Here on the Heights, our tight-knit and bustling campus community is an easy place to find your passion.
Students don’t have to choose between different parts of their identity or sacrifice part of their dreams. Rather, they can embrace who they are and honor who they are becoming by taking advantage of so many opportunities on The Heights. A prime example of a Dolphin who does that incredibly well is Catherine Durant. With her flair for design, ever-present smile, and commanding personality, it’s hard not to know this impressive student.
What started as a whim in her early high school years led to Durant falling in love with track and field, and having enough success to consider running at the collegiate level. However, it was Durant herself who reached out to Le Moyne College‘s Track and Field Head Coach Robin Wheeless after she was accepted to the school.
“I was thankful and grateful enough to be a part of the Higher Education Opportunities Program (HEOP). Le Moyne sought me out at my high school and I did the interview and acceptance process for that. After I reached out to Coach Wheeless and he instantly reached back out to me and invited me to come on an overnight visit. I stayed over on campus and I liked it.”
The opportunity to go to school in “the countryside,” as Durant calls it, in Central New York was a selling point, despite how different the Syracuse area is to her home in Queens.
“In Syracuse, there are no skyscrapers, no trains, and buses only once in a while. I lived in a city that never sleeps,” Durant said. “But I wanted to step outside of my comfort zone and I said, ‘You know what? I'm going to go upstate.’”
In her four years on campus, Durant has continued to push herself far out of her comfort zone, taking on an impressive array of extracurricular activities outside of her athletic and academic pursuits. These include being the Vice President of the Fashion Club, the former Secretary of the Communications Club, working several on-campus jobs, and volunteering through both HEOP programs and with her team. Volunteering pursuits hold a special spot in Durant’s heart.
“It's always good to give back. I love giving back,” she said. “I'm always around, If you ever need me to do anything, I'm there.”
When asked why she is so involved in so many things, Durant’s answer was simple.
“I like being involved,” she said simply.
As ironic as it may sound to some, having running at the center of her very busy lifestyle helps Durant find balance and purpose in each facet of her life outside of athletics.
“Track has been something that has kept my life balanced,” she said. “In terms of working, schoolwork, and family life, track was something where I could just escape from everything. I just put it all on the track.”
Her involvement doesn’t end with the ways she stays busy on campus in daily life. Rather, Durant occupies herself with internships, and when she’s home, a manager position at the neighborhood Chipotle. Her involvement and leadership in these jobs, especially the one at Chipotle, taught her lessons she may not have learned otherwise.
“Communication is key and everybody doesn't receive, tone or a message in the same way,” she explained. “You have to really focus on word choice when you're talking to certain people. Some people take things a little differently than others. Some people are more sensitive to specific word choice.”
The learning curve is a two-way street. Durant has learned lessons from her track career that she plans to take with her into her future career after her graduation in May of this year.
“Things don't always happen overnight. I really had to learn that the hard way,” she admitted. “Whatever you put your mind to, you can actually really do. Sometimes you may have things clogging up your mind and blocking it, but if you really sit down and say, ‘I can do this, I can do this.’ It may not happen at the first meet, it may not happen at the second meet, it may not happen until the last meet, but you can still achieve that goal.”
Her collegiate running career, while successful, hasn’t always been easy. Durant had to face a new obstacle in her early college years that she had to overcome to find her stride.
“I did develop race anxiety when I got to college. That's not something that I had in high school. That was a major boundary to overcome and it was really hard for me,” she said. “I was really gonna give up, but, you know, asking for help and really seeking out help for things that you can't handle on your own is very important.”
Durant credits her family, especially her father, and Le Moyne College Wellness Center Counselor Michelle Scott for helping her learn to co-exist with her race anxiety and continue competing at the high level of success she continually achieves.
She also maintains a close relationship with her religion, finding support in God and prayer.
“Christ is a big thing. Religion is a big thing,” she said. “I always thank God after I finish a race, no matter if I finish good or bad. Without Him, I would still be me, but I wouldn't be the best person I could be."
As she looks to find a full-time position in advertising and move back to New York City after graduation, Durant plans to “hang up the spikes and become a hobby runner,” but she has some advice for anyone else contemplating or beginning their college running careers.
“It's okay to be the underdog. Don't be afraid to put extra weight on the bar. Don't be afraid to do another rep if people are doing more reps.And don't be afraid to go with the fast group. You know, you gotta go for it. If that's how you feel in that moment, don't sell yourself short because you're like, ‘Oh, I'm just a freshman.’ Go for it! Go bigger!” she said.
Summing up her four years as a Le Moyne College Track and Field athlete, Durant once again took the simple approach through a familiar three-word phrase.
“Live, laugh, and love. That's it. That's all it takes,” she said.
As she continues to share her talents and make a difference in the world with her countless endeavors, endearing smile, and tireless work ethic, we recognize just how great of an example Catherine Durant is – the perfect symbol of what a Le Moyne Dolphin should strive to become.
Story by Aly Blair '23