Racing Toward Success
4/17/2018 12:00:00 AM | Track & Field
As seen in Engineering in Maryland:
Balancing athletics and coursework isn't always easy, but Patrick Hanley and Aaron Barlev are two Terps who know how to excel on and off the track. The mechanical engineering majors—both New Jersey natives and Presidential Scholarship recipients—are members of the University of Maryland track and field team who have been recognized for their outstanding academics.
Hanley knew from a young age that he wanted to change the world, so it was no surprise that he chose to pursue a hands-on course of study in engineering. He has worked two co-ops and plans to complete another before graduating. Most recently he worked at K2M, a leading company in complex and minimally invasive spine technologies, where he gained experience that many other students his age haven't yet gotten, like working in a cadaver lab.
Hanley walked on to the track and field team as a junior, earning his spot by first training with UMD's running club. It's this same persistence and determination that have made him a standout in academics, too. In Spring 2017, during his first year on the track team, Hanley was awarded the Intercollegiate Athletics (ICA) Academic Achievement Award for earning the highest cumulative GPA on the team and was one of only eight male student athletes at UMD to be a Big Ten Distinguished Scholar for having a GPA above 3.7.
“Engineering keeps me really focused and motivated throughout the day,” explains Hanley, “so I'm able to apply that motivation towards track and also the other way around.”
When he arrived at the Clark School as a freshman, Barlev hit the ground running— literally and figuratively. He was recruited to the Maryland track team and accepted into the First-Year Innovation & Research Experience (FIRE), a program that provides mentorship and hands-on research experience.
“FIRE has been the most impactful and valuable thing I've done on campus,” says Barlev, “because it provided a space to freely pursue my passion for robotics early in my undergraduate education.”
In FIRE, he worked with Assistant Clinical Professor Derrick Yeo on autonomous unmanned systems and has continued his work with Yeo as both a peer mentor and research fellow. In his fellowship, Barlev integrated both his engineering and athletic passions. Inspired by attempts by Puma, he created a self-driving, mini pacer car that uses vision to guide itself around a running track.
Despite his demanding training schedule, Barlev stays involved on campus as the treasurer of the Pi Tau Sigma Mechanical Engineering Honors Society while also staying on top of classes, having received the Big Ten Distinguished Scholar Award.|
