Reflection
What did you enjoy about this project?
I really enjoyed being able to conduct all the research that I did and find some very intereting articles linked back to this topic. The archives located in the database really allowed me to understand to some degree what was happening during that time period at Trinity and it interested me to look more and more at information that did not involve my project. It really gave me insight into events that I never knew occurred at Trinity and gave me more insight into the history of Trinity athletics as a whole.
What surprised you about this project?
I think that the reactions and environment following the division change shocked since I have only seen Trinity as a Division III institution. People were very opposed to the decision in the beginning because of the uncertainty that surrounded it. I was also surprised to find out from Julie Jenkins that before she was hired funding within the sports programs were unevenly distributed and that even women's athletes did not receive the same treatment as the men, but she indicated that that all changed when she was hired.
What was the most challenging aspect of the project, and how did you manage it?
I think the most challenging part was gathering the initial data that could be used for this project. With COVID-19, all of us were thrown into a situation for which we were not prepared. The special collections I gathered were mostly found online within the archives, but I wish I could have had more physical evidence to work off of. Also, the interviews were successful over zoom, but I think that interviewing with someone over the phone and in person are two different scenarios.
If you could start over, what would you do differently?
I would have started a lot earlier than I did and not have saved the entire project until the late semester. I also had a pretty diffiuclt time narrowing down exactly what I wanted to do with this project until I met with Anne Graff late in the semeser and she gave me tremendous advice that aided me in the direction I wanted to pursue. I ended up writing the whole essay in a pretty timely fashion so if I would have broken it down into multiple sections for specific days then I think that my overall grade could have been higher. Overall with school online, I felt myself slacking at some points, but I perservered and finished the project to the best of my ability.
What did you learn about history and/or the historical process through this project?
I found out that a lot of information that may seem irrelevant to some people actually prove very important in defining Trinity's athletic history. All the newpapers and photos in the archives gives viewers a glimpse as to what may have been going on during that time. It taught me that keeping these memories for projects like this is important especially when students can search and find a topic that they are interested in knowing more about. We always talked in class about a historical perspective and how being able to gather information and make an intelligent reference with that information allows readers to understand the facts and explain to them how you were able to make those connections.
What did you learn through this project that can be applied to life outside the classroom?
Applying this outside of the classroom, I think that I will be able to articulate information more and be able to prove the details and then be able to back it up with secondary knowledge that I have attained. Writing papers is definitely not my strong suit, but this class allowed me to practice and learn how to write a historial essay based on pure research and explain my reasonings with them. This project also opened my eyes to exploring more about historical data in general because I understand how the history of people, places, and events can give you a deeper understanding into the overall meaning of why and how.