Becoming Me

If the younger version of me could see myself right now, she would be so proud. I have blossomed into a version of myself that I never saw coming.

When I first got to campus, I had no idea what to expect because who does? I was just excited to take college life by storm and to finally feel what it was like to be on my own. I didn’t have a plan, but I just knew I would get it done while enjoying myself at the same time. 

I knew that playing basketball would take up the majority of my time because that was already predetermined for me. I was here at Sacred Heart on a basketball scholarship, but I was in search of what else was next for me. I knew there was more to me than just playing sports.

Although I enjoyed my high school years playing basketball, living without any true responsibility, hanging out with friends, and pretty much just cruising through school, I wanted to take on more challenges and responsibilities once I got to college. Although college basketball comes with its own challenges, I just wanted more. Now that I am at the finish line of my collegiate career, I can say that I did just what I hoped for. 

Growing up, my favorite subject was math, but once I got to high school, it changed to English (when I had to learn algebra, math pretty much became a frenemy). I’ve always enjoyed writing papers more than taking tests and solving problems. I decided to study communications and focus on sports media because although I knew the ball would stop bouncing at some point, I still wanted to be involved in the world of sports in a way that I would enjoy. 

I honestly didn’t know how I would get it done, but I knew I had come to the right school to figure it out. Plus, I felt like my social skills and love for sports would give me a little bit of a boost while trying to make my way into the industry. 

Coming to Sacred Heart opened many doors for me and motivated me to go after every opportunity. When I was a freshman, one of my teammates, who was a senior at the time, was studying the same major that I had an interest in. She told me a little bit about the program and about how much she enjoyed learning in the school of communications, so from there on out I was convinced. 

My sophomore year, I took a multimedia production course and news writing course that opened my eyes to the broad world of communications. That year, I knew that I wanted to explore every opportunity that the school had to offer and not just sports broadcasting. 

Plus, my professors were great. They all would tell us that it is better to know more than to be tied to one area of the industry, so I made sure to soak up everything within my four years. I worked with production, journalism, digital editing, podcast, photography, and much more. 

Deciding to study communications here at SHU was one of the best things I could 

have ever done. I did way more than I had set out to do. I became a staff writer for our school’s paper, then I joined the board as an editor; I shadowed the live production team during games when I was free to learn more about what goes into a live sports game; I anchored a few news segments; I learned how to work a camera and tell a story; I became a senior producer for our student-run news show on campus; and I joined a few clubs outside of the program.

My time here at Sacred Heart has been nothing less than incredible, and as my senior year comes to an end, I can honestly say that the biggest joy I gained from being in college was growth. I took risks, put myself out there, accepted challenges, worked my hardest to reach my goals, and never gave up because I knew it would be worth it in the end.

Now, because of this school and the program I was in, I can say that although the real world can be scary, I am prepared to take on that challenge. My family, friends, classmates, professors, and team have supported me along the way and will forever be a part of who I am today.

About the author

Leave a Reply