Changemaker: Award-winning student serves his lacrosse and teaching communities
Travis Larkin juggles a busy school schedule, sports success and volunteer coaching.
Editor’s note: Throughout the year, RED’s Changemakers series will feature students, faculty members, staff members and alumni who are trailblazers for Colorado’s success and active citizens paying it forward in their communities. Are you (or is someone you know) a Changemaker? Share your story.
Editor’s note: Travis Larkin graduated from MSU Denver in May 2024.
The roll call speaks for itself. A graduate with a 4.0 GPA, captain of the Metropolitan State University of Denver Men’s Club Lacrosse team, president of the University’s Physical Education Teacher Education Club and volunteer sports coach for a local school, Travis Larkin has just packed an incredible number of achievements into his two years at MSU Denver.
The K-12 Physical Education Teaching major is also the student representative on the prestigious Society of Health and Physical Education Colorado Board and this year’s recipient of SHAPE America’s Major of the Year award. Where on earth does he get so much energy?
“I have always approached things with a ‘seize the day’ mentality,” Larkin said. “I guess that comes from my family.”
The Larkin clan even has a special phrase to describe its can-do outlook: LarkinAwesome. “It basically means: Remember to be the best version of yourself each day and grab every single opportunity to better yourself,” Larkin said.
New career
He switched careers twice, starting out in sales and then transitioning to the medical field, before coming to MSU Denver to pursue his teaching licensure in 2022. And after putting in so much hard work, he can’t wait to start his new career.
“Our awesome faculty members have been relentless in actively working to get us ready for a teaching career,” Larkin said. “Their focus on making sure we got plenty of real classroom experience out there in the field has made all the difference.”
His passion for teaching is at least partly grounded in family, particularly in seeing the positive impact that his wife, mother and brother-in-law — all teachers — have had on young lives.
“Having seen how much my family members have helped their students to learn, find their passions and grow into awesome humans, I realized that I wanted to be a part of the same deal,” he said.
RELATED: ‘Lifesaving’ stipend puts more teachers in classrooms
One good sign for Larkin’s potential future classes is that nobody seems to have more confidence in his ability than the people who know him best.
“I’m certain that Travis will step into any teaching role and make an immediate impact,” said Nhu Nguyen-Siedem, Ph.D., a Physical Education professor at MSU Denver who knows him well. “We need more committed future teachers like him, setting an example for lifelong learning and giving back to their community.”
Rewarding experience
Despite such a hectic schedule, Larkin has somehow also managed to serve as captain of the MSU Denver Club Lacrosse team, which he led to the playoffs, and as a dedicated volunteer lacrosse coach for Green Mountain High School.
Larkin earned honorable mention for attack from the Rocky Mountain Lacrosse Conference, an experience he has passed on to his young student-athletes to help develop them into community-minded, honest men. Coaching the team has also helped fine-tune his teaching skill set.
“I’ve really enjoyed building such positive and trusting relationships with my athletes, but I’ve also learned so much personally,” he said. “Watching them grow has been such an incredible and rewarding experience.”
Another rewarding element for Larkin has been, well, his whole experience at MSU Denver.
“Choosing to come here was one of the best decisions I have ever made,” he said. “From Day One, the Physical Education Teacher Education Department was so welcoming, and the faculty there have expertly guided me through this educational journey.”
Larkin has no regrets now about having set himself on such a challenging path through college, and he’s more than happy with how things have panned out.
“Ultimately, I think being so busy helped to keep me motivated and focused and warded off any procrastination,” he said. “And now that we’re so close to the end, I can definitely say it was worth every minute of the grind.”
