This past week, Go Be Red received a facelift with thousands of dollars committed in new funding, including an additional $1,800 in donations, and vital changes to ensure our young spirit initiative reaches its full potential for the hundreds of students and the hundreds of athletes it supports. As we move forward with an even stronger GBR program, I’m proud that our students are beginning to look beyond the spring break vacation and the prizes. Instead, the competition has become personal: it’s about pride for one’s school and the support of their peers on the field.
Our athletes work exceptionally hard and deserve similar support from all of us. Whether you’re part of Go Be Red or not, I ask that you take a moment this week to recognize the distinguished student athletes our university boasts. They demonstrate many of the Rensselaerian ideals that place a high premium on success in the occupational field, whether it’s on or off the rink. Former NHL star and RPI hockey phenom Adam Oates is a great example of a successful professional hockey player who went on to play for seven pro teams. Although he followed in the steps of Engineers before him that have made it to the top of their profession, he also has set an example for all who come after him.
Today we aim for all students to be as well-rounded: both smart and articulate, but also active and fit. Our athletes exceed these expectations every day. Being a college athlete is a process of conditioning the body to do certain activities in an exceptional way. An athletically oriented student is exacting the same process with his or her body as an academically oriented student is with his or her mind.
An added bonus is that many of our athletes, sought out from all over the country, bring abilities to the classroom exceeding those of the average RPI student as demonstrated by the GPA they collectively posted last spring which exceeded the entire student body’s. The time demanded to perform well in the classroom as well as on the field is not an easy task. Discipline is the key ingredient to keeping the grueling schedule that athletes face. But in addition to their athletic schedule, they must also balance papers, tests and a social calendar that is integral to succeeding at Rensselaer and later in life.
Another quality that athletes generally possess is a good work ethic. Pure athletic ability seldom carries anyone to success in Division I and Division III athletics. Generally, some natural talent is combined with hard work and a lot of endurance. Timely attendance to practices and games train a student to complete tasks with diligence even after college. Some students, on the other hand, go through four years without any improvement on work ethic or punctuality.
Certainly, I don’t expect everyone to be jumping on the red and white bandwagon in support of our athletes, but for the most part, students are on board with athletics and the exciting future ahead. Since unveiling the plans two years ago, our trustees and administrators have made a commitment to our athletics program with the East Campus Athletic Village that will be devoted to our co-academic mission in collegiate athletics.
With so much at stake, upset critics can make one of two responses to the success and attention given to our university’s athletic program. They can fight it, complaining and struggling against the political juggernaut that sometimes drives college athletics. Or they can congratulate our student athletes for their hard work, diligence, and adherence to the principles upon which our Institute was founded. An argument against the athletic program is one that denies the accolade that many of our hardest working students deserve.
The athletic program’s contribution does not end with the local community and its fans. Its greatest impact lies with the impression it leaves on the students. Evidence of the great power our athletic program has is in the donations it receives from alumni. They joyfully reflect on their time here as a result of their experiences at hockey games rooting for the Engineers. The university experience is priceless as a result of experiences shared either as an athlete or cheering them on.
So this week I advise you to take a moment to encourage our athletes, form a new Go Be Red team or just show up to a game. Our undefeated women’s hockey team plays at 7 pm on Friday and 4 pm on Saturday. There’s a football game at 1 pm Saturday on ’86 Field. Student admission is free. I will be there. You can find me by looking for the guy with his face painted half-red and half-white.
I’m not afraid to show pride in my school or its teams. Trust me, it will be written all over my face.
