A project of the Division of Student Life and the Athletic Department called “Duck Crossing” was an experiment designed to bridge perceived divides between students and student-athletes at the university. The project went so well, participants are hoping to replicate it every year.

“The purpose of the project was to start a conversation about what it means to attend the University of Oregon, and what kind of legacy all students want to achieve while here,” said Jennie Leander, senior associate director of the Services for Student Athletes department. “I think you will see in the videos that each group really had their eyes opened about what each other is accomplishing, both in and out of the classroom.”

The four pairings included:

• Chelsea Randal, a family and human services major and lacrosse player and Jennifer Truong, a human physiology major, peer adviser and lab TA in that department.
• Nolan Kane, a Political Science and Spanish major who works as an IT manager and Cole Irvin, a sociology major and baseball player.
• Jillian Alleyne, a communications disorders sciences major who is also a women’s basketball player, and Ashley Anderson, a business administration major who is also an intern in the university’s Division of Student Life.
• Rodney Hardrick, an educational foundations major who plays football, and Chase Salazer, a chemistry major  who serves as president of the Interfraternity Council.

The participants shadowed each other over a week during spring term. “It gave everybody a chance to break stereotypes, and for students and student-athletes to see the differences and similarities in their lives,” Hardrick said.

The genesis for “Duck Crossing” was discussions between Leander and Katie Harbert of the office of student-athlete development. Those conversations began to include university staff from academic departments, coalescing around the shadowing concept, and they took off after a discussion between Harbert and Rita Radostitz from the Division of Student Life.

“We know that students on campus have stereotypes about athletes,” said Radostitz. “But we also found that student-athletes have stereotypes about students who don’t play intercollegiate athletics. The project was a great way for everybody to see beyond those stereotypes.”

“There is much discussion about athletics, resources, campus, etc., but it's frequently forgotten that there are real students and people behind those issues,” Leander said. “Again, I think the videos help people see that students and student-athletes have more in common than not. And we think that often gets lost when we talk about only about what makes us different.”