Balancing Academics with Athletics: Gymnast Fagan uses dedication, patience to find success


main_fagan
Kylie Fagan, senior, prepares to pull her herself up on the parallel bars during the gymnastics team's practice in Rose Center on Tuesday, February 4, 2015.

Kylie Fagan knows what success feels like. She has been succeeding for quite some time now.

A Central Michigan University senior gymnast, Fagan’s success stretches beyond McGuirk Arena, to the highest level of academic achievement.

An early childhood development major, Fagan maintains a 3.7 grade point average while leading the Chippewas to a Mid-American Conference championship in each of the three years she has been on the team.

For Fagan, winning championships while keeping her grades at a high level is a never-ending process.

“It’s definitely work,” Fagan admitted. “It’s time management. You have to be dedicated to both in order to succeed in both.”

Fagan said she keeps her role models in mind as she strives for perfection both on the bars and in the classroom.

“A couple years ago I had my club coach pass away,” Fagan said. “He is the one who fought for me to come to CMU. His favorite event was bars. That is my favorite event, too. Every time that I’m out there competing I think of him.”

Family traditions

The middle child in a family of eight, Fagan’s parents were both Division I athletes as well.

Her mother, Sue Fagan, ran track for the Chippewas. Her father, Tim Fagan, was a wrestler at the University of Michigan.

According to her mother, Fagan’s impressive run at CMU almost did not happen.

“She had already gone to take an official visit to Michigan State. She had been accepted,” Sue Fagan said. “She told me ‘I think I need to go to CMU one more time and take another official visit there.’ I was so happy that she would have that same kind of opportunity.”

The Commerce senior learned the value of good time management at a young age, she said.

“I was about three or four when I first started (gymnastics),” Fagan said. “I loved just flipping around. The structure of it, you always had a team but also individual.”

Halle Moraw, fellow senior and Fagan’s current roommate, said the Chippewas’ leader leads by example.

“She is different. She is very straight-forward and blunt,” Moraw said. “She is probably one of the hardest working people I’ve ever met. She doesn’t like to talk about it very much.”

Gymnastics has had a major influence in her life, Fagan said.

In 2014, Fagan was the Mid-American Conference Champion on bars with a score of 9.95. She finished the season ranked No. 1 in the MAC on the bars that year.

One season earlier, Fagan was an Academic All-MAC selection and a candidate for MAC Specialist of the Year.

Gymnastics Head Coach Jerry Reighard said Fagan’s successes on his team and in her personal and academic life are no coincidence.

“What makes her successful in the classroom allows her to be successful in athletics,” he said.

Fagan’s dedication to personal success makes her easy to coach, Reighard said.

“If you’re not really smart you may do the sport and have the talent but you’re not going to be all-conference,” he said. “It’s much easier to coach a smart person than make a mediocre person smart about their sport.”

However, Reighard observed Fagan’s quietly passionate style has made it somewhat difficult to get to know her.

“Kylie has a really laid back personality,” Reighard said. “It takes a lot to get to know her. It’s taken me really until her junior year to really break in and get to know her.”

One of Fagan’s professors at CMU, Jeanne Chaffin echoed Reighard’s comments.

“She came to class every day,” Chaffin said. “It was a three-hour night class. She was always there and always on time ready to go.”

Chaffin said Fagan never used her student-athlete status as an excuse when it came to her academics.

“I had her last spring when she was in season and busy with competitions,” Chaffin said. “She never said ‘oh by the way I have a meet this weekend’, her teammates had to tell me. It was so exciting to watch her walk through this process. She is an amazing kid.”

With the praise of her teachers, coaches and teammates constantly filling her ears, Fagan continues to strive to be her best possible self and stay modest in the process.

“I have self-motivation,” Fagan said. “Ever since I was little I’ve always wanted to be the best at what I was doing. I’m very proud of my achievements.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Share: