December 10, 2020
D’Andre Price found his way to Shawnee State University after completing his undergraduate degree at another institution. With a year left of eligibility in college athletics, he was recruited to play on the Men’s Basketball team after Head Coach Delano Thomas saw him playing in open gyms.
“I had been out of organized basketball for four years,” he said. “For a while I was stuck in my own head, and I almost quit the team. But then I stuck to it and finished it, realizing that the whole purpose of this was to be hard and to learn to work through it.”
Price was part of the Men’s Basketball team for the 2019-2020 season, one of the program’s best seasons in its history.
“Being part of that team was one of the best learning experiences I’ve encountered,” he said. “Playing with a team that all came together – we all had our eyes set on one goal. We became a real family on and off the court.”
Since finishing his eligibility last year, Price started as a Graduate Assistant with the team, helping to mentor and coach the players through the season. This semester, he’s graduating with his Master of Education degree.
“This wasn’t always in my plans,” he said, on attending graduate school. “I wanted to be able to learn how to help another student, rather than just going to school to go to school. And now I can see going this route how I can try to help those students who have the same path as I did. I can offer direction or guidance, or just be a role model.”
In his classes, Price enjoyed the how his professors focused on attention to details and learning for a purpose.
“Whether it was my homework assignments, emails with professors, or reading in books, I was learning how to be able to teach different groups of students,” he said. “I learned a lot more outside of just homework assignments to help take me on a route towards a career.”
Shawnee State University’s Fall Commencement Ceremony will be available to stream starting on Sat., Dec. 12 at 9 a.m. For more information visit shawnee.edu/commencement.