Drew Foster: National Champion, Future Teacher

Student teaching this fall: “I will probably get hit with a lot of things you can’t teach in a classroom, but I’m prepared to grow and go with it.”

Learning at a champion in education: "There is such a friendliness and openness here.  I felt like teachers were invested in you, would ask what’s going on outside the classroom, if I needed help. With Levels 1, 2 and 3 (field experience), you get a real feel for teaching. I don’t think you get that at other schools. It’s cool to be part of education, because you get professors who are teachers as well, so they know how to teach you and they‘ve been there."

How wrestling and education work together: "We have a quote outside the wrestling room: 'How you do anything is how you do everything.' So the way you go about wrestling, focusing on the little details, that translates into your education, your relationships...It’s about giving your effort, paying attention and being focused; wrestling really contributes to other lessons in life.” 

Becoming a national champion: "Honestly, like, ‘holy cow, we did it! ’ I had to watch videos to remember! The coolest part was when I look back on social media, and everyone’s 'we're so happy, we’re going crazy.' To share the moment with teammates, coaches and my family, that was the coolest piece, they were all helping along the way."

The future: “Right now, I’m finishing up my schooling. I’ve had people reach out to talk at wrestling camps, that’s really neat and humbling. I am going to continue to wrestle. I will be on campus with the Panther wrestling club, and will try to make the Olympics this year. I’m not putting teaching away at all; the biggest thing is I want to make a difference and have an impact. I’ve had great coaches here who’ve been impactful to me, I want to make  that kind of difference. I could teach or substitute teach, keep wrestling, and coach. That would be really awesome.”