CHARLESTON, SC – The average cadet student-athlete at The Citadel is anything but average. They're members of the South Carolina Corps of Cadets. They go to class. They compete against the best the Southern Conference has to offer.

And for some, that's not enough. Many cadet student-athletes take an even less traveled path by majoring in unique or tough fields of study. Some come from unique backgrounds that make the already difficult even more so.

The Citadel Department of Athletics wants to recognize some of those cadet student-athletes who are not just succeeding in competition, but are doing so at a high level while overcoming some of the toughest obstacles.

Kameron Cass (Gr., Mobile, Ala.)
Sport: Track and Field
Major: Nursing (3.11 GPA)
Contract: Air Force

Why did you choose to major in nursing?
KC – "I just enjoy helping people overall. I feel like it's a very rewarding career field because you get the chance to make someone else's day better. It makes me feel good inside and I just love people."

What do you hope to do after finishing at The Citadel?
KC – "My situation is a little different because I have already graduated with my degree in health and human performance and I then decided to pursue an undergraduate degree in nursing. But my ultimate goal is to be a nurse in the Air Force."

What led you to contacting with the Air Force?
KC – "Being here in this environment made me have an appreciation and love for structure, and being in the Air Force ROTC detachment since my freshman year helped me develop a passion for it. So, I started to pursue that during my sophomore year, but I had a couple of hurdles (no pun intended since she is a member of the track and field team) along the way. God's timing is perfect. I was delayed, but not denied, and the opportunity finally came around a couple of months ago."

Outside of your classes, what are you doing to prepare for your career?
KC – "My mentor, her husband is a physical therapist and when I go home, I usually help him as his clinic to get, not necessarily nursing experience, but medical experience. Between that and finally being in clinicals, I get the opportunity to work with patients. That really gives me more chances to talk with the nurses around me questions and volunteer for different jobs."

Did you hold rank in the Corps? What are your responsibilities associated with that role?
KC – "I was a cadet captain. I had to make sure my team was on the same page and that we were moving as one with everything we did. It was a lot of communicating down the chain of command from the Commandant's Office down to my team and making sure we were all on the same page. Communication is the biggest thing with holding rank in the Corps."

Talk a little more about juggling all of your responsibilities with being a student-athlete on the track and field team, your job on campus and your class schedule.
KC – "I would say finding time to wind down. I work from 8 a.m. to 1 or 1:30 p.m. most days, then I go to practice from 2:30 p.m. to around 4:30 p.m. I do my weight sessions in the morning, and my classes are from 5:45 p.m. to 8:45 p.m., so it's just tough sometimes to just take a minute to sit down and recuperate. That's my biggest thing, but I have my schedule and I know what time I have to study. It just takes a lot of discipline to stay up after classes to go to the library until late, but also to make sure that I' going to be okay mentally and physically."

What is one thing that you will remember down the road about your time at The Citadel?
KC – "Taking care of my people. That has always been emphasized, not only within our team, but within my company. You have to make sure you're not out solely to make yourself look better, because it's about lifting up those around you, as well, and working together. I feel like that will help take me far both in the Air Force and as a nurse."


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