When I look back at my time on the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC), I will always think about the fire truck pull.
It’s for an organization called Curing Kids Cancer, and I helped organize SMU teams to participate in the pull.
The teams got assigned a kid to pull the fire truck for and got to dress up as the kid’s favorite superhero or TV show character.
I didn’t get to go last year due to a track meet, but I did this year, and watching my fellow student-athletes dress as cartoon characters or princesses as they pulled this giant fire truck as fast as they could was inspiring.
At the end of the day, we ended up raising $26,000 for Children’s Health-Dallas and the SMU football team won fastest pullers.
I think this is what I love most about SAAC: not only are we fostering a community of student-athletes but also a community that gives back.
Since high school, I have always been involved in extracurriculars.
So when my teammate, who was the president of SAAC here at SMU at the time, approached me about joining, it was an easy yes.
As I progressed from member to now-president, I also got to see SAAC grow.
During my time as Vice President, I definitely saw more and more people come to meetings and events. I continued to see that growth during my first year as President, too, and I’m hoping that continues this year.
I’ve also grown as a person because of my involvement in SAAC.
I’m a very shy and quiet person, and being the President has given me more confidence.
Public speaking will never be something I am a huge fan of, but I’m better at it now. I’ve had to lead SAAC meetings, give speeches, and present to our athletic director, which was a huge step out of my comfort zone.
I still get nervous when I make a speech or present something, but SAAC has given me the confidence and the skills to be able to address people.
My time with SAAC has also given me the chance to meet so many athletes outside of my sport.
When you go to SMU, and you’re a track and field athlete, you’re kind of in your own little world. But because of SAAC, I’ve been able to meet athletes from all different sports.
And in full transparency, that’s what it’s all about — meeting people and forming lifelong connections.
The only reason I was able to attend this year’s fire truck pull was because I was injured and didn’t get to travel with the team.
Talk about a blessing in disguise.
I tore my quad earlier this season at the conference indoor championships.
About a month ago, I was fully cleared and have been able to get back on the track, but during that time off, I’m really grateful I had SAAC to occupy my mind with.
When you’re injured as a student-athlete, it’s pretty easy to get in your own head.
SAAC helped me have something to put my energy towards besides school and rehab.
I think it’s really important to have something like that because we are more than just athletes and sports can clearly be taken away in an instant.
That’s why I highly recommend SAAC to any athlete who comes to SMU.
SMU is in the ACC now, which means we are all competing at a new level.
I think it’s crucial that we stick together and support each other as we make the transition.
A big focus of mine this year is on mental health.
The ACC doesn’t have a conference-wide mental health week but SMU has a ton of mental health resources for athletes.
We want to promote those heavily and we actually had some athletes film mental health videos for SAAC recently.
We also want to keep raising awareness locally and help the community understand what it means to now compete in a new conference.
Getting out into the Dallas community more and having people see the SMU athletes in person is important to getting the support that we need.
I know that every time we attend an after-school initiative or a fundraiser, it makes people want to support us.
That’s why we have to keep pushing forward.
This will be my last year as SAAC president.
I’ll be taking the MCAT in January and hope to go to med school after my last track season. You wouldn’t think being SAAC president would be crucial to becoming a pediatrician but thanks to SAAC, I have grown in so many areas, including leadership.
When I first started as president, I felt like I had to do everything.
In reality, I’m a student-athlete and I had way too much going on to be at every meeting or event.
I learned that I needed to delegate and trust in the people around me.
Good leaders don’t just lead. They bring people with them.
That’s what I want to stress to the next person who takes over SAAC.
Yes, you’re president and yes, you’re representing 400+ student-athletes. But you have a whole team with diverse experiences and skills to support to.
It’s okay to lean on them when you need a hand.
For anyone, being able to leave something better than when you found it would be an incredible accomplishment.
In my final year as SAAC president, that’s really all I can hope to do.
Leaving my mark — our mark — on this program and institution for the next generation of athletes to build off of.
