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Hello, my name is Andrew Hylen. I am in my third year at Grand Valley State University. I plan to teach high school grades 9-12 in English and Psychology. I am a collegiate cross country and track and field athlete, focusing on long distance running. This 2021 Fall cross country season, I became an All-American while helping our team earn the National Championship title. I am an Eagle Scout and enjoy the outdoors. I like to swim, bike, hike, and read books. I have lived in West Michigan all of my life, growing up I attended Spring Lake public schools. I have one sibling, a twin brother named Ben who is going to Aquinas College. My favorite genre to read is fantasy with my favorite author being Brandon Sanderson. I enjoy the way he makes his characters feel real. The way he develops characters with troubled backgrounds and mental disorders has taught me more about some of what people with mental illnesses go through in real life.
My emails are hylena@mail.gvsu.edu and andrewhylen@Gmail.com
Here is my resume, it can be viewed in full by opening it in another tab.
Here are a few of my favorite quotes from some of the books and people I admire:
“As every runner knows, running is about more than just putting one foot in front of the other; it is about our lifestyle and who we are.” – Joan Benoit Samuelson
“I’ll be happy if running and I can grow old together.” – Haruki Murakami
“I run because long after my footprints fade away, maybe I will have inspired a few to reject the easy path, hit the trails, put one foot in front of the other, and come to the same conclusion I did: I run because it always takes me where I want to go.” – Dean Karnazes
“And so, does the destination matter? Or is it the path we take? I declare that no accomplishment has substance nearly as great as the road used to achieve it. We are not creatures of destinations. It is the journey that shapes us. Our callused feet, our backs strong from carrying the weight of our travels, our eyes open with the fresh delight of experiences lived.” ― Brandon Sanderson, The Way of Kings
“Running allows me to set my mind free. Nothing seems impossible. Nothing unattainable.” — Kara Goucher
“I once saw a spindly man carrying a stone larger than his head upon his back. He stumbled beneath the weight, shirtless under the sun, wearing only a loincloth. He tottered down a busy thoroughfare. People made way for him. Not because they sympathized with him, but because they feared the momentum of his steps. You dare not impede one such as this. The monarch is like this man, stumbling along, the weight of a kingdom on his shoulders. Many give way before him, but so few are willing to step in and help carry the stone. They do not wish to attach themselves to the work, lest they condemn themselves to a life full of extra burdens. I left my carriage that day and took up the stone, lifting it for the man. I believe my guards were embarrassed. One can ignore a poor shirtless wretch doing such labor, but none ignore a king sharing the load. Perhaps we should switch places more often. If a king is seen to assume the burden of the poorest of men, perhaps there will be those who will help him with his own load, so invisible, yet so daunting.” ― Brandon Sanderson, The Way of Kings
“We remember the good times and the bad ones, forgetting that most times are neither good nor bad. They just are.”
― Brandon Sanderson, The Way of Kings
The fall 2021 semseter was very busy for me. In addition to doing my Teacher Apprenticeship, I ran on the Varsity Cross Country team for GVSU. For a few weeks I ran an average of 85-90 miles. Being in a classroom, helping teach for half the day gave me some consternation from time to time, especially the couple of times I was sick. I was worried about contracting Covid-19 because I would miss more school and my Cross Country season would have been over. Thankfully, I only had some respiratory and sinus infections.
For Cross Country, in the regular season, we race the 8k, then for Regionals and Nationals, we race the 10k.
After a hiatus from xc last fall because of Covid, our first race back at MSU made me excited about what was to come. We won the meet, beating MSU. I ran 25:25.5, placing 13th. At the Louisville Classic, I had the best race of my life, so far, running 23:45.0 and placing 16th; in this race I pushed myself to the edge of my fitness and still closed the last 800m hard. We came in 2nd as a team to Wisconsin, thanks Watson. The GLIAC Conference meet was a fun mud bath the entire race. We won for the 19th year in a row; I ran 25:34.3 for 10th place and 1st team All-Conference. Then, I had a cold for about 3 weeks and didn’t race Regionals. I traveled with the team, still a bit sick, but double-masked up. I ran a fartlek workout during the Regionals race, watching and cheering on the boys when I could. We won Regionals as a team, continuing to take care of business.
The day finally came, Nationals arrived. We were ready and set to go. The morning of Nationals, on our predawn shakeout run, I tripped on the sidewalk, scraping up my right hand badly and a few other spots. Luckily, I was fine, minus a chunk of skin on my hand. Jerry and all of our coaches prepared and helped us stay hydrated and cool before the race. Then it was all up to us to compete and get things done. I raced how I tend to, slowly moving up throughout the race. I achieved my goal of Top-15 and earning All-American, earning 12th place in 30:45.7.
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