My name is KeiJhuan James, I am from O’Fallon, Illinois but currently I live in Orlando, Florida. I am a Senior at UD this year majoring in Wellness and Exercise Science. I also play safety for the University of Dubuque football team. I understand the importance of balancing my academic and athletic commitments, and I am committed to prioritizing my physical and emotional well-being. I graduated from O’Fallon Township High School in 2020, and it was a very tough transition due to Covid; between finishing high school in an online format and a hybrid learning style entering college. In my first years at UD, I struggled with my academics and mental health, as I was only focusing on football. Which led to me failing out of the university and moving back home. Once that happened, it was one of the darkest times in my young life. In April 2022, I made the decision that I was going to get better and work on my mental health and return to college to get my degree. I was given the opportunity to attend a school in Columbia, South Carolina where I was able to have a fresh restart and rewrite my story and change the perception of who I am and who I was working to be. On February 8th, 2023, as I tried to play baseball for the school that I was at I was deemed ineligible due to my previous academic performance and lack of credits transferred in. I decided that I wanted to reach out to UD about returning to be a part of the football team again. I proceeded to leave my previous institution with a 3.85 GPA and two consecutive semesters on the Dean’s List. Returning to the University I made it a priority to maintain my new academic standing and continue to better my mental and physical health. Returning back was the best decision that I could have ever made. Having my teammates welcome me back with open arms, and my coaches constantly motivate me to continue to be the best version of myself. This year is different, as I embark on the finale of my journey as an undergraduate student-athlete, and begin to prepare for graduate school. Trying to manage class, football, an internship, and a job is all a lot, but manageable with the support that I have around me. My biggest lesson and blessing came through the humility of my failure and my acceptance of help to focus on my health and becoming the best version of myself. I encourage everyone to get help and to get healthy, so that they can thrive and enjoy their journey. I am incredibly grateful to everyone who has come into my life at UD and to those who will stay in it.
