Senior Summer Experiences: Andrew Kenneson

Davidson student-athletes are scattered near and far during the summer months. Few remain in and around Davidson, but most are out in the world taking a break from campus life. However, all are staying fit and preparing for their respective upcoming seasons, while adding extracurricular experiences to their development. Earlier this month we checked in with Andrew Kenneson of the men's soccer team on a variety of topics.

Off the field…
This spring I was chosen to be part of the Bank of America Kemp Scholars program for 2015. The program awards each participant $3,000 to do research on a topic of their choosing. My work focuses on international volunteering, or volunteerism, in Costa Rica. Given the sheer number of volunteers that go to Costa Rica every year and the relative prosperity of the country, I'm trying to find out if, and under what conditions, volunteer labor ever displaces local labor. More broadly, I aim to develop a set of best practices for finding and maintaining volunteer projects that benefit both volunteers and local communities. To do this I'm backpacking around Costa Rica and working with, observing, and conducting interviews with several volunteer organizations. I have worked with an organization in San Jose, and I will conduct interviews at other organizations and the Ministry of Labor, and my final two weeks will be spent living with an organization in a more rural setting.

On the field…
I've been doing my best to stay sharp soccer-wise as well. Living out of my backpack and hopping hostels isn't the most conducive environment for training, but I still do bodyweight exercises and stretch every day. I've also played pick-up at a local field a few times. When I get back home, I'll have a month before preseason to dedicate to training.

Focus for the team…
Our biggest challenge as a team next year will be our youth. We'll need freshmen to step up and make significant contributions from day one. With this in mind the upperclassmen have made efforts to integrate them into the team with a series of fitness-based competitions. As preseason approaches we'll be able to have more interactions around a soccer field at the camps, something that's been a success in the past. All in all, we need to stay connected over the summer, stay and fit and sharp, and look to build on last year.

Schedule

Players Mentioned

Andrew Kenneson

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