Reflection

What did you enjoy about this project?

I enjoyed being able to meet and talk to an outstanding student-athlete of his time. Butch Newman was a solid choice for my project because he is someone who I connected to on levels other than this project. I will enjoy being able to speak to him anytime I see him on campus now. I enjoyed being able to rummage through old photographs, Trinitonian articles, and more all to find out about Mr. Newman and his time here at Trinity. 

What surprised you about this project?

I was suprised at the similarities of 1960's Division 1 Trinity and 2017 Division 3 Trinity. Athletics then was all amateur with no money being provided to help pay for school. Division 3 today mimics what old school Division 1 looked like providing an education first mentality. 

What was the most challenging aspect of the project, and how did you manage it?

The most challenging part of the project was staying on top of the research while trying to find time to interview and write papers for check-in. This project was pushed aside at the beginning because of the balance of other classes; however, after meeting with Newman the first time this project became an exciting adventure. 

If you could start over, what would you do differently?

I would meet with Mr. Newman very early in order to have more meetings with him. I enjoyed the meetings I had with him, but feel like one or two more would have benefitted me. I also would have connected with his teammates more. Lastly I would have spent another day or so in the special collections to find out more instead of relying so heavily on the Trinitonian. 

What did you learn about history and/or the historical process through this project?

I learned that history is not as much chronological as it is interconnected like a puzzle. I had the opportunity to find an article involving a great civil right activist and my subject. These two were friends for like 30 years. This just brought to realization that the world is "small" and that people are connected all over. I would have never expected for a San Antonio kid to be friends with a harbinger in tennis. 

What did you learn through this project that can be applied to life outside the classroom? 

I learned that history is not that boring. I learned that history is not all about spending days in the library looking through old books and so on. This project has allowed me to see that history allows connections to be built between the researcher and the subject. This project also motivates me to meet with more people to hear about their time at Trinity and find out unknown facts relating to our university.