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(04/27/20 5:08pm)
IUPUI students had to make drastic changes when school chose to move online as the coronavirus epidemic entered Indiana. Students that lived in on-campus housing had to go home, and many students who live on campus are not citizens of Indiana. All students are now using Zoom to attend class, and it is harder to maintain being at home.
“Many things changed for me due to the coronavirus, my scheduled trip to D.C. was canceled, my internship at a hospital was put on pause, all my classes were shifted online, and my graduation for my master’s degree was postponed,” graduate student Khajae Henry said.
“Being taken out of the school environment and being home the entire time has made me less motivated to do my work, it is much harder to stay on top of it all,” nursing student Diamond Brown stated.
Students trying to get out of bed to drive to school is tough enough, but to get out of bed to get on your laptop is harder. The motivation to do your work is harder to maintain because the environment is never as productive as a school environment is for most people. Also, the workload has completely changed. Due dates are now closer to one another, and schedules have been changed by professors. Now, multiple classes have big assignments due the same day.
“Virtual clinical can be frustrating enough, but all of our assignments in classes have been piled up and our due really close to one another,” Brown continued.
Students who worked on campus have been lucky to keep their jobs for the most part, but students with internships are stressed. Internships are hard enough to capture, but for them to be postponed and cancelled means there is a chance they will not get them back.
“It took a mental toll on me to have gone from working and interning at Disney World, living on my own in Florida to coming back home where its cold, I don’t have my own room, I can’t leave my house, meet my friends, and my grandmother is completely dependent. She needs to be changed, fed, and constantly having her channel changed since she doesn’t know how to work her TV,” senior Tayah Bullock stated.
For students like Bullock, the internship at Disney World meant finding independence. The coronavirus epidemic got her sent home and now has caused an emotional battle for her. Students whose income was coming from working or paid internships are now struggling to even keep up with bills.
Students who graduate this semester are now forced to either wait to have a graduation or not have one at all. Most people wait their entire lives for the moment to graduate from college, but that opportunity may have gone away. College graduates are rare and the ones who are graduating this semester may not have the chance to feel the atmosphere others before them have. Graduating from anywhere is a great feeling, but not being able to walk across that stage as a college graduate takes away the opportunity for a once-in-a-lifetime feeling.
“It is hard to care about APA format or grammar when people are dying, especially when it’s uncertain if myself or my loved ones will be afflicted by this virus,” said Henry.
(04/24/20 11:12pm)
As a sophomore in high school, Lucas Rhed wanted to focus on basketball and baseball. His former cross country teammates told their coach of Rhed’s running ability. Rhed refused to run when approached, so the coach asked him if he’d like to make a bet.
The bet: if the coach could beat Rhed in a game of H-O-R-S-E, Rhed would try out for the cross country team. This isn’t what interested Rhed, it was what the coach said next.
“If I lose, I won’t approach you to run ever again,” the coach stated.
Being a basketball player, Rhed agreed. The problem was that he didn’t know the coach was Tim Ray, who in college played for Ball State University’s basketball team alongside former NBA player Bonzi Wells. Ray won and Rhed tried out for the team.
At the age of seven, when Rhed was in first grade, he found his love for sports. Initially playing basketball and baseball back home in Chesterton, Indiana, he was also introduced to track and cross country. Rhed enjoyed sports so much that he would play year-round, but they weren’t easy for him.
As a child, Rhed would walk on his tiptoes with an idiopathic disease, causing him to have surgery. Due to him standing and walking on his toes, his Achilles could not grow with his body and doctors told his parents the tendon was four and a half inches too short for his body. After the surgery in November 2007, Rhed had spent three months in a wheelchair. The local 5K run was in March, and he warned his parents of his intentions to run.
According to his doctors, “If you run in the 5K, you won’t be able to finish the race.”
This was fuel for Rhed, he finished the 5K in just over 22 minutes. This is when Rhed knew he had a gift to run. He started competitive cross country shortly after he began third grade for St. Patrick Catholic School, and he consistently finished in third place against other schools. Rhed used this as motivation to work harder, which lead him to winning first place all of fourth grade.
Once again, adversity struck when Rhed was in eighth grade. At practice, he pulled his hamstring.
“I did not want to be the kid to whine and cry about an injury,” he explained.
This is when he learned there was nothing wrong with being that kid. His decision to continue running led to a broken pelvis which started from the hamstring issue. Convinced that this injury would change his running career, Rhed decided to focus on basketball and baseball.
The summer before freshman year of high school, adversity once again took place. Rhed got injured and broke his back. As a member of a traveling baseball team, Rhed swung his bat and noticed discomfort in his back. Rhed continued to play and cause more pain each time he swung the bat. As freshman year started, during conditioning for basketball Rhed’s back gave out while squatting in the break room. Rhed had fractured his L3, L4, and L5 vertebrae. The back injury made basketball and baseball harder to play, so he needed a back brace. Due to playing in the brace the entire time, Rhed could not bend to play defense in basketball or swing a bat in baseball. This made Rhed question his future in sports as he lost confidence in himself and his love for sports.
Barely making the varsity team his junior year, Rhed trained even harder during track season to become better at cross country. Rhed would run at least 50 miles a week and cut over a minute and a half off his time. The hard work translated into the cross country season, and because Rhed did so well he made it to the state tournament. Rhed finished sixth place and would be honored as part of the All-State cross country team. This is where IUPUI cross country coaches approached him about running for the University’s cross-country team, and now he is here.
As a freshman at IUPUI, Rhed underperformed for the standards he set for himself. IUPUI had won the conference title before he attended the school, so Rhed wanted to be a part of the next win but it did not happen. The cross-country team was battling a tough season due to the death of teammate Jake Graf. Now every time Rhed and the other three members of the freshmen year team dedicate each season to Graf. Conference championship was Saturday, November 2, at Highland Heights, Kentucky. This meant everything to the team to get the win. Even more for Rhed who said his father is battling cancer and loved getting the win for his dad.
When asked what is his motivation to continue going, Rhed responded, “I have been through so much and I realize it is to help everyone else who has gone through or have to go through things so they can see that nothing can stop us.”
(02/21/20 7:02pm)
Freshman point guard Mike DePersia has been making the most of his opportunities here at IUPUI. Realizing he’s achieved his dream of playing basketball at a Division I program, DePersia has become one of the hardest workers on the team and was rewarded with a starting role in the third game of the season.
Following his first two starts, DePersia was awarded the Horizon League Freshman Player of the week. For many athletes, accolades mean their hard work has paid off. For DePersia the only one that he wants is winning the Horizon League Championship.
DePersia is originally from Cherry Hill, New Jersey, where he grew up with a twin sister, older twin brothers and his parents who raised a tight knit family. The family comes to many games, and there is a 10-hour difference between Cherry Hill and Indianapolis.
“We are a close family, especially my brothers," said DePersia. "We are always in the gym playing basketball.”
Not only are the DePersia brothers close, but they've also accomplished accolades at the same high school. The twins each scored 1,000 points during their four-year career at Haddonfield High School, then Mike did the same thing in his time there. This made the DePersia family only the fourth in New Jersey history to accomplish this.
“They always help me with stuff like watching film and working out, but to share a legacy like that is cool," said DePersia. The bond between the brothers grows stronger with basketball, because they see him capitalize on his opportunities as he watched them create their own legacies. From watching the brothers play games, practice, and playing with their friends, he knew he'd soon join them. This is where the grit, toughness, and heart he plays with come from.
“There were times when I was younger where they would take me down to the paint and bully me," DePersia said of his brothers. "That definitely made me tough.” This toughness is what helped DePersia win back-to-back state championships at Haddonfield, a toughness he brings to the IUPUI men's basketball team.
Before coming to IUPUI, DePersia packed up his toughness and brought it along with him because it is instantly what his teammates think of when he comes up. A team that wants to win the championship needs toughness. Junior forward Jamil Jackson Jr. notices the same thing.
“He definitely brings a lot of heart and leadership, he’s a small guy but packs a big punch," Jackson said.
DePersia only stands at 5’11, but he possesses the toughness and heart of a giant. Junior guard Jaylen Minnett noticed the hard work of DePersia as well.
“Mike works hard every day and has a great work ethic, he comes in before practice and stays late after practice working,” said Minnett. Minnett, known for his great work ethic as well, appreciates the way that DePersia prepares to be better every time he steps on the court. The way that DePersia approaches the game is respected and acknowledged by his teammates, and you can see it when they are on the floor together. Throughout practice as drills were ran, there were multiple times when the word “great job, Mike!” were yelled. As DePersia would prepare work on free throws, his teammates would cheer him on before he even stepped to the line.
Head coach Byron Rimm II notices the work ethic of DePersia, but he also acknowledges how it translates to the team's play. Usually at any level of basketball, first year point guards are in a hurry--but not DePersia. Once Rimm noticed in the first two games that the team turned the ball over more than he would like, he made the adjustment of inserting DePersia as the starting point guard.
“He comes in and is very steady, and he doesn’t make a lot of mistakes on the floor,” Rimm said. DePersia is so steady, Rimm wants him to be more aggressive.
“I would honestly like to see more mistakes as a result of him being more aggressive looking to score," Rimm continued. "He tries to get others the ball and not score himself.”
DePersia is bringing everything he needs to help the team win, and his aggression will just better their chances. Being a championship team is what the team goal is, and they are working towards it.
“I won in high school and I want to win here, I want to be known as a winner," DePersia said. "I will do what I have to do to help our team win.”