards he sets for his team. Last year the men's soccer team was named an academic all-American team for achieving a team GPA of 3.0, and coach Darren Powell said he expects that his team can be both the conference champions and academic all-American team this year. Volleyball coach Mary Tendler, whose girls had more than a 3.4 team GPA last year, said she believes the academic success of Elon's athletes is largely due to the caliber of students Elon recruits.

"Athletes at Elon were all top performers in high school, so they have already had to learn how to balance sports and academics," Tendler said.

Leonard echoed this sentiment when he said that he didn't bother recruiting tennis players that he thought couldn't handle the work load.

The school provides student-athletes with a number of academic support opportunities to ensure their continued success in the classroom. Freshmen are required to complete six hours of study hall between Sunday and Thursday. Upperclassmen have a choice as to whether they wish to continue study hall or not, but if their GPA falls below a certain level it becomes mandatory again.

"My grades are higher than the GPA required for the tennis team, but I participate voluntarily because I tend to procrastinate otherwise, and study hall keeps me on a schedule,"  junior tennis player Chase Helpingstine said.

Athletes have an athletic academic adviser whom they meet with in addition to their major adviser. Cayce Crenshaw, the director of academic support for athletics, meets with the students to discuss any questions they may have regarding their academic and athletic workloads. Elon's athletes agree that Crenshaw is essential to their academic success.

"Before Crenshaw came, it was a lot harder to balance everything," Carter said. "She is really great and takes the time to get to know all of our professors so we all work together better. She has made a huge difference".

For many of the athletes, the emphasis on academics is practical.

"I plan on continuing to run after college, but I know it isn't something I will do professionally," senior cross country and track runner Cait Beeler said.

Others keep academics as a primary focus, but may not be quite ready to give up professional aspirations just yet.

"If the opportunity to play (basketball) professionally presented itself, I would absolutely take it," sophomore forward Courtney Medley said. "But if it isn't in the cards for me, I will pursue a career in human services."

Starting with a family

One of the biggest worries for most freshmen is meeting people and making friends. Being a student-athlete diminishes that worry as athletes start school with a whole team of friends.

"Right away I had a group of guys to be friends with so I didn't have to worry as much about meeting people," Helpingstine said. "We all have this major part of our lives in common which makes for a natural friendship."

Though freshman cross country runner Jacqueline Alnes is just beginning to experience life as a student-athlete at Elon, she said she has already reaped the benefits.

"The support from my teammates and coaches has made the transition so much easier," Alnes said. "Everyone was so welcoming and helped me get situated on campus. My teammates even offered to help me move in."

Not all it is cracked up to be

It is easy to look at the life of a fellow classmate performing in the athletic arena and be jealous. Who wouldn't want to hear a crowd of more than 2,000 people chanting their name and be treated like a celebrity after a big win? But what is often overlooked are the sacrifices made by student-athletes pursuing success at the collegiate level.

"I definitely don't get to hang out with my friends as often as I would like to like normal college students do," Carter said. "Even though my teammates are my closest friends, it would be nice to spend more time with other friends."

Student-athletes must learn to master the daily balancing act of juggling hours of weightlifting and practices while still attending all classes, studying for tests and maintaining their grades. During the season, they must also factor in 2-4 games a week, some of which can be as far away as Chattanooga, Tenn.  Bus rides become a critical study time. 

"The biggest drawback of being an athlete is the amount of time you have to dedicate to your sport," Reyes said. "I am often doing homework well into the morning, because the free time that most college students have, I spend playing baseball. My free time has to be used as academic time."

With academic and athletic commitments occupying most of the day for an athlete, little time is left for other student organizations. But the only opportunity that varsity athletes are barred from participating in is club sports. Otherwise, it is a personal decision.

"There are a few organizations I would enjoy being a part of, but there simply isn't time," senior soccer defender Laura Norwind said.

Do it all again

When all is said is done, there doesn't seem to be many athletes at Elon who regrets their decision to pursue athletics at the collegiate level. While it may be tough to balance the dual roles of student and athlete, most agree that the extra work is well worth it in the end.

"I would make the decision again in a heartbeat," Carter said. "I can't imagine being at college and not being an athlete. There isn't anything like it. I honestly don't know what I would do with my free time."

( sorry if that is really hard to read)

College life in a down economy

I would venture to say that most college students are well aware that our country is currently facing difficult economic times. We are bombarded with depressing information daily about the downward spiral. Almost every issue of major newspapers covers the "recession" and details how Obama plans to "save us." I know that times are tough and have hit many Americans hard, but as a college student I was curious to see how college life has truly been affected. Thus, for my first official story as Special Projects Editor I explored that very topic. Here's my story( photo courtesy of my fabulous roomie Ashley Barnas):

It seems that it is near impossible to go a day without reading a headline about the economic downturn or hearing about dwindling stock portfolios.  Though Elon was named one of Princeton Review's "100 Best Value Colleges for 2009," it is still a private university with tuition at $25,489 and room and board at $8,236. Therefore, it is no surprise that one of the biggest effects the economic crunch has had on Elon students has been their ability to afford Elon.

Pat Murphy, director of financial planning, said there has been a large increase in the number of students applying for financial aid this year. While the final numbers are still being calculated, Murphy estimates at least a 15 percent increase, which he believes is because of the increase in parents who have lost their jobs.

"Unemployment among Elon parents has not been restricted to any particular profession," Murphy said. "I have seen people who were making as much as $500,000 a year lose their jobs. When you have a lifestyle that has been supported by half a million dollars a year and suddenly that money is gone, you have a lot of commitments that you need to satisfy, so it becomes a problem."

Murphy also noted that many of the scholarship accounts from which funds are drawn have had lower balances this year since they have earned less money because of the market.

"For example, an endowment that might have produced $3,000 worth of scholarship money last year might have produced $2,500 this year," Murphy said.

Parents are not the only ones whose jobs have been affected by the economy. Many Elon students have also expressed concern regarding jobs.

Sophomore Laura Bondi said her hours at both her on-campus job as well as her summer job were cut.

"Budgets everywhere have been decreased because of the strained economy, and on top of that minimum wage was increased," Bondi said. "Employers have to make cutbacks somewhere and in my case, hours had to be cut."

Bondi said while she made changes in her personal life while she was at home, she hasn't needed to at Elon.

"College students are kind of in a bubble where they don't have to spend as much money," Bondi said. "I don't need a car on campus, so gas money isn't an issue and I have a meal plan so I don't need to spend extra money on food."

For senior Lesley Cowie, budgeting has been a major part of her life since 2001 when her father lost his job in the textile industry. Her family now lives off her mother's $9 an hour salary as a Lowes cashier, which leaves Cowie on her own when it comes to rent, food and other college expenses.

Cowie maintains three part-time jobs while juggling a full course load in order to make ends meet.

"My dad's situation affected me more than the economic crisis," Cowie said. "I was already pretty thrifty so I didn't really need to cut back per say because I was already working so much that I knew exactly where I could afford to spend."

Murphy, DeLoach and Cowie all advised that students maintain a budget and take full advantage of the free entertainment offered on campus.

The good news for Elon students is that the Student Union Board, an organization dedicated to providing students with low-budget or free programming, has not been affected monetarily by the economy. SUB has actually increased the number of programs offered to 70-80 a semester in order to account for the current economic climate. 

While the economic problems have slightly infiltrated the Elon bubble, students have found their college lives to be relatively unaltered.


The story also included a sidebar where the department chair of econ broke down what has happened t get us to where we are today:

The current  situation in the United States economy, at the  forefront of the news since last fall, has not necessarily been  explained at a level that the general public can understand. Elon Economics professor Steve DeLoach provides students with an easy-to-understand background of the current economy and how it got to this point.

"The mess we have on our hands today has been years in the making," DeLoach said. "I think the roots of this go back 10 or 20 years. For most of the ‘90s interest rates were super low and housing prices were on the rise. Americans started living above their means and stopped saving. It seemed logical until about a year and a half ago when the housing market started crashing.
Everyone got nervous and started selling, which only drove prices further down. Last fall, we had the big crash everyone refers to now, and people lost about 40 percent of their total wealth. It was paper wealth, but if you cut what you are worth in half you are going to stop spending. You aren't nearly as wealthy as you used to be. Suddenly, that Lexus doesn't look like such a good buy. It can all really be boiled down to the fact that consumers stopped spending because they didn't feel rich anymore."

Despite this bleak analysis, there is some good news. According to DeLoach, there are signs that we are starting to come out of the recession — consumers are slowly beginning to spend more money and businesses are starting to produce more. Unfortunately, he said the last thing to respond during a recession is actual employment.

"Businesses have a tendency to start working their existing workers longer hours long before they actually hire new people," DeLoach said. "It is a large cost to hire a new worker, so they are only going to hire new people if they are really sure about where the economy is, which is going to take some more time. About 16 percent of Americans are currently unemployed or working part time when they really want to be working full time, and those numbers are only going to get higher into sometime early next year at least. But the good news for seniors is things should start looking better by next summer."

DeLoach has already seen the economy affecting college students. When he asked his freshmen classes what they did over the summer, many of them responded "nothing," as they were unable to find a job. Internships were at an all-time low this summer and many jobs typically held by college students were unavailable as unemployed adults were forced to take on menial labor.

If we had the chance to do it all again... would we?

Relationships begin. Relationships end. So is life. Unfortunately, when a guy dumps you he isn't even polite enough to take with him all of the wonderful memories the two of you made together. He leaves those for you to painstakingly sift through at 2:02 in the morning when you can't sleep. How thoughtful. And the most annoying thing of all is that no matter how deep inside the box of "bad breakups" you stuff those little buggers, they manage to worm their way out.

It has been 9 months,and I am still sifting. The road ahead is poorly lit, while the one that I am still trying to navigate to the exit stays brightly illuminated. Never having been a fan of the dark I find myself at an impasse. And in the words of Carrie Bradshaw, I can't help but wonder if I had the chance, would I do it all over again? That is really the question that I grapple with on nights like this. If 3.5 years ago someone had whispered in my ear all of the breathtakingly wonderful moments I would spend with him, as well as shared with me the indescribable brokenness that would follow, would I have chosen the same road or quickly made a detour?

I know logically I am supposed to say yes of course I would make the same decision because everything happens for a reason, you learn something from every failed relationship, you have to figure out what you don't want to know what you do want etc. etc. I've heard all the worn out break up cliches that are intended to make you feel better, but in the end just make you feel average. In reality wouldn't it be better to just know right off the bat whether he is "THE one" or just the one for right now? Then we could cut out loses before investing any more emotions or time into bad stock.

I kind of want to watch The Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind now. See what Jim Carrey has to say on the subject. I will try and decode this awful rambling tomorrow when I'm not so sleep deprived that the words swim around on the screen. Goodnight.

You know you are a journalist when

So I have decided that you know you are a journalist when you start critiquing Carrie Bradshaw's newspaper articles on Sex and the City. I was procrastinating an assignment tonight, much like I am doing right now with this blog, and watching one of my favorite episodes (and if you couldn't guess that it was An American Girl in Paris Part Deux, you don't know me very well) when I realized that her writing style would never cut it in the real journalism world. All she ever does is pose questions stemming from the drama in her personal life and then uses each article as a way to vent or hash out her problems. She even uses the same repetitive formating for the questions every time: "I couldn't help but wonder [insert witty sexual play on words here]. There is no way any decent editor would let a columnist get into that kind of rut! But the whole point of this rant is the fact that this is what I was focused on while watching tv. I guess journalism truly has invaded every aspect of my life.

Everything's going so well!

Swim team loves!! <3

Sorry I just had to use a Moulin Rogue quote tonight because it fits my life so perfectly right now! Everything is just going great! Swim team is amazing so far and I am already totally in love with the team! We have had record numbers at everything so far: 45 at org. fair, 35 at interest meeting and 30+ at practice/ team dinner. I am thrilled and I think our numbers will stay high this year because we have so many fun/ "team bonding" activities planned. The beach retreat, especially, should be a big hit and the dinners after practice are a great way for everyone to form friendships outside of the pool, which will keep them coming BACK to the pool! I am just plain excited for this season and to see how it all turns out. I can't believe I am only president for a few more months though! It has gone way too fast. I remember worrying so much about whether I was ready for the responsibility, but now I am so thankful to all the people who encouraged me to go for it. My mom definitely helped me big time with the decision and gave me the confidence I needed to make the leap. That is why she is the best! She always believes in me, even when I don't quite believe in myself. I am so blessed.

The Pendulum has also been awesome so far this year! Today was the first issue where I was actually the Special Projects Editor and it was a really great feeling seeing that in print! I have worked really hard the past year and a half and fallen completely in love with the Pendulum and journalism in general. This is the position I have wanted for awhile, so it is a great accomplishment even if it is only for a semester. My piece for next week is coming along nicely so far. I have interviewed/ set up interviews with 6 of the 16 players I need and 3 of the 7 coaches. I am on my way! So far I have been incredibly impressed with the players I have met with. They are all well spoken, well-rounded, academic focused student-athletes. Check out my first official story here: http://www.elon.edu/pendulum/Story.aspx?id=2542 and http://www.elon.edu/pendulum/Story.aspx?id=2544 (all one story). Any comments, critiques or advice is appreciated!

I actually applied today to freelance for a financial magazine out of Richmond. It is geared towards teaching young people about finances. I am definitely not an expert in the subject, but it is one I am interested in and I would love to learn more. Hopefully, I will get picked to write the story. The magazine doesn't come out often though so my first article wouldn't be published until January 2010 (if I get picked). It is on how banks protect your identity when you bank online, which is something I am curious to learn about. I figure this is a great way to make some journalism contacts in Richmond as well as get my work published in a source outside the Pendulum. Plus $50 never hurts!

The only thing that is not perfect in my life is that I miss my family. I miss my brother a lot and as I get closer and closer to my mom I miss her too. At least we talk all the time though. Matt is impossible! I understand he is busy but I just miss not knowing what is going on in his life. I wish he was at Elon so that I could feel more like a part of his life again. I enjoyed being a large of it this summer! Thanksgiving will be great though. I can't wait to see all the Bro's as well as celebrate my brother's accomplishment of eagle scout. I think it is more a celebration of my parents and Kirstin though to be honest since they had to push him through it kicking and screaming :). But either way, he deserves to be congratulated on the time he put in and, of course, I am excited for any opportunity to have a party! I definitely think that if journalism doesn't pan out I will pursue the whole party/wedding planner dream. Mom says I'm not organized enough though so I guess that is something to consider.

Well I feel like I had more to say but it is late now, and I need to get my sleep so I don't contract the swine. A girl at Pendulum MIGHT have swine flu... yikes. We all need to be careful!

C'est la vie

This is about the 10th version of this blog post and this is the best I got: I'm not over it.

Assimilating into the journalism world

Once again I am blogging late at night when I should either be a) working on homework or b) sleeping, but since my mother is my only reader at this point I think I do this just to annoy her (I am just kidding mom :) ). Today I found out that I am going to be made an official part of the Pendulum staff (our campus newspaper) and I am totally thrilled! The details are all still up in the air as far as pay and title position but I really don't care because I officially am a part of the staff and will have my very own page whose content I am responsible for every week! I have been reporting for the paper for 2 years now and have fallen absolutely in love with it. Perhaps its the excitement of a deadline or just the simple fact that I get to write, which I'm sure you can tell by now I love to do. Either way, I am so in love that this summer I made the very scary decision to drop my plans of attending law school next fall and instead pursue a career in journalism. Now, instead of having a concrete plan of what to do with my life I am in somewhat of a limbo.

I know what I want to do: move to richmond and be a reporter for the Richmond Times-Dispatch and one day be a columnist. Basically, I want to be Carrie Bradshaw Richmond style and without all the sex talk (I definitely want her wardrobe!). However, wanting all these things is all well and good until it comes time to submit my applications along with hundreds of other very talented writers with the same passion, and very likely a lot more experience in the field. At this point I am not sure wanting will be enough. I look at all my friends at the Pendulum and their resumes are filled with impressive internships at major publications. Heck, my roommate worked at the Washington Post this summer! I know full well what I will be competing against: journalism majors with the experience and skills to boot. I, on the other hand, will only have a mildly impressive portfolio and large dose of enthusiasm to offer.

As a result, I have found myself desperately trying to play catch up with my peers who have been living for three years in this world that I only recently joined. I tweet every day now- a word I swore I would never add to my vocabulary. I try and think of insightful posts for this blog. I volunteer for way more Pendulum stories than I can handle in an effort to continue to grow my portfolio. And I pray that none of my efforts will be at the expense of my grades, as I am counting on my solid transcript to be a selling point to future employers.

I had not meant for this post to be quite as anxious as I am realizing it sounds. But this is what came out tonight so clearly it is what I feel. Stay tuned to see how it all unfolds.

Looking back and pushing ahead

First day of freshmen year
Well my last year is off to a great start I think! I was on time to all three classes (aren't you so proud mom), and they seem like they are all going to be interesting courses. I think my summer of hanging out with my brother's friends makes me now drawn to the freshmen, because all day long I was constantly surrounded by freshmen, whether it was in my classes or just helping them around campus. I am beginning to think that God has something he wants me to teach or share with the youngin's this year because I am often finding myself inexplicably wanting to give them unsolicited advice about enjoying every minute of the days to come! After both my experiences with my brother's friends this summer and two freshmen swimmers I had dinner with tonight, I find myself in a constantly reflective mood; I am torn between looking
back and pushing ahead.

I want to remember the carefree days of that first year on campus when every moment was new, fresh, a little intimidating but wonderful at the same time. I can still vividly recall the sheer nervousness I felt walking into that first class, totally unsure of what to expect and the sigh of relief I breathed when I realized there were 30 other nervous faces to greet me. I enjoy talking with the "Bros" and my new freshmen swimmers about their first impressions of college as it allows me to recapture those feelings that I regrettably took for granted. Perhaps I can instill in them the importance of not forgetting to live in the moment or letting those seemingly meaningless feelings escape.

Yet, at the same time I feel called to push forward and realize that now is not the time to dwell on the what-I-should-have-done's, but to focus on the future. For I know that the next nine months will all too soon become the topic of a reminiscent blog post. Instead, I intend to make sure that in those future blog posts I can write about all the terrific memories I made of senior year. I want there to be no twinge of regret the next time I feel myself "looking back", because I will know that I enjoyed every last minute of it, right down to the inevitable cram session that will occur. To go along with that my roommate and I have created a list of all the must-d0's of Elon, which we will accomplish before we stride confidently across that graduation stage and take our place among the rest of the inhabitants of the "real world". Check back later to see what mischief we have in store!





Leaping boldly into senior year