The idea of going to college is often a dream for many, but for one student, veering away from their anticipated and expected path led to an unexpected but rewarding experience at Colorado State University (CSU). Hailing from Boulder, Dre Ramirez stepped out of their comfort zone to decide to attend CSU, but it wasn’t premeditated; it was a choice made out of curiosity.
“I’m from Boulder, Colorado, and I honestly decided to go to CSU very last minute,” said Ramirez. “It wasn’t something that I always thought about. Growing up in Boulder, it is like ‘Oh, you don’t go to CSU if you’re from Boulder,’ but I did know that I wanted to go into health and exercise science, and I had heard great things about the program at CSU. So that’s honestly what drove me to go to CSU, and then, the first time that I toured the campus, I was like, okay, this is a lot nicer than I thought.”
Taking time in a pandemic
Their journey wasn’t without hurdles. The academic shift caused by COVID-19 during their sophomore year disrupted their collegiate landscape. Health issues compounded the challenges, prompting a crucial decision to take a semester off for mental health rejuvenation and to focus on supporting their mental and physical health through running.
“I’d say that I had a tough time after COVID hit. That was my second semester as a freshman, and we came back [from spring break] and had to go through all that,” said Ramirez. “Going back seemed quite difficult with the whole completely online idea, and I was going through a tough time health-wise, so I decided to take a semester off, which would have been my first semester as a sophomore, just working on my mental health.”
Despite the setback, the resolve to earn a bachelor’s degree never wavered. Returning, they found themselves perpetually catching up, often navigating demanding schedules and multiple summer courses to ensure they graduated alongside their peers.
“I knew I was going to come back and make sure that those obstacles weren’t what deterred me from getting my degree. After that semester, I signed up to return for the following one and just felt like I was always catching up after that,” Ramirez remembers. “I did summer school every year leading up to graduation and just tried to fit in all my classes, which was honestly pretty hard. Like my second to last semester, as a senior, I was taking 16 credits on top of working and that honestly felt tough. But I knew that I wanted to graduate with the people that I first started up with.”
Finding a home in the community
However, amidst the trials, the HES program emerged as an anchor. The tightly-knit community fostered by professors became an invaluable support system.
“Honestly, the HES program is awesome. I love the fact that I was able to make great relationships with all my professors,” Ramirez reflected. “It’s very tight-knit and I feel like you can build that relationship with professors, which I know that a lot of other majors don’t have the same ability. I got to the point where I saw my professors as friends, and I never was worried about bringing anything up to them if I was struggling at any point or had any questions related to the subject or anything.”
The community was there for Ramirez when they needed it, helping them through connections, guidance, and support so that they could continue to catch up in their studies and remain in classes with their peers, as well as to listen, showing Ramirez they had made the right decision when hearing about the community before committing to the program.
“I feel like honestly, just the community that exists within the HES program helped me know that I was in the right spot,” said Ramirez. “The professors don’t just see you as any other student, they genuinely want to get to know you, and that was everything for me.”
Although the community as a whole helped to keep them afloat during the tougher semesters, Ramirez pointed to two professors in particular as crucial supports in their success.
“Rick Perry was the professor that I took my first HES course with,” Ramirez remembered. “I took HES 145 with him when I was first starting school and just getting to know friends. I remember I knew a lot of undecided friends and I was like, should I also be undecided? Do I know if this is the right path? But the moment that I walked into that HES 145 class I was okay, his loud voice and enthusiasm were everything. It made me feel very excited to learn more, and I kind of knew I was in the right spot. Rick Perry stayed very vocal and a great professor, even though I wasn’t taking his classes towards the end of my time at CSU, he would always say hi anytime I saw him and we’d chit-chat. He’s also one of my references because I feel like we grew up in this great relationship.”
Once feeling right on their HES journey, there was another professor who made an impact and made the community feel like a home.
“Kimberly Burke is kind of a ‘Mama Bear’ to many of us in health promotion,” Ramirez laughed. “She’s seen a lot of us cry, which is funny, but she’s super supportive and genuinely cares. If you’re struggling in any way, she will do whatever she can to support you, which is so meaningful and helpful. Those two were huge highlights of my time at CSU.”
Finding purpose and identity
In the pursuit of personal and academic growth, many individuals navigate a path that intertwines their educational journey with opportunities for leadership, community building, and professional development. For Ramirez, their path led them to discover a second new home in El Centro, and their tenure there not only marked a period of professional advancement but also a profound impact on the community and personal growth.
“I worked for El Centro for two years,” Ramirez said. “I started with marketing and then became a marketing coordinator and took over more of a leadership position towards the last year that I was working there, which was great.”
Amidst the difficulties amplified by the COVID-19 pandemic, the importance of fostering a sense of community, especially for the Latinx community, became paramount.
“I feel like all the work that I did at El Centro was amazing, like building a community and also rebuilding a center that went through a hard time after losing its director,” Ramirez remembered. “With COVID as well, things just got difficult with bringing people in and feeling like there’s a sense of community, especially for the Latinx community. I feel like creating events and making sure that space is there for students to be surrounded by people who look like them and can relate is huge. At El Centro, there is an amazing spot for students on campus.”
Beyond the academic sphere, Ramirez also cherishes the balance achieved between academic excellence and social life, nurturing lifelong friendships while excelling academically. The ability to maintain focus and dedication to academic endeavors while fostering meaningful connections speaks volumes about their commitment and discipline.
“I’d say my greatest achievement is being able to stay on top of my school work while also having a great social life,” Ramirez said. “The friends that I made through college are lifelong friends and I’m really happy about that, but also the fact that I was able to stay focused and dedicated and honestly just striving for the best grades.”
Despite a pension for academics, Ramirez continued to reflect on how great the connections in the community had made their time at CSU, and how those connections would benefit them moving forward, even after graduation.
“The best grades aren’t the only important thing, but it just came as something almost natural. It’s kind of a habit that I have of being a type A kind of individual,” said Ramirez. “But I’m proud of my friendships and my academics, but also the amount of networking I was able to do at CSU as a student, which will soon help me in my search for a career.”
On top of the amazing connections made on campus, Ramirez pointed to an impactful experience gained through their internship in health promotion, an opportunity shared by all health promotion students, that further solidified their academic knowledge and practical skills, leaving a mark on their journey and extending their connections beyond campus into the professional realm.
“I wanna shout out my internship,” Ramirez said. “I’m super happy that the health promotion side of the Health and Exercise Science major is great at finding a spot that fits for you and is something that you’re looking for. I feel like the placement of Be Fit Be Well for me couldn’t have been any better, and I’m thankful to Wendy [DeYoung] for that. She’s super helpful in that sense, and many others. That internship was something that’s going to be super memorable, and I will never forget it.”
Moving onwards and upwards
When reflecting on their upcoming journey after graduation, Ramirez said they had already begun to miss many things about campus, but that they had their eyes on the horizon.
“I’ve kind of already gotten a glimpse of missing it, Ramirez said. “I miss sitting in a classroom and learning, I enjoyed that. I’m going to miss a lot of the professors and El Centro, which was a home for me. I’d say the community as a whole, I’m going miss.”
Ramirez looks past graduation to the future, but realizes that like in college, the future is about letting things come to you and working through them, and taking the time you need to sort through the process.
“I have a couple of ideas for after graduation, they’re not all set in stone, which I’ve come to accept, and understand that that’s kind of how things are,” said Ramirez. “It’s not easy to just jump into something, and that isn’t going to be my go-to. I worked hard all four years, including my internship, and I realized I kind of needed a little bit of a break to take care of myself.”
Despite already feeling homesick for the campus, Ramirez has many opportunities laid out before them, and they are letting their options remain open to allow more in.
“I am currently looking at a couple of different ways that I might go. I have reached out to the athletic director at the soccer club that I worked for in Boulder and might do some sports-specific training there,” Ramirez said.”I was also looking at this one job for a program director of Health and Wellness for the YMCA, which is a potential thing I might want to do. After working at Be Fit Be Well as an intern, I’ve realized I have a sweet spot for cancer patients and will potentially pursue something related to that as well because it was an amazing experience.”
The Department of Health and Exercise Science is proud to acknowledge Dre Ramirez as their Health and Exercise Science Health Promotion Outstanding Graduate of Fall 2023, and wish them an incredible journey as they venture into their post-graduate endeavors.
The Department of Health and Exercise Science is part of CSU’s College of Health and Human Sciences.
