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ESU junior does his part

Shane McGrath poses in Koehler Fieldhouse where he spends time as the ESU Warrior when he’s not too busy as president of the Health & Phys Ed Club.

Shane McGrath, Class of 2020, has heard all the stories about student loan debt from his older brother and sister, which is why he is even more appreciative of having received the Class of 1942 Endowed Scholarship.

“My older brother and older sister are paying off their loans now, and I hear about it at Christmas,” said the health and physical education teacher education major. “Scholarships take a load off a future of paying.”

With this realization, McGrath, who is president of the Health and Phys Ed Club, has applied for and just received three more department scholarships for next year: the James R. Chamberlain ’69 Endowed Scholarship, the Class of 1938 Endowed Scholarship, and the Frank D. and Marjorie C. Sills Endowed Scholarship, while working as a rope course facilitator at Stony Acres which is an ESU recreation site, and as a work/study student.

McGrath is also one of two ESU Warrior mascots, a role he has played since he was a freshman.

“This has been my busiest year,” he said. “It’s making me a better person and a better professional. I believe the experiences within the experiences will help shape my life in general.”

McGrath became the Warrior mascot after he saw a sign posted on campus.

“I put on the suit, they put on the music, and I was a WWE fan at the time, so I just did those kinds of moves,” said McGrath. “Five minutes later, I got an email saying I got the job, and that weekend I had an event.”

When McGrath is not entertaining at football and basketball games, he is laboring happily at Stony Acres.

“I like being outside, fixing things up and cleaning up. It’s my comfort zone, and it’s a relief from on-campus pressure and stress. Stony Acres has great people there that I enjoy being with,” McGrath said.

As president of the Health and Phys Ed Club, McGrath initiates events so members can get hands-on experience. He also attends the Pennsylvania State Association of Health, Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance (PSAHPERD) Conference every fall semester. It is the HPE profession’s statewide organization.

“Every year we like to have the most representation there,” he said. “I do these things because I enjoy doing them. I don’t do them to stack my resume. I know I can do a good job.”