HOUSTON — Four UTSA student-athletes were selected by the UTSA Athletics Inclusive Excellence Board to participate in the 2022 Black Student Athlete Summit on May 22-25 at Rice University.
De'Corian Clark from the football team and Creshaun Cresser, Ibiso David-West and Elijah Frizell from the track & field program represented the Roadrunners at the annual summit, which brings together student-athletes, staff, coaches and administrators from across the country to focus on the unique needs of black student-athletes.
"This was my fourth time to attend the Black Student Athlete Summit and it continues to be one of the best professional development opportunities I have taken part in throughout my career," said Stefanie Cisneros, Assistant Athletic Director for Life Skills. "Our student-athletes had the opportunity to not only learn from a wide range of speakers but were also able to engage in meaningful conversations with student-athletes from across the country. These opportunities contribute to their growth as effective leaders not only within their teams, but also within our campus community and beyond."
De'Corian Clark
"What I learned was that it is best to open your mind up to and explore different things. My favorite part of the summit was the bonfire after the first introduction ceremony where we met with athletes from other schools and played games. What I would bring back to UTSA from what I received at the BSA Summit is to help educate my peers on how the world we live in today is and what we can do as student-athletes to help in various situations."
Creshaun Cresser
"The thing that stood out the most at the summit was when we as student-athletes had our own breakout room. We were able to split into groups and discuss issues that we were interested in. My group discussion was about mental health regarding our sports and injuries. We also talked about programs we all would like to create at our schools catered to helping with mental health for student-athletes. My favorite part was being able to network with other black student athletes. The conversations we had were very genuine and we were able to have vulnerable conversations that left a lasting impact on me. I would like to implement a black student-athlete organization. Hearing from other schools on how they created their own organizations inspired me to create something similar at UTSA. It would be a safe space where black student-athletes can have these discussions that we had at the summit, but weekly on campus."
Ibiso David-West
"My favorite part of the BSA Summit was being surrounded by many student-athletes who looked like me and who are going through similar situations in their lives. During the student-athlete section, one of the speakers asked riveting questions that sounded controversial, but these questions made people think and share their opinions. For example, one of the questions was 'agree or disagree: should student athletes in revenue-producing sports get paid while non-revenue producing sports should not?' One thing that stood out to me was when Dr. Moore talked about how he flew a couple of students to China for them to gain that experience. He talked about how even if you have a questionable GPA, having global experience on your resume will make you more appealing to job prospects. He mentioned how he was going to take a group of people to Dubai and that really caught my attention. I heard from so many other students about what changes they made on their campus to make athletics more inclusive for black student-athletes. This was eye-opening to me because I realized that change can be made, but a leader is needed for that change to happen. I know that UTSA has an Athletics Inclusive Excellence Board, but I want to create a community and a safe space for black student-athletes on campus to be able to share their experiences, think of other ways to implement change on campus and put together thrilling events."
Elijah Frizell
"My favorite part of the summit was being able to meet and socialize with talented athletes from all parts of the country to talk about current issues within our society. What I learned during this experience was never to fight doing the right thing because it's the right thing to do. What I mean by this is don't regret being a good person or doing what is right to fit in or avoid conflict. One thing I would like to bring to UTSA would be to hold open discussions for all black student-athletes to engage in various talks about what it means to be 'more than an athlete' and who we are outside a uniform."
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