Mary Staublin, biology freshman, was the only student athlete to earn a 4.0 GPA and top the inaugural IUS Athletics Director Honor Roll during the fall semester.
To earn recognition student athletes must achieve at least a 3.0 GPA for a semester.
Staublin has a goal of keeping her high GPA. “Being competitive in volleyball made me competitive in grades, as well,” Staublin said. “It’s just second nature to me now to want the highest grade. Not that I’m overly angry if I don’t, but I do try harder.”
With volleyball practices and long tournaments, it was difficult for Staublin to keep her grades up. While 10 p.m. is her preferred time for studying, she would rather hit the sack instead.
“When I really like to study is late at night, but I would be adjusting my sleep schedule because we’d have early morning practices,” she said. “Sure, I could have gotten by on less sleep, but my roommates [would] have hated me.”
Staublin had to discover how to juggle her homework while venturing to the long volleyball tournaments.
“When I’d finally get back to my dorm after a tournament, it was so easy to just put off doing homework, so I would try to do some on the bus,” she said.
When she had free time, she would try to knock out some of her assignments instead of procrastinating.
“When my classes got really busy, I had to write down what I needed to complete each night and over the weekend, or I would have forgotten,” she said.
Staublin said she believes her competitiveness will spill into the workplace after college.
“Once I get there, I will probably be a perfectionist,” she said.
She said she hopes to get a job soon to help her parents pay for her college expenses. She said there is a possibility she will stay in the Louisville area during the summer and try to get a job at the zoo.
During her free time, Staublin enjoys spending time with her roommates and visiting her brother, who lives in Louisville.
“Sometimes I’ll cook for fun —which I just discovered that I really like — and garden in the summer,” she said. She said she
also enjoys reading a good book.
Staublin recently left
her defensive specialist and setter position on the IUS volleyball team.
“I probably won’t ever play volleyball as competitively as before,” she said. “Right now, I would only want to play it for fun with friends, and I’m more focused on trying to get a job anyway.”
Joe Glover, interim athletic director, said
student athletes juggle very stringent schedules.
“It is a true testament to their individual efforts when they can successfully balance academics and athletics,” Glover said in a press release.
The Grenadiers had 43 percent of their student-athletes earn a 3.0 GPA or higher. Twenty student athletes achieved at least a 3.5 GPA or higher. A total of 69 percent of IUS student athletes finished the semester with a GPA higher than the average of the undergraduate student
body.
By JENNIFER
HARINGTON
Staff
jeharrin@umail.iu.edu